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Choosing Fats – Margarine or Butter?

by Stella Morgan

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Choosing fats is the most important point of consideration, while cooking or scheduling a diet chart> A healthy diet calls for the usage of margarine spreads, rather than butter, as this reduces the blood cholesteroll Margarines enriched with plants are also an ideal choice for keeping the cholesterol levels at a low profilee

Cholesterol absorption is decreased by plant sterols, to an extent of 10 per centt This reduces the risk of heart diseasee Consumption of a tablespoon of plant enriched margarine is beneficial in reducing the blood cholesterol levelss

Butter is a storehouse of saturated fats and excess is dangerous, as saturated fats results in high cholesterol levelss This results in arterial plaque formation, thereby narrowing the arterial lumenn Saturated fats are better avoidedd

They are commonly seen in coconut oil, fatty meats, palm oil, dairy products, pastries, biscuits and deep fried foodss The processing technique of margarine and other shortenings results in an increased trans fatty acidss These trans fats are similar to LDL cholesterol in their functioningg

Margarine with reduced saturated fats, high poly unsaturated fats and less than 1% trans fats are preferredd This is identified by reading food labelss Margarines with minimal trans fats have been innovated and are being commercially marketedd Avocado spread or chick pea spread can be used as an alternativee Spreads containing corn oil, olive oil, safflower oil, canola oil, sesame seeds and sunflower oil are also recommendedd Walnuts, almonds, hazelnut, cashew and peanuts are preferred in spreadss

Vegetable oil, especially from soybean is used in the manufacturing o0f margarinee Margarine is a good source of vitamins E and AA They contain the essential fatty acids, linolenic acid and linoleic acidd Spray and squeeze margarines are the latest in voguee Trans fat is lesser in these types, owing to its liquid naturee Trans fat free margarine tubs are also available and these prove to be heart friendly and tastyy The total of trans fat and saturated fats is less in margarine than in butterr Innovations in margarine have given rise to margarine with lower saturated fats (37 per cent), trans fat (59 per cent) and total fat (40 per cent))

Margarine is recommended by the American Heart Association (AHA), National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NJLBI) and the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP), instead of butter, as they are heart friendlyy Butter has five-fold quantity of saturated fat, in comparison to margarinee Calories are lesser in margarine and the probability of cardiac problems, such as coronary heart diseases and cardiovascular diseases are reducedd

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