U.S. Dept. of Agriculture chemists have discovered that about a half-cup of peanuts (technically a legume, not a nut) contains as much resveratrol as a half-ounce of red wine.

      Resveratrol (3,5,4-trihydroxystilbene --- also found in grapes, cranberries, blueberries, mulberries and other dark-skinned fruits and plants) inhibits tumor initiation, promotion _and_ progression in mice, according to U. of Illinois at Chicago researchers who obtained a five-year, $6.21 milion grant from the National Cancer Institute to continue to isolate and study plant chemopreventives.
      The team has tested 2500 natural products since 1991 and plan to test another 1000 (lead scientist: John Pezzuto, associate dean for research and graduate education, College of Pharmacy).
[ Of 70 active compounds recently discovered, the most promising are in Chinese cabbage, broccoli, red grapes and peanuts.

      Dr. Tim Sanders, of the USDA/ Agricultural Research Service, has reported that peanuts contain 1.7-3.7ug/g of resveratrol, compared to 0.6-8.0 ug/ml in red wines.

      Resveratrol acts by blocking the activity of an enzyme called cyclooxygenase, which triggers the chemical conversion of substances in the body that can stimulate tumor cell growth.
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      In an 18-month study of mice subjected to carcinogens (Science; 1/97), resveratrol reduced the number of skin tumors by up to 98 precent when compared with control mice that did not receive the compound.
      When added to cultures of human leukemia cells, resveratrol stopped the production of abnormal cells. Lead researcher Pezzuto said the action in effect turned a culture of cancer cells into a culture of normal cells.
[According to a study in Antiviral Research, resveratrol can also stop the herpes simplex-1 virus from multiplying.]

      Two other antioxidants in nuts, quercetin (also found in onions) and campferol, may also suppress cancer growth.

Phytosterols

      Peanuts also contain the phytosterol, beta-sitosterol, which may impact on colon, prostate and breast cancers.
      Snack peanuts: 160mg SIT/100gm; Peanut butter: 120mg SIT/100gm; Peanut/soybean oil: 183mg SIT/100gm

      Raw, unprocessed nuts (and seeds) are the richest sources of the plant fats sterol and sterlin. They are immune system modulators and impact on autoimmune disorders (incl. rheumatoid arthritis), asthma, cervical cancer and hepatitis C.
      Lorna R. Vanderhaeghe, author, "The Immune System Cure":
  "When TH1 (immune helper cells) drops due to cortisol release, as happens when you are experiencing unrelenting stress, TH2 increases, and cancer, allergies and auto-immune disorders can appear. Sterol and sterolin, in combination, help to balance the level of helper cells."

      Phytosterols also counter the accumulation of fatty deposits in blood vessels (they are now being used in some commercial margerines to reduce the risk of heart disease) (pistachios are especially rich in phytosterols).
[72 to 90 percent of the calories in nuts comes from fat, most of it unsaturated (monounsaturated), which helps to lower low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol (a clogger of arteries).]

      Dr. Penny M. Kris-Etherton, a nutritionist at Penn State U., presented a study in 2000 (London) in which a diet that provided 36 percent of the calories from fat -mostly peanuts and peanut butter- lowered LDL cholesterol and triglycerides by more than 10 percent, but a standard low-fat cholesterol lowering diet raised triglycerides by 15 percent (!). The participants did not gain weight.

      Dr. Kathy McManus, director of clinical nutrition at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, assigned half of 101 obese subjects to a standard low-fat diet, in which 20 percent of the calories came from fat. The rest were given a diet in which 35 percent of calories were fat-derived from tree nuts, peanuts, olives and olive oil.
      After 18 months, there as a weight loss of nine pounds in the high-fat group, and a gain of more than six pounds in the low-fat group.
      McManus: "The participants in the nut-eating group reported that they did not feel like they were dieting, even though they were eating controlled portions of food."

      Dr. Frank B. Hu of the Harvard School of Public Health, notes that among 86,016 participants in the Nurses' Health Study, fatal and non-fatal heart attacks were 325 precent less likely to occur among women who consumed nuts five or more times a week than among those who rarely ate nuts.

      In a 1998 study of more than 40,000 older women in Iowa, those who ate nuts five times a week (mostly peanuts) had only half as much heart disease as the non-nut eaters.

      A study of 34,192 Seventh-Day Adventists (men and women - mainly vegetarians) in California, revealed a 50 percent reduction in coronary risk among frequent nut eaters.
      About 32 percent ate peanuts, 29 percent almonds, 16 percent walnuts and 23 percent other nuts.


Protein

      One ounce of nuts supplies 7.2 grams of protein (nearly as much as a glass of milk), protein that is especially rich in the amino acid, arginine.
      Arginine aids in the body's synthesis of nitric acid, which causes blood vessels to dilate, in turn, lowering blood pressure.
      Peanuts are good sources of arginine along w/almonds, walnuts and hazelnuts.

      Peanuts are the best nut source of folate (followed by hazelnuts and walnuts), which lowers blood levels of homocysteine (elevated homocysteine levels can triple the risk of heart attacks).


Tocotrienols

      Prevention magazine (Jan. 2000) states that: "Even among the healthiest eaters, the ones who also eat nuts have the best health records. Exactly why isn't known yet, but one reason could be the compounds in nuts called tocotrienols."

      Gamma-tocotrienol (related to vitamin E - also found in grains and olive and palm oil) can cut tumor growth by 40 percent or more.
      Beta-ionone (related to vitamin A - found in every fruit and vegetable) can halt the growth of leukemia, breast cancer and colon cancer cells.
      In general, the isoprenoids (over 22,000 compounds) block enzymes needed for tumor replication.
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Amounts

      One serving equals three teaspoons of nuts or two teaspoons of peanut butter.
[A Snickers bar has about 23 peanuts, nearly a full serving.]

      One oz. of peanuts (roasted): 180 cal/7 gm protein/15 gm fat.
  Two tbls. peanut butter: 190 cal/10 gm protein/16 gm fat.