Yes, You Can Eat Peanut Shells (But There's A Catch)

If you've ever walked into a Texas Roadhouse, saw the peanut shells on the floor, and thought that it might be a waste of good food, you may be right. While Texas Roadhouse has stopped allowing people to throw peanut shells on the floor, the restaurant still gives you a free bag of roasted peanuts at your table. If someone at your table is giving you a hard time about eating the peanut, shell and all, we're here to tell you it's fine to do — as long as you don't do it too often.

The problem with eating too many peanut shells is that they're 60% crude fiber, which the body doesn't digest. If you eat a lot of peanut shells, this crude fiber can create a mass in your intestines that block the passage of everything that needs to get through. It's the same thing that happens when people consume too much hair. There are medications that can help your body to pass the mass out, but extreme cases do require surgery. So, if you enjoy them, feel free to eat them from time to time — just don't make a habit of it!

Potential intestinal blockage isn't the only issue that can come from eating the shell of a peanut. As they aren't produced to be eaten, they often contain pesticides (unless they are specifically grown without them). Peanuts are usually treated with pesticides because growing underground makes them susceptible to fungi that can produce aflatoxins, a toxin that can increase your risk of liver cancer.

If you have a craving for peanut shells, that could also signify a deeper problem. The desire to eat non-nutritional items like peanut shells, hair, or clay could be a sign of an eating disorder called Pica. In fact, peanut shells are just the beginning of some of the more interesting non-food items people have been known to eat. The disorder can be the result of more serious underlying disorders, so it's best to check with your doctor.

If all this scares you away from eating peanut shells, that's fine — they're pretty devoid of any nutritional value, anyway. It may be better to just let the shells do their job as the natural container keeping peanuts fresh and enjoy the nuts themselves as the ingredient to the best peanut butter.