Peanuts are responsible for some of America's most-beloved foods. Peanuts and peanut butter makes up the main ingredient for Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Snickers, and of course, every kid's favorite, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. In fact, Americans love peanuts so much, peanut butter is consumed in 94 percent of American households, the National Peanut Board reports. You may love to eat these delicious (and nutritious) nuts but how much do you really know about them?
Here are 5 things you may not know about peanut butter and the nuts that make it.
1. A whole lotta nuts
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It takes approximately 540 peanuts to make a 12-ounce jar of peanut butter. That's a lot of nuts!
2. How do you take your peanut butter?
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Creamy, crunchy or smooth? There are so many ways to enjoy your peanut butter but depending on your gender and age you might prefer it differently. Women and children opt for the creamy variety while men prefer chunky, according to the National Peanut Board. Additionally, people living in the East Coast of America favor creamy peanut butter while West Coasters choose the crunchy kind.
3. Makes a great meal
** ADVANCE FOR TUESDAY, JULY 12 ** Nick, 7, makes a peanut butter sandwich to go in his lunch Monday, June 22, 2005 in St. Louis. Nick's mom Sherry Claxton, a licensed dietician, lets her three kids make their own lunches butkeeps a close eye on what goes in them.(AP photo/Tom Gannam) (AP)
According to the National Peanut Board, the average American child will consume 1,500 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches before graduating high school.
4. Health benefits
A photo illustration shows a French general practitioner with a stethoscope in a doctor's office in Bordeaux January 7, 2015. French physicians protest against a new health reform bill that would introduce a third party payment system. Picture taken January 7, 2015. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau (FRANCE - Tags: HEALTH POLITICS) - RTR4OCXQ (Reuters)
Peanut butter may help lower your cholesterol. According to a study from the University of Florida, peanut butter contains antioxidants and other oleic acid that is helpful in preventing type 2 diabetes and aids in weight loss.
5. Nuts for peanuts
Snickers bars are seen in this picture illustration taken February 23, 2016. Mars Inc has recalled chocolate bars and other products in 55 countries, mainly in Europe, after bits of plastic were found in a Snickers bar in Germany, the U.S. chocolate maker said on Tuesday. All of the recalled products, which include Mars, Snickers and Milky Way bars, were manufactured at a Dutch factory in Veghel, according to a Mars spokeswoman. The recall follows a Jan. 8 complaint from a consumer in Germany, she said, who found red plastic in a Snickers bar and sent it back to the company. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration - RTX288C3 (Reuters)
Americans are gaga for peanut butter. The top 10 candy cars manufactured in the contain peanuts or peanut butter and peanuts are also the no.1 snack nut in the country, according to the National Peanut Board.
6. Bonus
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What do Founding Father Thomas Jefferson, President Jimmy Carter and singer Luke Bryan have in common? They were all peanut farmers.