Some People Just Hate Peanut Butter

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Someone has to say it: Not everyone loves peanut butter. This creamy spread, made in its purest form from ground peanuts and a pinch of salt, has been a childhood staple and venerated American food hero since World War II. Peanut butter's popularity grew in part due to its high protein content, low cost of production, and sweet and savory flavor.

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Many people's avoidance of peanut butter can be attributed to an allergy to peanuts, which is one of the most common, and most severe, of the food allergies, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Just touching or inhaling particles of peanut products can cause anaphylaxis — a severe, whole-body allergic reaction whose symptoms range from intense nausea and hives to shortness of breath and potentially fatal swelling of the tongue or throat. A telephone survey conducted by the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute at Mount Sinai School of Medicine found that the prevalence of peanut allergies in children more than tripled from 1997 to 2008.

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Other peanut butter naysayers just don't like the flavor or the texture. The most common complaints on forums like Experience Project's I Hate Peanut Butter and the Facebook page I Hate Peanut Butter! is the smell and the stick-to-the-roof-of-your-mouth consistency, which is actually supported by the peanut butter patent written in 1895: "a pasty adhesive substance that is for convenience of distinction termed nut butter."

Plus, of all the processed nut butters, peanut butter has the highest incidence of recall due to potential bacterial contamination. In 2011, two major peanut butter brands were recalled due to potential salmonella scares.

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Yet another argument could be made against the ubiquitous peanut spread for its excessive ingredient list. Nowadays, some of the peanut butters on the shelves contain not just ground peanuts, but also various sweeteners and stabilizers, like hydrogenated vegetable oils and mono and diglycerides. (Natural and organic brands that adhere to a just-peanuts philosophy are readily available at supermarkets, though they come at a higher cost.)

Peanut-haters have a ton of nut-butter options these days. Val Weaver, health-food expert and editor in chief at, identified the top alternative nut butters, comparing the flavor and health benefits of almond butter, cashew butter, macadamia nut butter, pecan butter, and walnut butter:

Almond butter: Almond butter can be a bit runny, but its taste makes a perfect dip for raw veggies and apple slices. Look for a butter that has lots of brown specks — they're flecks of almond skin, which is full of antioxidant vitamin E.

Cashew butter: Cashew lovers could try stirring this nut butter into soups, sauces, and curries. Compared to other nut butters, cashew is significantly lower in fat and calories and has a little more iron, too.

Macadamia nut butter: In studies, macadamias have shown heart-healthy cholesterol-lowering powers.

Pecan butter: Pecans are high in beta-carotene and gamma-tocopherol, a form of vitamin E that helps keep LDL cholesterol from gumming up your arteries. The subtle flavor of pecan butter can get lost on bread; instead, smear it on thinly sliced apples or jicama sticks.

Walnut butter: Walnuts are a top-notch source of alpha-linolenic acid (AHA), which turns into good-for-you omega-3 fatty acid. Since walnut butter's a little bitter, pair it with something sweet, like a drizzle of honey or apricot jam on a whole-grain bagel.

Are you a peanut-butter hater? If so, why?

What do you think?