We have this love affair with the taste of butter. In effort to produce a cheaper and healthier product, food chemists produced a monster. Products have been developed to meet the needs of today. It really isn’t about the pros and cons of butter and margarine, but on what your nutrition priorities are. Your purpose to consume depends entirely on your preference. If you are just going for taste – then butter it is, but if you’re looking at health you can go either way. Just remember, the recommended intake of fat is 2 tablespoon according to the NSDA standard food pyramid. That being said, moderation is always the key to sustaining a healthy weight.
Butter being that it is derived from whole milk is considered a more natural food than margarine. In fact, butter is what makes desserts delectable. However, if you are considering heart health, margarine would be your best choice since the fat is made of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. On the bad note, however, if the fat in margarine has been processed to form trans fatty acids, then your chances of coronary problems become threefold. Not to mention your risk for cancer becomes five fold. A Harvard Medical Study noted that women who overate margarine had 53% increase in heart disease. Trans fatty acids lower your good fats HDL and increase LDL or bad fats.
Trans fatty acids(1) are derived from poly and mono unsaturated fats are multi processed via a high degree of heat, and subjected to chemical processes that are unhealthy and even carcinogenic like benzene. Not to mention antioxidants (which are petroleum based) are added to enrich the product. Trans Fatty Acids have a really bad rep these days, and it’s best you not go near them as much as possible - Very inorganic.
Fortunately, today’s margarines have been modified to get rid of most of the bad stuff. If your choice is still margarine choose the one that has the least amount of trans fatty acids. It is now required knowledge on food labels. You may also want to try substitutes such as yogurt butter or butter cream. These generally have less cholesterol and still attain that natural taste from real butter.
Butter contain the saturated fat, butyric acid which is responsible for the distinct flavor of butter. On the other hand helps nutrient absorption and contains such nutrients such as linoleic acid (ironically, a monounsaturated fat) and vitamins E, K, and D that promote cellular function. For a mother to be, the nutrient factor may outweigh the lack of nutrients found in margarine. Margarine has been found to lower the quality of breast milk, lower immune system and lower insulin sensitivity. If you observe the ingredients listing for butter, it has milkfat and a little salt. Whereas, margarine has a slew of chemicals that only a chemist can more likely understand.
Butter vs Margarine
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Resources:
http://www.health.harvard.edu/healthbeat/HEALTHbeat_06210
http://www.breakthechain.org/exclusives/margarine.html6.htm#art1
http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=2114
^1. Mozaffarian D, Katan MB, Ascherio A, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC (13 April 2006). "Trans Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease". New England Journal of Medicine 354 (15): 1601–1613. doi:10.1056/NEJMra054035. PMID 16611951. http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/354/15/1601. PMID 16611951
MARGARINE
Edible oils,
edible fats,
salt or potassium chloride,
ascorbyl palmitate,
butylated hydroxyanisole,
phospholipids,
tert-butylhydroquinone,
mono- and di-glycerides of fat-forming fatty acids,
disodium guanylate,
diacetyltartaric and fatty acid esters of glycerol,
Propyl, octyl or dodecyl gallate (or mixtures thereof),
tocopherols,
propylene glycol mono- and di-esters,
sucrose esters of fatty acids,
curcumin,
annatto extracts,
tartaric acid,
3,5,trimethylhexanal,
ß-apo-carotenoic acid methyl or ethyl ester,
skim milk powder,
xanthophylls,
canthaxanthin,
vitamins A and D.
BUTTER
Milkfat
salt
LIST OF INGREDIENTS
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