Obesity is a risk factor for heart disease. Heart disease is the most common cause of death worldwide. Making the best dietary choices is one way to preserve the health of the heart and blood vessels. In this article, we discuss the pros and cons of margarine and butter.
We also cover which is better for the heart. The decision of whether to choose butter or margarine depends on the specific dietary needs of the individual. The margarine making process is known as hydrogenation. This process transforms liquid vegetable oil into a solid substance at room temperature. However, producers have now largely eliminated human-made trans fats from the food supply. This came after the Food and Drug Administration FDA ruled in that manufacturers should phase these out of products over the following 5 years.
The most important difference between the two is that butter is derived from dairy and is rich in saturated fats, whereas margarine is made from plant oils. It used to contain a lot of trans fats, but as mentioned above, manufacturers have now started phasing these out. The American Heart Association AHA presidential advisory suggests that saturated fat raises LDL cholesterol levels due to its effects on overall levels of cholesterol in the arteries.
However, a person can choose the most beneficial option for their diet and needs. To do so, they can look for margarine with the lowest amount of trans fat, preferably 0 grams g , and check the ingredients label for partially hydrogenated oils. Also, be aware that food companies can claim that a product contains zero trans fats if it contains less than 0. If the margarine contains partially hydrogenated oils, it will contain trans fat, even if the label claims that it has 0 g.
Adding butter or margarine to a meal or recipe adds calories that people may not necessarily consider. However, these ingredients can also serve an important purpose in a meal as a fat source. The body needs fat to function and absorb nutrients. Fat also provides a feeling of satiety. Eating a meal without any fat means that people are likely to feel hungry again shortly after. Another concern for many people is the cholesterol content of butter. Only animal products contain cholesterol.
Most margarine contains little or no cholesterol, whereas butter contains a significant amount of cholesterol. Some people may need to follow a cholesterol-controlled diet as a lifestyle change to manage heart disease or hypercholesterolemia. Those who need to consume less cholesterol may benefit from switching from butter to margarine. There are still controversies and differing medical perspectives regarding whether butter is more or less healthful than margarine.
One study measured the effect of saturated fat intakes from cheese and butter on LDL cholesterol levels in 92 people with abdominal obesity. Both the cheese and butter test diets increased LDL cholesterol more than the other low fat, high carbohydrate test diets, a high polyunsaturated fat plan, and a plan high in monounsaturated fat.
However, there was no impact on markers of inflammation , blood pressure , or insulin or glucose levels between all of the tested diets. These markers are typically higher than usual in people at risk of cardiovascular disease. Another study compared the effects of three diets on cardiovascular disease risk factors. These diets contained extra virgin coconut oil , extra virgin olive oil, or butter. The study leaders recruited healthy adults to use 50 g of one of these fats daily for 4 weeks.
Butter increased LDL cholesterol more than either olive oil or coconut oil. However, none of the three test diets led to changes in body weight , body mass index BMI , abdominal fat, fasting blood sugar, or blood pressure. The authors therefore concluded that factors other than the type of fat require investigation when considering dietary fat intake and its relationship to human health.
Margarine also contains high levels of omega-6 fatty acids, nutrients that are essential in a balanced diet, but that may cause problems in high quantities when they are not balanced with omega 3 fatty acids.
While the ideal balance of omega 6 to omega 3 fatty acids ranges from to , Americans today consume a ratio that is closer to to The sharp increase in omega 6 fatty acids in the last century is due mainly to our increased consumption of processed oils and the snacks, baked goods and packaged foods that contain them.
Several studies suggest a link between our increasing consumption of omega-6 fatty acids and the steep rise in rates of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, depression and other diseases in the U.
Pros: Soft tub and liquid margarines contain less trans fat than harder stick margarines. They also are lower in saturated fat and calories than stick margarine or butter.
And like other margarines, they are cholesterol free. Newer options are available that are trans-fat free, and some brands are now enriched with plant sterols, which block the absorption of cholesterol and can help lower LDL cholesterol. Cons: Like stick margarines, tub and liquid margarines contain high levels of omega-6 fatty acids.
They may still contain some trans fat, as well. Bottom line: Tub and liquid margarines are a healthier choice than butter or stick margarine. Read labels carefully to look for the healthiest choices. If you are trying to minimize trans fat in your diet, check the ingredients list as well as the Nutrition Facts label.
If partially hydrogenated oil is listed, it contains trans fat. Pros: These natural oils are rich in heart-friendly monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, and they contain a healthy balance of omega-6 fatty acids and heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids, as well.
Cons: Even though these are mostly healthy fats, they are still fats, which means they are extremely high in calories, packing a whopping calories per tablespoon — even more than butter.
Bottom line: Olive, canola and safflower oils are healthier choices overall than butter and most margarines. The transfer rates of cholesteryl ester, phospholipid, free cholesterol and triglyceride from cholesterol-rich emulsions to HDL was determined in the Lipid Metabolism Laboratory of the Heart Institute InCor as previously described Daminelli et al.
Trace amounts of cholesteryl 7 n -3H oleate and glycerol tri 9, 10 n -3H oleate or C cholesterol and Lphosphatidylcholine, 1-stearoyl C arachidonyl Amersham, Buckinghamshire, UK were added to the initial solution. The results of the radioactive transfer from the lipid nanoemulsions to the HDL fractions were expressed as a percentage of the total incubated radioactivity, determined in a plasma sample containing no precipitation reagents Daminelli et al.
Intra-assay precision studies included 10 replicates of samples. Inter-assay precision was calculated on the basis of three assays of 10 replicates, run on three different days.
Intra-assay coefficient of variation was 0. Baseline characteristics of studied groups were compared by one-way analysis of variance. Inter and intra-group differences between the baseline and experimental diets were analyzed by repeated-measures analysis of variance.
When data normality was rejected the non parametric test of Kruskall—Wallis was used. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS The composition of the spreads used in this study are shown in Table 2.
The amount of saturated fatty acid in butter was equal to 5. Polyunsaturated fatty acids predominated in the plant sterol margarine and in the no- trans -fat margarine. In the plant sterol margarine there was also an addition of plant sterols 2.
No significant changes in blood pressure, body weight data not shown or on food consumption Table 3 were noted over the 5-week course of the study in any of the three study groups. There was an increasing variation in the consumption of dietary cholesterol, especially the group consuming no- trans margarine; however this variation was not statistically significant. This variation may have been a random effect, as the subjects remained in a free-living state during the entire study.
The effect of the spreads on plasma lipids andApos, inflammatory and endothelial dysfunction markers and lipid transfers to HDL are shown in Tables 4 , 5 , 6 , respectively. There were no differences among the groups regarding baseline parameters. Changes in Apo-B were also significant in relation to the other groups. However, there was a decrease of Table 5 shows the evolution of inflammatory and endothelial dysfunction markers on the different groups; no significant changes in CRP, E-selectin, IL-6 or CDL were noted for any spread group.
Data on lipid transfer rates between labeled lipids in nanoemulsions to HDL are shown in Table 6. No significant changes in lipid transfer rates were observed for the butter or plant sterol margarine groups. This study showed that in contrast to butter, no- trans -fat and plant sterol margarines when consumed within recommended portions can modify Apos and HDL metabolism in metabolic syndrome subjects on their usual diets.
There were reductions in Apo B levels and changes in HDL metabolism respectively for sterol and trans -free margarines. Beneficial effects on cardiovascular risk have been noted when saturated fats were replaced by polyunsaturated fats Schaefer, In addition a recent meta-analysis Demonty et al. In our study virtually the same effect was observed. No such changes were observed in the butter or no- trans -fat margarine groups.
Recently Plat et al. Previously, Madsen et al. Our results document even greater benefits in patients with the metabolic syndrome. In our study no significant changes were found in the cholesterol concentration carried in the small dense LDL sub-fraction despite reductions in Apo-B concentrations with the sterol margarine spread.
Our data suggest that in free-living subjects where only diet counseling was performed all three spreads did not change the concentrations of small dense LDL cholesterol. The neutral results found with both margarines are in accord with the data from the Framingham Offspring study Campos et al. However, our results contrast with the findings of studies where diet portfolio was tested Gigleux et al. This might be explained by the fact that the portfolio diet contained not only plant sterols but was also restricted in saturated fat and rich in soluble fibers.
Therefore the changes in Apo-B and LDL cholesterol found in the free-living subjects in our study might not result in significant reductions in the cholesterol carried in small dense LDL particles. Conversely it is important to emphasize that in the study of Lamarche et al. One possibility is that cholesterol reduction occurred preferentially in bigger size LDL particles in our population. Finally, methodological differences could also explain the distinct findings: LDL particles were measured by gradient gel electrophoresis and their cholesterol content was extrapolated to the small dense LDL sub-fraction in the diet portfolio studies Gigleux et al.
Limited data are available on the effect of diet on CRP and other inflammatory and endothelial dysfunction markers in metabolic syndrome patients Lichtenstein et al. In our study no significant changes in CRP, IL-6, CD40L or E-selectin were found with either butter or the two types of trans -free margarines in comparison with baseline. Lichtenstein et al. Plat et al. Our results suggest that consumption of butter, no- trans -fat margarine or plant sterol margarine, within the usual recommendations does not modify inflammatory and endothelial dysfunction markers.
Whether larger fatty acid amounts or a longer study period are necessary to show the affect of these spreads remains to be determined. HDL particles exert their anti-atherosclerotic effects by either facilitating reverse cholesterol transport or by their anti-inflammatory properties among other mechanisms Wang and Briggs, The transfer of lipids from peripheral tissues and from plasma lipoproteins is a dynamic process mediated by cellular transporters from the ATP-binding cassette family Lewis and Rader, or by plasma proteins like cholesterol ester transfer protein, phospholipid transfer protein and lecithin cholesterol acyl transferase.
The assay used in this study allows evaluation of the in vitro the ability of HDL particles to receive lipids from other lipoproteins. Changes in the transfer rates of lipids to HDL were detected by this method in heart transplantation patients and in post-menopausal women Giribela et al. The most novel feature of our study was the significant decrease in lipid transfer rates for free cholesterol and triglycerides from lipid emulsions to HDL.
For all of these transfers, the triglyceride transfer rate was reduced the most by the no- trans -fat margarine. This effect was not observed in the plant sterol margarine group or butter group. In addition, with fat feeding there is a significant increase in triglyceride-rich lipoproteins as well as the triglyceride content of HDL Cohn et al.
Furthermore, triglyceride-rich enriched HDL has been shown to be less anti-inflammatory than normal HDL in terms of its ability to suppress endothelial cell production of the adhesion molecules ICAM-1 and VCAM, as well as being less efficient as a donor of cholesterol to liver cells through scavenger receptor-B1 for efficient reverse cholesterol transport Kontush and Chapman, ; Masson et al. This study was not aimed at determining the physiological mechanisms regulating the transfer of lipids to HDL; however, experimental evidence suggests that enrichment of HDL in free cholesterol is associated with increment in the transference of triglycerides to these particles Morton, Possibly the reduction in free cholesterol transfer to HDL by non- trans margarine could have influenced the transference of triglycerides to HDL.
However, further studies are necessary to clarify these mechanisms. Also, it remains to be determined whether plant sterol-induced reduction in Apo-B-containing lipoproteins has counterbalanced the effects of the polyunsaturated fatty acids of the no- trans margarine on lipid transfers. Limitations of this study are related to the fact that it was not performed in a controlled environment when all food ingested by study subjects was controlled. However, the food records showed a constant food quality consumption pattern in the studied subjects.
We cannot rule out that larger amounts of dietary fats could have influenced the studied parameters. However, the main objective was to test spread consumption under real-life conditions and within recommended fatty acid amounts.
Furthermore, butter and no- trans -fat margarine consumption, within recommended amounts, did not unfavorably change plasma lipids and inflammatory markers in free-living metabolic syndrome subjects. Effects of maximal doses of atorvastatin versus rosuvastatin on small dense low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels. Am J Cardiol , — Official Methods of Analysis.
High-density lipoprotein subpopulations in pathologic conditions. Am J Cardiol 91 , 12E—17E. Calder PC Fat chance immunomodulation. Immunol Today 19 , — LDL particle size distribution. Results from the Framingham Offspring Study. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 12 , — Postprandial plasma lipoprotein changes in human subjects of different ages. J Lipid Res 29 , — Article Google Scholar. Metabolic syndrome: a comprehensive perspective based on interactions between obesity, diabetes, and inflammation.
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