It seems like peanut butter and its effect on blood pressure have quite a complex relationship. This misconception goes in both directions. Most people believe that peanut butter will be beneficial to their blood pressure readings because it has peanuts in it. Yet, the problem comes not from the peanuts, but from what we do with them.
First of all, store-bought peanut butter tends to have up to 100-200 mg of sodium per two tablespoons. This may not seem like much when eating it only once, yet, if you consume the product regularly, you increase the amount of sodium you have. And sodium means increased retention of fluids and, thus, higher blood volume and blood pressure. That is the very basics of physiology.
What is particularly intriguing about the whole story is that natural peanut butter – which includes only crushed nuts and nothing else – is, on the contrary, a good thing to include in a high blood pressure diet. Peanuts contain plenty of magnesium and potassium. Both minerals fight blood pressure and support endothelium functions.
Additionally, it has been proved by science that eating peanut butter makes people avoid ultra-processed snacks that are known to be terrible.