Talk Me Out Of It!

[ReneCox]

Ok, I am feeling really bad and upset. Someone please convince me not to go to the store and binge on nuts and peanut butter...which is what I have been doing lately and It gives me even worse stomach problems...help!!

[CarlaB]

Why nuts and peanut butter???? Is there maybe not enough fat in your diet, so you're craving fatty foods? Maybe you need to supplement essential fatty acids.

Or is it that you aren't getting enough protein?

If it's a binge, surely you can find something better than nuts and peanut butter! Like ice cream or brownies!

[blueeyedmanda]

I binged on Brownies the other evening!!!! Yum! Cheered me up too.

[ReneCox]

Thats just it...I haven't touched a brownie or ice cream in over 11 months ( I ate very healthy even before gluten-free) and I cant seem to let myself do it again...so I binge on peanut butter and nuts and BANANAS!! sounds crazy I know. Its weird the foods that will seem so good to you when you are deprived. I eat avocado alot but thats really my only source of fat....maybe that's why I want fatty foods? All I know is that I feel like crap and when I feel like crap, I get mad...then I stuff my face. Im a weirdo I know

[CarlaB]

You might try getting some essential fatty acids then if avocado is your only source of fat ... aside from nuts.

When someone's eating healthy and craving something that's not garbage, I generally think it's the body's way of telling you it's missing something. Even chocolate is indicative of a magnesium deficiency.

Bananas are high in potassium and sugar.

[Rachel--24]

Ok, I am feeling really bad and upset. Someone please convince me not to go to the store and binge on nuts and peanut butter...which is what I have been doing lately and It gives me even worse stomach problems...help!!

Alright...are you sure you really wanna be talked out of peanut butter??

Here goes....

Reasons to not go on a peanut butter binge...

1. They are loaded with omega-6 fats that distort the omega 3:6 ratio

2. They are frequently contaminated with a carcinogenic mold called aflatoxin

3. Peanuts are one of the most pesticide-contaminated crops

Aspergillus flavus is a mold found in small amounts in wheat, most legumes, and most tree-based nuts. However, it is found in particularly large quantities in two sources: corn and (you guessed it) peanuts. Furthermore, aspergillus flavus is one of the types of mold which produces a carcinogen known as aflatoxin. Aflatoxin is considered a cancer-causing substance in humans and animals by both the FDA and world health authorities.

What's particularly insidious about aspergillus flavus is that it is found in especially heavy quantities in peanuts and corn and, except in very extreme cases, isn't even visible to the naked eye. Furthermore, no practical way exists to get it out of the foods it's found in. While you can sometimes kill the aspergillus by cooking it, the aflatoxin it created will be left behind.

The most common way most people get aflatoxin in their diets is through peanut butter. Peanuts have an especially high naturally-occurring concentration of aspergillus flavus mold. Furthermore, while most peanuts are roasted, the roasting process rarely kills all the mold. The longer peanuts sit around in the store or in your house, the more of the mold will grow back--and again, it generally won't be visible to the naked eye. The longer the mold grows, the more aflatoxin builds up.

Here's the most interesting thing about all this: usually your "organic" or "natural" peanut butters will have the highest aflatoxin concentration. The highest concentration of all, though, will typically be the stuff you buy in the store where they take peanuts and grind them into peanut butter for you while you wait. Because while the USDA and FDA has rules for how much aflatoxin is allowed in food before it's shipped to stores, there's no measure of it after it reaches the stores. Those peanuts could have been sitting on the shelves at the story for weeks or months at room temperature, building up mold. It's even worse if the air is mildly moist. Furthermore, if you fresh-grind those nuts into peanut butter, the mold keeps growing in the peanut butter.

Once again, it rarely grows to the point where you can see it with the naked eye.

This means that your safest source of peanut butter is generally your cheap, garden variety Jif or Skippy. The companies that make those generally get the peanuts fresh, roast and grind them immediately, put them through an effective cooking and homogenization process, then seal them in airtight jars. The mold buildup on those will be much lower than your typical "fresh" or "natural" peanut butters.

By the way, the aflatoxin threat is taken seriously enough that OSHA actually requires workers dealing with large quantities of peanuts to wear facial masks so they don't breath in too much of the mold.

Also by the way, as a general rule, no matter what kind of peanut butter you buy, it's safest if, after you open the airtight seal, you refrigerate it. This slows down the mold buildup and reduces the amount of aflatoxin produced over time. Of course, it's not as easy to spread onto your bread that way. But it does reduce the cancer risk.

Statistically, just as a rule of thumb, two tablespoons of peanut butter a day produce a higher risk of death than living next to a nuclear power plant. A lot higher, if you eat peanut butter made from peanuts that sit around on the shelves for weeks at a time, or from opened jars of peanut butter that sit around unrefrigerated for weeks at a time.

This is just one of many areas where the words "natural" and "organic" do not necessarily translate to "fewer toxins" or "more healthy." Of course, put it in perspective: there are other things we do every day that are a lot more dangerous than eating a peanut butter sandwich. But to understand that, you have to get serious-minded, and start taking statistical analysis of risk factors seriously. Alas, most people refuse to do that sort of thing.

OK....do you still feel like eating peanut butter??

There is more....

In fact, peanut farmers have a disproportionately high rate of cancer. This mold grows on peanuts, pecans, pistachios, grains, soybeans, spices, walnuts and it can even grow on milk in warm humid soils. Aflatoxin is known to cause liver cancer.

A recent study found the highest levels of this toxin in health food store ground fresh peanut butters!

If this doesnt stop you from binging on the peanut butter....I dont know what will??

This is the best I got...

[ReneCox]

wow! I knew that peanuts could contain mold...but I didn't know it was THAT bad!!! yeah...I think you just talked me out of it....and no pistachios either! thanks:)

[Mango04]

Well I just ate some organic peanut butter, then I sat down and randomly clicked on this thread. Thanks for the info. Rachel. You talked me out of binging on peanut butter (or eating it ever again really)

Rene - I wonder if adding some olive oil and/or coconut oil to your diet would help?

[Rachel--24]

Well I just ate some organic peanut butter. Then I sat down and randomly clicked on this thread. Thanks for the info. Rachel. You talked me out of binging on peanut butter

Meredith...sorry you had to read all that after indulging on organic PB...but hey...remember...knowledge is POWER!

I suspect maybe most people will be turned off from peanut butter after reading all that.

I still love peanut butter....but I definately cant eat it. I think it might be #1 on my list of foods that cause severe distress. Its at least in the top 5.

[Mango04]

Meredith...sorry you had to read all that after indulging on organic PB...but hey...remember...knowledge is POWER!

LOL yeah that was bad timing (or maybe it was good timing?) Regardless, I'm revoking that official decision I made a few days ago to start eating lots of peanut butter

[Rachel--24]

LOL yeah that was bad timing (or maybe it was good timing?) Regardless, I'm revoking that official decision I made a few days ago to start eating lots of peanut butter

Yeah...maybe its a good idea to not go crazy with the peanut butter.

I'm upset by this...

Why couldnt this cancer causing mold decide to grow on something gross....like Quinoa?? I would be totally cool with that...but noooo...it has to ruin PEANUT BUTTER!

In fact...why is it that all the BEST tasting foods are the worst for us?? Before getting sick I loved Big Macs and Donuts....and a long list of other unhealthy foods.

Then recently I saw a list of the top 5 worst foods to eat...and donuts was #1.

I watched "SuperSize me"...and well....I'll just leave it that.

It really does suck though.

I dont really like green vegetables.

[gfp]

Yeah...maybe its a good idea to not go crazy with the peanut butter.

I'm upset by this...

Why couldnt this cancer causing mold decide to grow on something gross....like Quinoa?? I would be totally cool with that...but noooo...it has to ruin PEANUT BUTTER!

In fact...why is it that all the BEST tasting foods are the worst for us?? Before getting sick I loved Big Macs and Donuts....and a long list of other unhealthy foods.

Then recently I saw a list of the top 5 worst foods to eat...and donuts was #1.

I watched "SuperSize me"...and well....I'll just leave it that.

It really does suck though.

I dont really like green vegetables.

Well I guess you can combine that with the I can't believe I like brown rice thread

I think what we like is what we develop a taste for... to a large extent I think this just gets set when we are kids.

How many people genuinely thought beer was good the first time they tasted it?

The second reason is instant gratification, which is itself a kind of conditioning.

Fast food is minimum wait, you hand over the cash and you get ready to eat food, no prep or waiting.

ReneCox:

You probably feel you deserve a compensation for all that good work and sticking to gluten-free.... not to mention when I first went gluten-free I started eating trash food like chips and peanuts just because its simple to find and easy to find gluten-free....

I did find that peanuts give me stomach ache though... when eaten as a major part of calories they feel like lead in my stomach.

[Guest aparde]

Alright...are you sure you really wanna be talked out of peanut butter??

Here goes....

Reasons to not go on a peanut butter binge...

1. They are loaded with omega-6 fats that distort the omega 3:6 ratio

2. They are frequently contaminated with a carcinogenic mold called aflatoxin

3. Peanuts are one of the most pesticide-contaminated crops

OK....do you still feel like eating peanut butter??

There is more....

If this doesnt stop you from binging on the peanut butter....I dont know what will??

This is the best I got...

WOW! I am a nut fan... I end up in trouble too sometimes with cravings... NOT ANY MORE!!! YUCK!

[bluejeangirl]

I think you've probably heard that the Salam witchcraft trials blamed the bizarre behavior on satanic possession when they were ingesting a fungus called ergot commonly associated with rye grains. This kind of poisoning usually causes hallucinations and delusions. They had no idea at the time this was causing it. It happens under certain conditions like a long dry/drought then alot of rain and moisture.

But thats an example of what fungus can do. It altered the chemistry of the mind like a psychotic drug. With peanuts and corn you have to worry about aflatoxin as Racheal mentioned. Its a mycotoxin produced by molds on foods. You can't see it. I think it mainly causes liver and kidney problems. But in some people they react because they are sensitive to molds. I'm one of those. I'll get nightmares if I have peanut butter before I go to bed.

Besides peanuts and nuts are hard on the digestion. It takes alot of enzymes to digest it. I had alot of peanuts this last thanksgiving because I didn't want to eat lunch and then not be hungry for the big meal. So I ate planters peanuts. Its also a comfort food for me Rene. It was the worse choice because I ate it on an empty stomach and it churned and gurgled and felt just like a glutening. I thought it was because I made a gluten stuffing for the boys. So I threw in the towel and ate some of it. Then I got worse.

Its wasn't a good thanksgiving.

Gail

[Rachel--24]

And yet another reason to avoid peanut butter...samonella outbreak!!

Yup...Peter Pan Peanut Butter and WalMart brand.....both by ConAgra. Dont eat these brands of peanut butter.

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[hershey]

when I feel like crap, I get mad...then I stuff my face. Im a weirdo I know

No, that's not so weird. It's a very predictable behavior but also one that you CAN combat by substituting other behaviors to relieve stress. If you are getting adequate fats in your diet with avocado and other naturally occuring sources, I doubt you're having physical cravings. Head cravings, yes. Believe me, I'm an expert on those!

Until I read that post on the toxins in peanut butter, natural peanut was one of my favorite binge foods I knew about the toxins, but I don't think I've ever seen it all so succintly stated before!