Butter and Margarine

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Astronomically_Im_Tiny
Astronomically_Im_Tiny Posts: 55 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Okay...I hear this buzz going around that people are "going back to butter" because margarine is worse. I wonder...why?

I just looked at the label on my Country Crock Original (tub), and it's fat content per TBSP is pretty healthy: for 7g of fat, it only has 2g of saturated fat and no trans fat. However, I went to Land O Lakes site, and both their unsalted and salted butters had a great amount of saturated fat in it. If that is the case, why do people not like margarine anymore? Is it because there are too many varieties, or ways to make it, and people get confused?

I switched to the Original because I was dissatisfied with the fact that Country Crock Light was too watery. I would heat it up in the pan, and it separates from the water before fully liquefying. I am seeing how this new one cooks. Original is 57% veggie oil, and Light is 37%.

So, what do you use for healthy cooking when it comes to butter or margarine? (oils and sprays are irrelevant)
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Replies

  • MysteriousMerlin
    MysteriousMerlin Posts: 2,270 Member
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    I use unsalted butter and olive oil for cooking, and Land o Lakes light butter with canola oil blend for toast and whatnot. I simply prefer the taste of it to margarine.
  • awtume9
    awtume9 Posts: 423 Member
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    Butter. It tastes waaaaay better.
  • rljohnsufl
    rljohnsufl Posts: 48
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    Butter tastes better, so I need less of it.

    I mix a half cup of butter with a half cup of olive oil to make homemade "margarine" that is spreadable right out of the fridge - that's yummy too.
  • Astronomically_Im_Tiny
    Astronomically_Im_Tiny Posts: 55 Member
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    I just threw 2 tbsp of Country Crock original in a pan, and sauteed some mushrooms, fresh baby spinach, and roma tomatoes. The taste is phenomenal! Almost night and day compared to using Olive oil. Man!
  • cpdiminish
    cpdiminish Posts: 84
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    The margarine vs. butter debate isn't about calories, rather about health.

    Margarine isn't actually food. Chemically, it is more similar to paint. And depending on your brand choice, it could have a whole host of synthetic ingredients.

    Try putting that tub of margarine outside without a lid. Nothing is going to eat it. It isn't even going to grow mold. Even the flavor is artificial.

    Though you can do your own research, studies have shown that margarine being high in trans fatty acids means an increased risk of hearth attacks, it increases your bad cholesterol numbers, it decreases the immune system response, and increases your risks for diabetes.

    How did it make its way into our kitchens? It became popular during WWI when butter was expensive. The rest has been advertising ploys to trick us into thinking it is healthy just to make money.
  • ValeriePlz
    ValeriePlz Posts: 517 Member
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    Some margarine contains trans fats, which are worse for you than saturated fats.

    Here is a good article by the Mayo Clinic on butter versus margarine.

    http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/expert-answers/butter-vs-margarine/faq-20058152
  • Showcase_Brodown
    Showcase_Brodown Posts: 919 Member
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    You'll want to look out for trans fats if you go the margarine route. If you can afford a few extra calories, butter is definitely worth it.

    Saturated fat isn't such a bad thing, either. It gets beat up on and called names a lot, but it's not the culprit.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    The margarine vs. butter debate isn't about calories, rather about health.

    Margarine isn't actually food. Chemically, it is more similar to paint. And depending on your brand choice, it could have a whole host of synthetic ingredients.

    Try putting that tub of margarine outside without a lid. Nothing is going to eat it. It isn't even going to grow mold. Even the flavor is artificial.

    Though you can do your own research, studies have shown that margarine being high in trans fatty acids means an increased risk of hearth attacks, it increases your bad cholesterol numbers, it decreases the immune system response, and increases your risks for diabetes.

    How did it make its way into our kitchens? It became popular during WWI when butter was expensive. The rest has been advertising ploys to trick us into thinking it is healthy just to make money.

    This is a tiny bit of truth amongst a whole lot of nonsense.

    There are many margarines available today that do not contain trans fats (partially hydrogenated oils). Margarine became popular because it was (is) cheap and when it became popular the relationship between health problems and trans fats was not known.

    And like so many other foods that contain trans fats, it is still popular because it's cheap. Many people prefer cheap food to expensive food, even if they know the more expensive food is healthier.

    But there are margarines available that are arguably just as healthy or even healthier than butter. There are butter / vegetable oil blends that are free of trans fats. There are margarines that have plant sterols added, which have been shown to improve lipid profiles.

    The bottom line is you can't just compare butter to margarine because while butter is butter, margarine can be any number of things.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    So, what do you use for healthy cooking when it comes to butter or margarine? (oils and sprays are irrelevant)

    My answer would be neither. I use olive oil almost exclusively for cooking, but that is irrelevant (apparently).

    I rarely use butter or margarine but I when I do use one, I most often use a butter, olive oil, canola oil blend w/ added plant sterols (Smart Balance). But I also have butter and may use that or a mix of it and oil.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 9,970 Member
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    Butter, ghee, duck fat and lard.....of course......
  • xmichaelyx
    xmichaelyx Posts: 883 Member
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    Fat is not bad for you. That was a myth in the '70s and '80s that science has proven unfounded.

    Here's a well-sourced article: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/fats-full-story/
  • Astronomically_Im_Tiny
    Astronomically_Im_Tiny Posts: 55 Member
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    Well, trans fat is not an issue. The margarine I use has none of it. If margarine is not "natural," then it is only partially not, because the formula calls for 57% vegetable oil (on the one I use).

    But if trans fat is out of the debate, because it has none, how do they get the Polyunsaturated and Monounsaturated fats if they are not natural? These aren't fats that you can make in a laboratory. To say Margarine is not natural would be to exaggerate, wouldn't it be?
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Well, trans fat is not an issue. The margarine I use has none of it. If margarine is not "natural," then it is only partially not, because the formula calls for 57% vegetable oil (on the one I use).

    But if trans fat is out of the debate, because it has none, how do they get the Polyunsaturated and Monounsaturated fats if they are not natural? These aren't fats that you can make in a laboratory. To say Margarine is not natural would be to exaggerate, wouldn't it be?

    Some margarines may contain artifical ingredients, but I think most people just mean that it can't be made by natural means. Technically, neither than can butter, since someone has to milk the cow and churn the milk, but it can be made without adding any ingredients.
  • Strokingdiction
    Strokingdiction Posts: 1,164 Member
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    Margarine isn't actually food. Chemically, it is more similar to paint. And depending on your brand choice, it could have a whole host of synthetic ingredients.

    Try putting that tub of margarine outside without a lid. Nothing is going to eat it. It isn't even going to grow mold. Even the flavor is artificial.


    It is digested, absorbed and used by the body. This makes it actual food. Chemically, it isn't more similar to paint.

    If I put a tub outside without a lid, it will be gone within a few hours because dogs, cats and many of the wild critters around here will destroy it.

    That said, I don't like the taste of margarine and will never use it for that reason alone.
  • tennisdude2004
    tennisdude2004 Posts: 5,609 Member
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    The higher the saturated fat content the better.

    Some margarines have trans fats and a higher content of polyunsaturated fat, which make them less healthy.
  • LexiMelo
    LexiMelo Posts: 203 Member
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    I too prefer the taste of butter but when I need something quickly and easily spreadable I use Earth Balance Spread which is really good as far as spreads go. I tried to get the organic whipped butter in a tub but it still wasn't easily spreadable. I like the idea of mixing it with olive oil!
    For frying I use half butter, half olive oil.
    For sauteing I use olive oil or coconut oil.
  • Showcase_Brodown
    Showcase_Brodown Posts: 919 Member
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    Just another note...

    If it is spreadability that is a factor, don't keep your butter in the fridge. It lasts quite a while out of the fridge, especially if you keep it in a butter bell or something similar that creates a seal. Once I discovered I didn't really need to keep butter cold in the short term, I never looked back at "spreadable" blends.
  • suremeansyes
    suremeansyes Posts: 962 Member
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    I prefer butter for taste and because it is more natural. I use olive oil, butter and chicken fat for cooking.
  • FIT_Goat
    FIT_Goat Posts: 4,224 Member
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    Well, trans fat is not an issue. The margarine I use has none of it. If margarine is not "natural," then it is only partially not, because the formula calls for 57% vegetable oil (on the one I use).

    But if trans fat is out of the debate, because it has none, how do they get the Polyunsaturated and Monounsaturated fats if they are not natural? These aren't fats that you can make in a laboratory. To say Margarine is not natural would be to exaggerate, wouldn't it be?

    There are some studies that link polyunsaturated fats with cancer (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24027672 , http://carcin.oxfordjournals.org/content/20/12/2209.full , etc.). There are a bunch. There's also some studies relating it to overall mortality rate. Of course, there are also studies that say the exact opposite.

    The end result is, eating high amounts of vegetable oils is relatively new for humans. The health risks are unclear. Eating butter has a more established history and the risk of saturated fats is fairly low. I'm sticking with butter.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
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    Well, trans fat is not an issue. The margarine I use has none of it. If margarine is not "natural," then it is only partially not, because the formula calls for 57% vegetable oil (on the one I use).

    But if trans fat is out of the debate, because it has none, how do they get the Polyunsaturated and Monounsaturated fats if they are not natural? These aren't fats that you can make in a laboratory. To say Margarine is not natural would be to exaggerate, wouldn't it be?

    There are some studies that link polyunsaturated fats with cancer (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24027672 , http://carcin.oxfordjournals.org/content/20/12/2209.full , etc.). There are a bunch. There's also some studies relating it to overall mortality rate. Of course, there are also studies that say the exact opposite.

    The end result is, eating high amounts of vegetable oils is relatively new for humans. The health risks are unclear. Eating butter has a more established history and the risk of saturated fats is fairly low. I'm sticking with butter.

    Stick with whatever you like, but humans have been eating vegetable oil for probably as long or longer than butter.

    There is more evidence that polyunstaurated fats are healthy than unhealthy, but as with anything it is the total diet that most influences health.

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