Fear of peanut butter

I love peanut butter. Smooth creamy peanut butter. Even though I normally prefer crunchy foods, when it comes to peanut butter, creamy is my choice. I don't have a favorite brand although I probably buy Jif most often. My favorite way to eat peanut butter is on Ritz crackers with a slice of banana. That has the crunchy from the cracker, the peanut flavor paired with the sweet soft banana. Love it.
I'm trying not to let the peanut salmonella problem scare me. So far, national brands of peanut butter in jars hve not been implicated. I don't eat meal bars (yuck) or cookies that come out of boxes or any of the other products made with peanut butter that could be contaminated. But this morning, while smearing the stuff on my Ritz, I spent just about ten seconds thinking before I crunched down on the delightful morsel.
There is no way I could give up PB while trying to lose weight. It has the texture and flavor of an indulgence. PB has a lot going for it: It smells great. It's creamy. It tastes like the food it is made from! What could be better when you're looking for a food that is satisfying in small amounts. I know there are people who overdose on the stuff. People who eat peanut butter out of the jar with a spoon. I'm not like that. In fact, I wouldn't enjoy it straight up, without the accouterments I mentioned. It's a package to me...the cracker, the peanut butter, the banana.
I keep my peanut butter in the frig. Not sure why. I just always have done that. I think it's safer to keep most opened food refrigerated. Slows down bacterial growth. I know most people do not refrigerate their opened jars of peanut butter. I don't have any scientific evidence to support my actions but I would recommend the practice. It can't hurt. And it would certainly slow down rancidity which is also a problem with PB.
Poor peanut butter. Aflatoxin. Now Salmonella. Rancidity. So sad. Such a lovely food to have to suffer so many problems.