One of the things I've been working on while improving my health through diet, is to keep things simple. I know there are a lot of calorie counters out there but Low Calorie does not necessarily equate to  "healthy". The body is a machine as well as a temple and it requires the right kind of fuel to keep things running smoothly. I've seen Hungry Girl before but I've never really poked around her website, and to be honest, I only poked a little this morning so this may not be a fair assessment. But, she posted a link to Better'n Peanut Butter with Bananas and how it's so much better because it's low calorie less fat! I couldn't find the nutritional information for the kind with bananas, but I did find their information on their Low Sodium variety. Take a gander at this list of ingredients:

Ingredients: PEANUTS (AS DEFATTED PEANUT FLOUR AND NATURAL PEANUT BUTTER), TAPIOCA SYRUP, PURE WATER, DEHYDRATED CANE JUICE, RICE SYRUP, VEGETABLE GLYCERIN, SOY FLOUR, SALT, TAPIOCA STARCH, NATURAL FOOD FLAVORS, PAPRIKA & ANNATO, CALCIUM CARBONATE, LECITHIN, VITAMINS E & C (ANTIOXIDANTS).

Um.. this is better for me how? And could someone please tell me what the hell is "Natural Food Flavors"?  The FDA says:

The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or fermentation products thereof, whose significant function in food is flavoring rather than nutritional.

Shouldn't food have it's OWN flavor? Here is the peanut butter that we eat at our house Teddie All Natural Unsalted Peanut Butter

Ingredients: ROASTED PEANUTS

That's it. I know I know.. peanuts have fat.. more fat means more calories.  But more fat also means a higher satiety.  And yanno what? There is no added sugar in my peanut butter.  There are THREE different sugars in this "Better'n Peanut Butter".  Dehydrated cane juice,  Tapioca Syrup and Rice Syrup are  sugars.   No thank you.  If I want sugar, I'll eat some fruit.  Peanuts are GOOD for you.  Sure I'm eating more calories, but I'm not going to be hungry.  A glob of peanut butter with  a banana will keep me happy for hours.. sometimes right past lunch time.  I'm going to bet that I'm consuming FEWER calories in the long run because I'm not looking for a snack in an hour.  The stigma against fat from the 90's is still around.  People got FATTER  and less healthy by cutting their fat because they were increasing their sugar intake.  And evidently, it did little or nothing for their heart health. Listen, your body NEEDS fat. It keeps your immune system working. It helps build healthy cells. It helps your brain work. And guess what? Eating nuts can help your heart.

Eating nuts as part of a healthy diet can be good for your heart. Nuts, which contain unsaturated fatty acids and other nutrients, are a great snack food, too. They're inexpensive, easy to store and easy to take with you to work or school. The type of nut you eat isn't that important, although some nuts have more heart-healthy nutrients and fats than do others. Walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts — you name it — almost every type of nut has a lot of nutrition packed into a tiny package. If you have heart disease, eating nuts instead of a less healthy snack can help you more easily follow a heart-healthy diet..

So, I'm going to continue to eat a REAL peanut butter and skip all the crap that got shoved into and removed from that other stuffPeanut butter is fabulous exactly how it is.. no need to make it "better". PS: Teddie Peanut butter is a USA product. Peanuts are grown and processed right here in the Good Ol' USA.