Charlotte Observer – Eleanor Spicer, March 2010 – NC State University researchers are steering toward the idea that peanut skins may possibly have health benefits. Doctoral candidate, Wanida Lewis has found that peanut skins are full of antioxidants and other nutrients. The University’s food science program is looking at peanut skins for anti-aging chemical compounds usually found in grapes and red wine.

The possibilities of this could be good news for nut lovers as scientists hope to show that the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties in peanut skins could someday enable us to maintain our youthfulness. The poisonous compound naturally produced in many plants have been credited in recent animal studies to many attributes, including lowering blood sugar and reducing negative effects of a high-fat diet.

“Resveratrol a compound found especially in red grapes is also found in peanut skins and has been shown to prolong the life span of some animals. Another compound, flavonoids has the same chemical that provides the health benefits of green tea.” Peanuts have always been a favorite snack for my family. We would sometimes roasted peanuts and watched a movie, a similar to the ritual of popping popcorn.

Weather eating them raw, roasted, or boiled most of us view the skins a non-edible part of the nut and most likely throw them away or according to Spicer they are often ground up and used for animal feed. Not to say that everyone is going to start eating peanut skins but “research has shown that peanut skins have these compounds that will decrease the risk of diabetes and heart disease”. “If we can show this in the lab, we can put more peanut skins in products,” said Lewis.

Lately, I have been so overwhelmed with the negative news about the foods we eat and the food production, it was refreshing to hear something positive. Knowing that the skin of a simple peanut obtains what might one day be beneficial to our health, the next time I eat peanuts I just might think twice before brushing off the skins.

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