Peanuts & their Benefits for Heart Health, Diabetes Management, and Weight Loss

“With a handful of peanuts, a day, keep several diseases at bay!” No, we are not altering the famous quote, featuring apple fruit but we are crafting this after knowing the enormous benefits you can obtain from the most affordable nut i.e., Groundnut or peanut. With the winter’s vibes surrounding you, you will find the market flooded with fresh vegetables, fruits, and yes Peanuts! Peanut or groundnut is a common snack, affordable to almost anyone, and one cannot resist oneself until the end of that paper cone.

People who cannot afford the royal members of the nut family like almonds, and cashew can reap similar benefits from this down-to-earth family member. If you are a regular follower of fitness and diet trends, you must have come across the term- peanut butter. Yes, this is where the millennial generation can immediately relate to this once-a-treasure snack. Loaded with the goodness of vitamins and minerals, groundnut is versatile in nature and a way of consumption too!

Hold on to this blog to know more interesting facts about these monkey nuts!

What are the Historical Footprints of Peanut?

Although peanut is a common ingredient in several Indian recipes, you will be wondering to learn that it is native to South America. Thanks to the European explorers for bringing this wonder plant to Asia, Africa, and North America. It is a legume crop and widely produced as an oil crop. Bears the botanical name “Arachis hypogaea L”, which is derived from the Greek language. Arachis translates to legume and hypogaea meant to be below the ground, which depicts the geocarpic nature of the pod formation of the plant.

Groundnut is covered with a shell that is used as fertilizers or in the fuel process. The colour of the groundnut varies from light brown to deep red. One can find pigmentation on the nuts with the courtesy of flavonoids. Peanuts are skinned with a layer which has an abundant number of natural antioxidants and is a good source of dietary fibre. After understanding the botanical details, let’s move on to the peanut nutrition facts so that you can munch them with no guilt:

Facts per 100 grams of raw peanuts:

Calories: 567
Protein: 25.8 grams
Carbohydrates: 16.1 grams
Fat: 49.2 grams
Water: 7%
Sugar: 4.7 grams

If you follow the nutritional profile of groundnut, you find that they are exceptionally good sources of protein, biotin, Folate, Vitamin E, Phosphorous, Thiamine, Copper, and other vitals.

What are the various uses of Groundnuts?

Groundnut is used in various recipes as a supporting ingredient, mostly as an add-on or as a binder. More on it is consumed in raw, roasted, boiled, and salted form but basically use of groundnut is not limited to this only. Let’s move further to hang on the other several uses that you may not have discovered yet:

Various Chinese traditional medicines use peanuts leaves in fighting insomnia and pain issues.
Peanut is the core ingredient of making peanut butter, protein bars, chikkis, and salads.
Groundnut shells are used for a variety of purposes like fuel, carriers for chemicals and fertilizers, and pet litter.
Groundnut is 4^th most important oilseed crop in the world. Oil extracted from groundnut is widely used in cooking. With immense medicinal capabilities, groundnut oil is also used in skin conditions like rashes, scaly skin, and eczema.

Benefits of Peanut

If your consumption of peanuts is for the mere purpose of snacks or munching in your leisure time, then educate yourself with these enticing peanut benefits so that you can encourage yourself and others also to have them daily!

1. Peanut for Sugar Control

Groundnuts either in raw form or in butter form are a boon for people suffering from high blood sugar levels. When following the nutrient facts, it is observed that peanuts have a low glycaemic index which can deter sudden increases in blood sugar levels. Peanuts have a GL or glycemic load of just 1, which is considered a low-impact food, causing a good snack option for people with diabetes.

2. Peanut for Weight Management

Many people hesitate to peanuts consumption when they are losing weight, because of the high amount of fat content. But consuming peanuts for weight loss is one of the most economic ways that can shade your excess weight. Peanuts have a high satiety value which can keep you away from binge eating, which can apparently result in healthy weight management. Furthermore, the peanut protein may lower the levels of Ghrelin which is also called a hunger hormone.

3. Improved Heart Health

People suffering from higher cholesterol levels may reduce their bad cholesterol (LDL) levels with regular consumption of groundnut. As peanut is the powerhouse of Omega-3 fatty acids and Vitamin E, they may help in preventing blockages in the arteries and can improve cardiovascular health. Exceptionally found, resveratrol in groundnut may aid in fighting several heart problems with this most common nut.

4. Make your Brain Sharper

Vital nutrients like Vitamin B1, niacin, and folate help to make the brain sharper and stronger. Peanuts have bioactive compounds that may bring a positive impact on memory and stress management. The niacin and Vitamin B1 may help to keep away age-related cognitive decline, whereas the Resveratrol in groundnut may help improve cognitive abilities and verbal fluency.

Roaming around a beach with hands full of salted or boiled peanuts with friends or alone is a favourite moment for many of us! Never-ending chitchats, roaring laughter, frequent high-fives, and those crunchy peanuts are my definition of a perfect day spent with friends. No matter, if they are salty or boiled or roasted or plain, what’s your story of peanuts? Don’t forget to share with us!