By Sam McManis
Sacramento Bee
Peanuts have been getting some bad press lately -- for good reason. But the salmonella outbreak tied to the peanut-processing plant in Georgia shouldn't scare us away from enjoying what is essentially a healthy food.
Test your knowledge with our quiz about peanuts.
1. One cup of peanut butter contains 1,517 calories, 1,088 of which come from fat. What's the positive part of the figures?
a. Your average peanut-butter sandwich contains less than a quarter-cup of peanut butter.
b. Nearly 50 percent of it is healthy monounsaturated fat.
c. It's high in protein and fiber.
d. All of the above.
2. One cup of peanut butter contains 397 milligrams of magnesium, which is what percentage of the daily value:
a. 50 percent
b. 75 percent
c. 99 percent
d. 150 percent
3. What positive effect does magnesium have on your diet?
a. Absorbs calcium
b. Stabilizes heart rhythm
c. Lowers blood pressure
d. "a" and "c" but not "b"
e. "a," "b" and "c"
4. True or false: Peanuts have more protein than any other legume or nut.
5. How many ounces of peanuts would you have to eat to reach the daily value of vitamin E, which has antioxidant properties?
a. 1 ounce
b. 2 ounces
c. 6 ounces
d. 9 ounces
ANSWERS: 1. d; 2. c; 3. e; 4. true; 5. c
Sources:
www.nutritiondata.com;
usda.gov;
peanut-institute.org.
E-mail Sam McManis at smcmanis@sacbee.com. Distributed by Scripps Howard News Service, www.scrippsnews.com.
