Peanut butter is a food that not only tastes great but is also good for you. It’s a good source of vitamin B6, vitamin E, and niacin. It’s also a good source of copper and oleic acid — two things that have been shown to be important for maintaining good cholesterol levels, good blood sugar, and blood pressure levels, and for lowering the risk of heart disease.

So, let’s all grab a spoon of our favorite type of peanut butter and raise a toast to National Peanut Butter Month. This observance holiday is observed every November and encourages everyone to add a little bit of extra peanut butter to their diet.

The History of National Peanut Butter Month

Currently, we don’t know who invented National Peanut Butter Month, and we’re unsure of when it was created. Until we find the origins of this month, we’ll just have to talk about the history of peanut butter itself.

Despite the popular belief that George Washington Carver invented peanut butter, this food was actually created by Marcellus Gilmore Edson, a Canadian who was the first person to patent a paste made from roasted peanuts in 1884. A decade later, Dr. John Harvey Kellogg patented his peanut butter — a peanut butter that could be made from raw peanuts. He did this in 1895, and the rest is history.

Some Nutty Facts About Peanut Butter

Okay, now that we’re exploring National Peanut Butter Month, we can take the time to explore peanut butter in greater detail. Peanut butter is arguably one of the greatest foods ever created by man, so let’s learn a little bit more about it by checking out the following facts.

• Making one 12-ounce jar of peanut butter requires over 540 peanuts.
• In the U.S., before peanut butter can be labeled as such, it has to contain at least 90% peanuts.
• According to a recent survey, the average American will eat 3,000 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches over the course of their life.
• Both Elvis and U.S. President Bill Clinton reportedly love peanut butter and banana sandwiches.
• The Congo language name for peanut is “nguba.” The anglicized version of that word is “goober.”
• The average European eats less than a tablespoon of peanut butter per year!

Observing National Peanut Butter Month

Grab some peanut butter and enjoy National Peanut Butter Month in style. You can enjoy it straight from the jar, in PB&J sandwiches, or in peanut butter cookies. No matter how you enjoy your peanut butter, just be sure to use the hashtag #NationalPeanutButterMonth to let everyone know how you like to enjoy this food.