The authors of Neanderthin list peanuts as "forbidden
fruit." This is because they assert that peanuts are difficult to
digest in the raw (the peanuts, that is) and because botanically
they are legumes.  Well, they certainly *are* legumes, but many
people have no difficulty eating raw peanuts.  I'm thinking
especially of my grandmother, who ate them frequently.

On the other hand, peanuts are probably from the New World, and
some people are violently allergic to them.  Refined peanut oil,
though high in monounsaturates, has been shown to cause
atherogenesis in laboratory animals.

Nevertheless, peanuts have some powerful positive
characteristics.

(1) They have a very low glycemic index of about 20.
(2) Peanut protein is very high in arginine, which is apparently
beneficial by providing substrate for arginine-derived nitric
oxide, which benefits the circulatory system.
(3) Peanuts are rich in folic acid, which is one of the
substances that helps to reduce homocysteine levels.  It is still
not clear whether homocysteine is a cause of atherosclerosis or a
marker for it.
(4) Studies correlate peanut consumption, along with consumption
of real nuts, with reduced CHD.
(5) In two cases that I am now personally aware of, peanut
consumption has completely cured long-standing cases of psoriasis.
One case was my father, and the second was a friend of his, who
was so impressed by his experience that she tried it as well.

Abstracts appended below for your consideration...

Todd Moody
[log in to unmask]

"Frequent Nut Consumption and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Women:
Prospective Cohort Study"

British Medical Journal 317: 1341-1345 November 14, 1998

Abstract:

Objective: To examine the relation between nut consumption and
risk of coronary heart disease in a cohort of women from the
Nurses' Health Study.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting: Nurses' Health Study.

Subjects: 86,016 women from 34 to 59 years of age without
previously diagnosed coronary heart disease. stroke or cancer at
baseline in 1980.  Main outcome measures: Major coronary heart
disease including non-fatal myocardial infarction and coronary
heart disease.  Results: 1255 major coronary disease events (861
cases of non-fatal myocardial infarction and 394 cases of fatal
coronary heart disease) occurred during 14 years of follow up.
After adjusting for age, smoking, and other known risk factors
for coronary heart disease, women who ate more than five units of
nuts (one unit equivalent to 1 oz of nuts) a week (frequent
consumption) had a significantly lower risk of total coronary
heart disease (relative risk 0.65, 95% confidence interval 0.47
to 0.89, P for trend = 0.0009) than women who never ate nuts or
who ate less than one unit a month (rare consumption). The
magnitude of risk reduction was similar for both fatal coronary
heart disease (0.61, 0.35 to 1.05, P for trend = 0.007) and
non-fatal myocardial infarction (0.68, 0.47 to 1.00, P for trend
= 0.04). Further adjustment for intakes of dietary fats, fibre,
vegetables, and fruits did not alter these results. The inverse
association persisted in subgroups stratified by levels of
smoking, use of alcohol, use of multivitamin and vitamin E
supplements, body mass index, exercise, and intake of vegetables
or fruits.

Conclusions: Frequent nut consumption was associated with a
reduced risk of both fatal coronary heart disease and non-fatal
mycardial infarction. These data, and those from other
epidemiological and clinical studies, support a role for nuts in
reducing the risk of coronary heart disease.

Additional quotes from text of the report:

"When the analysis was restricted to non-smokers and women who
were teetotaller or who drank occasionally (<=1 drink per week),
the inverse association was particularly strong (relative risk of
coronary heart disease for consumption of nuts >=5 times per week
was 0.48 (0.27 to 0.84, P for trend 0.008)).

In analyses of peanuts and other nuts (assessed in 1986
separately, we combined the two highest categories because of
small number of cases. After adjusting for age, consumption of
peanuts and other nuts were both inversely associated with risk
of coronary heart disease.  Consumption of peanut butter was only
weakly associated with risk of coronary heart (multivariate
relative risk comparing women consuming peanut butter was 0.92
(0.74 to 1.15, P for trend 0.94). The relative risk was slightly
stronger for fatal coronary heart disease (0.76, 0.50 to 1.15, P
for trend = 0.09).

Peanut butter was only weakly associated with a risk of coronary
heart disease, but this may be due to the addition of
hydrogenated fat to major American brands."


________________________________________________________________

"Low Fat-monosaturated Rich Diets Containing High-oleic Peanuts
Improve Serum Lipoprotein Profiles."

Lipids 32(7): 687-695 Jul 1997

Abstract:

Postmenopausal hypercholesterolemic women are at risk for
cardiovascular disease and are encouraged to follow low-fat (LF)
(< or = 30% energy) diets. However, these diets may have
undesirable effects on high density lipoprotein cholesterol
(HDL-C), apolipoprotein A-I (apo A-I) and triglycerides, whereas
diets high in monosaturated fats do not. Twenty postmenopausal
hypercholesterolemic women previously consuming high-fat diets
(34% energy) were placed on a low fat-monosaturated rich diet
(LFMR: 26% 14% energy, respectively) for 6 mon. Sixteen women
already eating LF diets (24% energy) were also followed to
monitor variations in serum lipids due to seasonal variations.
Twenty-five women successfully completely the study (LFMR = 12,
LF = 13). Serum cholesterol decreased 10% (264 to 238 mg/dl, P<
or = 0.01) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)
decreased 12% (182 to 161 mg/dl, P < or = 0.01) in the LFMR
group, but did not change in the LF group. The reduction in serum
cholesterol in the LFMR group was greater than estimated by
predictive formulas. Serum triglycerides and apo A-I did not
change in both groups, but only the LFMR group showed a trend
toward toward beneficial changes in LDL-C/HDL-C and apo A-Vapo B
ratios. Overall, the LFMR was well tolerated and resulted and
resulted in an improved serum lipid and apolipprotein profile.