Reduced Fat vs. Regular Peanut Butter?

Question

What is better for you? Reduced Fat peanut butter that has more sugar or the regular peanut butter, which contains less sugar but more fat? I really like chunky peanut butter and I noticed that Skippy has three different types, the reduced fat, regular, and roasted honey nut peanut butter. The problem is, I don't know which is the healthiest choice. Please give me your feedbacks. Thanks!

Answer 1

Well, it's not the healthiest stuff in the world in the first place...what are you more concerned about? What health conditions affect you, diabetes? Obesity?

You can always make your own in a food processor with very little sugar and just a little oil, like canola.

Answer 2

The regular is by far the healthiest choice. The reduced fat kind is not 100% peanuts. It is a combination of peanuts and soy plus alot of other fillers. And it only saves you 4g of fat. The honey roasted kind has more sugar or "honey." I personally get the Skippy Natural but i don't think it comes in chuncky variety. It has peanuts, sugar, palm oil, and salt. Also there's no oil to pour off the top. Simple is usually healthier when it comes to food products.

Answer 3

Ahh.... I struggled with this one, too. I tried them all - they left me kind of blah.

I have opted to go the 'all-natural' route - (you know, the kind of peanut butter made with just peanuts, that's all!?) even though fat is not reduced, if a peanut butter only is made with peanuts, you'll find that all the oil rises to the top (which you can get rid of!!) - so you are left with NO CHEMICALS which have altered the peanut butter.

So after you dump out the oil, you've managed to eliminate as much of the fat as possible, still left with chunks of peanuts since you like it chunky anyway (yes, the peanut butter becomes super thick after you get rid of all the oil from the top, BUT - you can use less, because the taste is concentrated and if you use it with an all-fruit spread, this thins it out on a sandwich.

:)

So - it's natural, healthy, no added sugars, all peanuts, oil eliminated, chunky - the best of all worlds.

Answer 4

Typically, reduced fat ANYTHING (peanut butter, popcorn, canned soup, cookies, etc.) has more sugar in it (they have to put in something to make up for the fact that all the delicious fat has been taken out!). If you read the label carefully, they also generally have a bunch of chemicals/weird things in them. I'd rather have a small amount of the real thing than a ton of the reduced fat stuff.

To answer your question about sugar, sugar generally isn't bad for you--it's just that it's not good for you in any way shape or form. There's nothing nutritious about it. Empty calories is what sugar is.

Answer 5

Either Skippy or Jiff makes a sugar-free reduced fat peanut butter. My boyfriend is a diabetic, so he gets it all the time and I can't taste any difference between the sugar-free less fat PB and the regular PB... but I've only had a creamy version, I don't know if they make a chunky one.

As long as there aren't a ton of preservatives, I would think the sugar-free reduced fat would be better for you. Both had the same amount of protein per serving.

Answer 6

I would get the regular. The fat in peanuts is the unsaturated kind, so its healthy. However, the added sugar in the low fat kind is definitely not a naturally occuring sugar, and is therefore not going to be healthy.

Answer 7

If you are worried about your Peanut Butter then it is time to go *Natural* and eat Smuckers.. Pour off the part of the *Oil* you don't want and mix the rest.. Eat it with fat free Marshmellow or Bananas... LOL

Time I eat some Peanut Butter... hahahhaa

Thanks