Warning!! Nuts n more peanut butters

rendress269
rendress269 Posts: 90 Member
edited November 20 in Social Groups
For the past 6 months I have been on a mission to find the perfect peanut butter. A health coach friend of mine recently recommended Nuts n More peanut butters ( which come in a variety of yummy flavors), a macro balanced pb enhanced with whey isolate.

Sounds great, right? {Insert deep sigh}

So I bought 3 jars from GNC last week. One for me and 2 to share with dieting family members. I had read the nutritional label and ingredients in the store, but Birch Xylitol escaped notice until I got home. Did some research and discovered that despite sounding natural, xylitol in any form is is highly processed and very bad for your dog to ingest. Which makes me wonder how it could possibly be good for humans. ..

I'm so aggravated with myself for failing to research it properly before investing $30. Manufacturers who insist on labeling products as healthy and all natural are becoming more common as the market adjusts to health conscious consumers. As a consumer trying to eat cleaner, we must be vigilant in our search for truly whole foods.

End of rant. Your thoughts and insights?

Robin

Replies

  • Furbuster
    Furbuster Posts: 254 Member
    TBH I noticed the whey first. Whey in peanut butter seems kinda weird to me anyway. Sometimes I scratch my head trying to understand why and I still don't get it... but I'm sort of old fashioned about food and marketed health foods with added "super ingredients" just seems like a big cash draw that's all. Whey is kinda trendy atm I believe?

    Like the super berry thing (goji and what not) - I mean come on it's a berry lol. Just scoff some redcurrants or something :)

    PB? It's nuts. Nuts and oil (and sugar in some). The fewer ingredients the better IMO :)
  • rendress269
    rendress269 Posts: 90 Member
    Furbuster wrote: »
    TBH I noticed the whey first. Whey in peanut butter seems kinda weird to me anyway. Sometimes I scratch my head trying to understand why and I still don't get it... but I'm sort of old fashioned...

    PB? It's nuts. Nuts and oil (and sugar in some). The fewer ingredients the better IMO :)

    Furbuster, the whey was actually appealing to me since I often have trouble meeting my protein goal w/o going over in my fats. I had previously done some research on whey. While I don't use protein powders since they're generally highly processed, I thought this might be a good option.

    I'm with you on the simplicity of peanut/nut butters though. Seriously difficult to find one not loaded with sugar. One of these days I WILL make my own...

    I'm usually pretty good at not falling for marketing ploys, just frustrated that I fell for this. I guess because it was recommended by a friend I didn't look into it as much as I should. Lesson learned!
  • irisgal345
    irisgal345 Posts: 96 Member
    You could make your own nut butters. http://fitfoodiefinds.com/2015/01/homemade-nut-butter-recipes/. Has a lot of nice recipes
  • Ryanater
    Ryanater Posts: 1 Member
    Freshly ground PB at Whole Foods store is as simple and pure as it gets. :)
  • rendress269
    rendress269 Posts: 90 Member
    Ryanater wrote: »
    Freshly ground PB at Whole Foods store is as simple and pure as it gets. :)

    Good to know. Thanx!
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
    edited June 2015
    Furbuster wrote: »
    TBH I noticed the whey first. Whey in peanut butter seems kinda weird to me anyway. Sometimes I scratch my head trying to understand why and I still don't get it... but I'm sort of old fashioned...

    PB? It's nuts. Nuts and oil (and sugar in some). The fewer ingredients the better IMO :)

    Furbuster, the whey was actually appealing to me since I often have trouble meeting my protein goal w/o going over in my fats. I had previously done some research on whey. While I don't use protein powders since they're generally highly processed, I thought this might be a good option.



    Seriously? Making your own is an option, but my local health food store (and even my local grocery store now) sell at least 5 different brands where there's only one ingredient - peanuts. I'm not sure why there would be anything else. By the way, the oil is from the nuts - just separated, not added oil.
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
    I don't understand why my post above is entirely in quotes...in any case, peanut butter should not have more than one ingredient. I have no idea why you think finding this is so difficult...
  • rendress269
    rendress269 Posts: 90 Member
    edited June 2015
    lynn1982,
    I'm perfectly aware of the ingredients in peanut butter and the variety offered at stores. I haven't found any that I love and find the oil off putting. I love Skippy and have eaten it by the spoonful since I was a child. It's just not "clean" enough for me at this stage of the game, thus the mission to find the "perfect " pb.

    My original post was written as a warning / rant about manufacturers misleading the consumer.



  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    For the past 6 months I have been on a mission to find the perfect peanut butter. A health coach friend of mine recently recommended Nuts n More peanut butters ( which come in a variety of yummy flavors), a macro balanced pb enhanced with whey isolate.

    Sounds great, right? {Insert deep sigh}

    So I bought 3 jars from GNC last week. One for me and 2 to share with dieting family members. I had read the nutritional label and ingredients in the store, but Birch Xylitol escaped notice until I got home. Did some research and discovered that despite sounding natural, xylitol in any form is is highly processed and very bad for your dog to ingest. Which makes me wonder how it could possibly be good for humans. ..

    I'm so aggravated with myself for failing to research it properly before investing $30. Manufacturers who insist on labeling products as healthy and all natural are becoming more common as the market adjusts to health conscious consumers. As a consumer trying to eat cleaner, we must be vigilant in our search for truly whole foods.

    End of rant. Your thoughts and insights?

    Robin

    Not arguing, but am going to mention that grapes are very bad for dogs. I'm not sure that "fit for a dog" is going to work as a metric. :smile:
  • LuanaBean
    LuanaBean Posts: 50 Member
    Thanks for posting this and I'm sorry you were duped. Lesson learned. As for me, I eat peanut butter everyday and I prefer the organic natural peanut butter - ingredients peanuts and salt. Whey is not good for me because it's dairy and I have trouble digesting dairy.
  • bluefish86
    bluefish86 Posts: 842 Member
    lynn1982,
    I'm perfectly aware of the ingredients in peanut butter and the variety offered at stores. I haven't found any that I love and find the oil off putting. I love Skippy and have eaten it by the spoonful since I was a child. It's just not "clean" enough for me at this stage of the game, thus the mission to find the "perfect " pb.

    My original post was written as a warning / rant about manufacturers misleading the consumer.

    You're going to get oil-seperation with any natural peanut butter you buy in the store. Just mix it in or drain it off if you really find it off putting.
    Not arguing, but am going to mention that grapes are very bad for dogs. I'm not sure that "fit for a dog" is going to work as a metric. :smile:

    Also chocolate.
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
    lynn1982,
    I'm perfectly aware of the ingredients in peanut butter and the variety offered at stores. I haven't found any that I love and find the oil off putting. I love Skippy and have eaten it by the spoonful since I was a child. It's just not "clean" enough for me at this stage of the game, thus the mission to find the "perfect " pb.

    My original post was written as a warning / rant about manufacturers misleading the consumer.



    Fair enough, understood. Manufacturers often mislead customers - that is a huge pet peeve of mine. You are so right!

    I actually have a peanut allergy, so I have never had peanut butter, but my brother-in-law will eat Skippy by the spoonful to this day when my sister isn't looking... I've heard the taste does not compare! Have you tried the Nuts to You brand of peanut butter? It's just peanuts and the oil itself is actually just from the peanuts. I know a number of people who really like that brand. I think they also sell one with dried fruit in it too... maybe that would help make it sweeter if you're used to Skippy? Just a thought.
  • LuanaBean
    LuanaBean Posts: 50 Member
    For the record, I think many clean foods take some getting used to. There are things I'm eating now that I did not grow up eating and that I love: quinoa, couscous, natural peanut butter. I do not really like avocados (except in home made guacamole) and vinaigrette dressings (unless they are sweet).
  • prairieprana
    prairieprana Posts: 71 Member
    That sucks- you go out of your way to find something good and then BAM! It's got garbage in it. I finally gave up the ghost a few months ago and now if there's any nut butter in the house it's because I make it at home. (I have a serious dislike for how much sugar is added to nut butters- it's also cheaper to make your own, especially when nuts go on sale at the bulk store)
  • lynn1982
    lynn1982 Posts: 1,439 Member
    That sucks- you go out of your way to find something good and then BAM! It's got garbage in it. I finally gave up the ghost a few months ago and now if there's any nut butter in the house it's because I make it at home. (I have a serious dislike for how much sugar is added to nut butters- it's also cheaper to make your own, especially when nuts go on sale at the bulk store)

    The OP clearly stated that she does not like the oil separation that comes with pure nut butters (whether bought in store where the only ingredient is nuts - these do exist, I don't know why people are insisting that they don't! - or at home, one will have separation...).

    I still don't understand how on earth the OP thought this product was going to be "clean." Let's be logical... the name of the product alone should have clued her in...
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,708 Member
    Furbuster wrote: »

    PB? It's nuts. Nuts and oil (and sugar in some). The fewer ingredients the better IMO :)

    Peanuts are not part of the nut family. They are a species in the family Fabaceae (commonly known as the bean, pea or legume family) and have nothing in common with nuts.

  • jbirdy76
    jbirdy76 Posts: 161 Member
    If you are put off by the oil in the nut butters try to find a grind your own option, my local grocery store has peanuts and almonds that you can grind, no separation and so yummy, tastes like ground up peanuts... ;) The problem about getting enough protein without going over in fats is one that is hard for me too. Try to focus on your percentages of macro nutrients and not so much specified grams and whether or not you are ingesting healthy fats. I find the recommended fat allowance for most sites is a little low if you are trying to incorporate healthy omega threes into your diet. I have been horrible about this lately and can sure tell a difference in my brain function and alertness. Those fats are good for our brains!
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