Peanut Butter Diet

peanut-butter-dietThe Peanut Butter Diet is a book written by Holly McCord – a senior writer for the US health magazine Prevention. Prevention is published by Rodale.

Quite simply, this is fad dieting at its finest (or silliest). Essentially the diet is nothing more than an average low calorie diet with some peanut butter in the meal plans and recipes.

It is an overt attempt to gain popularity and notoriety by focusing on a single food that has traditionally been seen as “bad”.

Peanut Butter for Weight Loss


Like most fats and oils, nuts have been derided during the recent prevalence of low fat diets. However this is unfounded as nuts are good sources of mono-unsaturated fats, proteins, and other essential micro nutrients such as vitamin E.

Like all fats they are higher in calories (9 calories per gram), and need to be eaten in moderation. There is no reason why nuts should be completely eliminated from a weight loss diet. This is what the Peanut Butter diet is cashing in on.

Generally any diet that espouses the benefits of a single food over all others is in danger of becoming unbalanced. The Peanut Butter diet is a little deceptive as it gives the impression that peanuts are the answer to weight loss.

Peanut Butters – Not All Created Equal

It needs to be said that there are many different qualities of peanut butter available in retail outlets. Some have sugar and sodium (salt) added, and other oils and preservatives. As a general rule of thumb, the more processed a food is, the lower the nutritional quality is.

Natural peanut butter – with few additives is the best bet. Healthy fats have a place in our diet – but like most things – within moderation.

22 Comments

  • February 3rd, 2010paul

    Well you know the cookie diet lets you have 6 100 calorie cookies and then a small dinner, so for a peanut butter diet you could take say make three peanut butter sandwiches and cut them in half and eat one of those halves when you are hungry only to avert hunger… then have a small dinner… don’t eat anything else. I have been trying to do this with Two Arnold or Pepperidge farm rye bread peanut butter sandwiches and I cut them in thirds and eat as necessary to avert hunger. I also found this stuff called WASA Rye which is like a low calorie cracker, only thirty calories a slice, and you could make peanut butter sandwiches with those. Three sandwiches would be 3X60 for the bread =180 calories plus 3X200=600 for the peanut butter so you would have approx 750 calories in those three sandwiches… cut them each in half and have 125 calorie snacks which you eat only to avert hunger. Then have a small dinner.

  • January 22nd, 2010vanessa

    i neeed to know how to start
    can some help me
    i wolud like to lose 25lbs

  • January 5th, 2010Jodyg

    Ok so I don’t know if it works or not, however I do know that starting the day off w/ a PB oon Toast sandwich fo r breakfast curbs my appetite tremendously! My 5 yr old is a bit overweight and it occured to me when he got on the PB for breakfast kick that he wasn’t asking for snacks as much during the day. basically he’ll eat breakfast, lunch, supper and maybe 1 snack in-between. W/I 2 weeks he lost 1 pound-so I decised to give it a try and I lost almost 2 pounds my first week, just having it for breakfast…

  • September 17th, 2009rosario

    Unfortunately peanut butter has been recently linked to liver cancer. Be wary of any protein. This new protein craze is causing Americans to consume more and recite the “protein is good” mantra. There is a reason why it makes you fill full, your body can’t break it down efficiently. It is healthier to eat lower protein options (not necessarily higher CARB), consistently throughout the day.

  • September 16th, 2009gail glenfield

    Last year, not knowing about the PB Diet benefits, my blood pressure had sky rocketed with a rotator cuff tear problem…but I was also 30 lbs. overweight. As a vegetarian, I couldn’t fall back on turkey, chicken or tuna as diet foods…and went on PBJ sandwiches 3 times a day with lowfat chocolate milk…It started me on a roll of loosing tremendous weight with no exercise. Then I switched out one sandwich for a “regular” meal….and that was usually pasta/marina/salad…to date I went from 165 to 135! Somehow by luck it worked…and also had blood tests and my cholesterol had dropped to 175; as I was worried since I quit Lipitor that I was having bad joint problems from. I used natural jelly/jam preserves..no regular jelly and regular chunky PB…It is satisfying and curbs your desire for foods…

  • July 11th, 2009elizabeth

    up until high school, i ate peanut butter with every meal. pb on toast for breakfast, pb crackers for snack, pb with apple slices for lunch, pb sandwich for dinner. during high school I gained 75 lbs, weighing in at 150lbs. I’ve been on the peanut butter diet for 1 month, and with light excercise,I’ve lost 11 lbs, so I now weigh in at 139. I’m going to keep at it.

  • June 2nd, 2009charlene

    it really does sound stupid

  • March 23rd, 2009lovespeanut111

    i love peanut butter but i just don’t get the plan. do i only eat peanut butter.

  • November 27th, 2008?

    does this actually work :S?
    cuz it would be amazing if it did (:

  • November 20th, 2008Amanda

    if i had to chose one meal to eat for the rest of my life it would be peanut butter on an apple! yum! but not really heatly. :o )

  • October 14th, 2008don’t worry about it.

    What aren’t you allowed to eat?!

  • October 11th, 2008vlada

    i dont get it
    so you eat only peanut butter?
    that sounds a little silly

    you eat more right?
    anyone have the plan or anything?

  • August 3rd, 2008sophia

    apple slices w/ peanut butter dip =]

  • July 4th, 2008itworked

    has anyone lost weight?

  • June 23rd, 2008peanut butter-holic!

    Yummmmmmmm!
    Peanut butter my Best friend!!!
    lol ilee everyone

  • May 19th, 2008Courtney

    I luv peanut butter!!! Yummy! Yay yay yay!!!

  • May 15th, 2008Matt

    I found a peanut butter that really qualifies to be part of a peanut butter diet. Check it out at http://www.betternpeanutbutter.com

  • May 13th, 2008Peanut butter?

    Sounds a bit crazy

  • May 13th, 2008Library Lazy

    Yeah, It`s so good and so delicious!!!!!!!!!!!!

  • May 6th, 2008penut butter yea

    i love penut butter hehe lol LOVE IT

  • May 1st, 2008loves jellyy =D

    peanut butter jelly with a baseball bat! lolllz

  • April 29th, 2008lovepeanutbuter

    Peanut Butter Jelly Time…..lol








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Last modified: December 10, 2009