Peanut butter, with its rich flavour, creamy texture, and sweet and salty taste, is a tempting choice for a late-night snack.
Some health experts recommend consuming peanut butter at night to boost muscular building, normalise blood sugar levels, and increase sleep quality due to its outstanding nutrient profile.
However, because it contains a lot of calories per serving, you might be wondering if eating this full food before bed will cause you to gain weight.
This article examines whether eating peanut butter before going to bed makes you gain weight.
Peanut butter is a high-fat, high-calorie food.
Peanut butter is a high-calorie, high-fat meal with heart-healthy fats. 204 calories and 16 grammes of fat are contained in just 2 teaspoons (32 grammes).
As a result, while it's a terrific food for a healthy, balanced diet, eating too much of it can raise your daily calorie consumption. You may gain weight in the long run if you consume more calories than you expend throughout the day.
Weight gain, however, is influenced by a variety of factors, including your age, size, degree of activity, health state, and overall calorie intake.
In fact, depending on what else you eat during the day, you can use peanut butter as part of a diet to lose or gain weight.
SUMMARY
Because peanut butter is abundant in heart-healthy fats and calories, eating too much before night could result in weight gain.
Late-night eating's consequences
The research on the link between late-night eating and weight growth has yielded varied results.
Possibility of weight growth
According to a few studies, eating a substantial amount of food late at night hinders weight loss and increases body weight. Other factors, such as your general diet quality, sleep duration, and other behaviours, such as skipping breakfast, may also play a role.
However, some evidence suggests that eating late at night may not cause weight gain directly, but is associated to dietary patterns and lifestyle behaviours that contribute to weight gain, such as increased snacking, skipping breakfast, and eating a less diverse diet.
Muscle growth and metabolism benefits
Interestingly, multiple studies have discovered that eating a healthy snack like peanut butter before bedtime may be beneficial to one's health.
A short, protein-rich evening snack may boost overnight muscle protein synthesis, morning metabolism, and sensations of fullness in healthy men, according to one study.
Another small research of athletic, college-aged guys discovered that eating a high-protein meal before night boosted their metabolism the next morning.
However, more research on peanut butter is required.
SUMMARY
The effects of eating late at night have mixed results. While studies show that consuming a healthy snack at night can boost fullness, muscle building, and metabolism, especially in males, this behaviour has been linked to weight gain.
Other advantages of eating peanut butter before bedtime
Peanut butter is high in niacin, magnesium, heart-healthy fats, and vitamins B6 and E, among other nutrients.
- Its antioxidants may be linked to a lower incidence of heart disease.
- It's also heavy in protein, with each 2-tablespoon (32-gram) serving containing almost 7 grammes.
- Increasing your protein intake can help you control your appetite and lessen food cravings. Furthermore, eating enough protein promotes muscular growth, wound healing, and overall healthy development and growth.
- Peanuts are also high in tryptophan, an amino acid that may help you sleep better.
- Additionally, your body needs tryptophan to make molecules like serotonin and melatonin, which are both vital for sleep regulation.
- Although no studies have been done explicitly on the effects of peanut butter on sleep, studies have linked meals high in tryptophan to better sleep quality.
As a result, consuming peanut butter or other foods containing tryptophan before bedtime may help with sleep problems.
SUMMARY
Peanut butter is a high-protein, high-nutrient snack that curbs hunger and stimulates muscle growth. It also contains tryptophan, which may help you have a better night's sleep.
Last but not least
Before going for the jar of peanut butter the next time you have a midnight snack craving, think about your health goals.
Instead, choose for lower-calorie snacks like hummus, yoghurt, hard-boiled eggs, or fresh fruit if you're attempting to lose weight.
Snacking on a spoonful of peanut butter can be an excellent choice if you're aiming to gain weight, build muscle, boost metabolism, or enhance sleep quality, as it contains vital nutrients including protein, vitamins, minerals, heart-healthy fats, and tryptophan.
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