If a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is your definition of the perfect lunch, you will have plenty to celebrate in March, especially if you live in Texas.
March is National Peanut Month, and Texas has the distinction of being the country's second-leading producer of peanuts.
More than a century after George Washington Carver discovered 300 uses for peanuts, researchers continue to discover reasons why we should eat the nutritious legume.
Among the benefits being touted during National Peanut Month are recent findings that eating peanuts or peanut butter can reduce the risk of heart attacks and type 2 diabetes.
Studies have found a 25 to 50 percent reduction in the risk of heart disease when one and a half ounces of peanuts were eaten five or more times a week.
At the same time, peanuts increase levels of serum magnesium to inhibit platelet aggregation, which is another risk factor.
The fact that regular consumption of peanuts can also reduce the risk for type 2 diabetes is a timely discovery because the incidence of the disease in children has reached alarming levels.
Fiber and magnesium in peanuts decrease insulin resistance.
When subjects were fed peanut snacks, they self-adjusted their caloric intakes and did not add extra calories to their daily diet.
A recently published study in the International Journal of Obesity showed that when people ate peanuts, they naturally decreased what they ate at other times of the day.
The good news is that Americans already consume an average of six pounds of peanuts and peanut butter each year.
Peanuts can be added to a diet in a variety of ways: Spread peanut butter on a slice of whole-grain toast instead of an English muffin with butter.
Spread some chunky peanut butter on a half of a banana for a sweet, balanced evening snack.