You've got to love evidence-based nutrition.
And if you're not sure why, here's a reason - last week it concluded that butter's not inherently bad for you.
You see last week the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition released a meta-analysis that looked at all the prospective epidemiological studies looking at the relationship between dietary saturated fat intake and the risks of developing coronary heart disease, stroke and cardiovascular disease.
What did they find? 21 studies with followups of 5-23 years encompassing 347,747 subjects and virtually zero effect of saturated fat intake on heart disease, stroke or cardiovascular disease. To their incredible credit in their statistical analysis they specifically took into account the nature of the collection of the food records recognizing that food diarizing is fraught with error. The authors also posit that those studies that demonstrated benefit from reduction of saturated fat on heart disease may well have been a consequence not of the reduction of saturated fat but by the substitution of polyunsaturated fats in their place. They also propose that the type of carbohydrates used to replace saturated fat in those studies may have had a role in benefits.
So should you go and eat a stick of saturated fat, I mean butter? Probably not.
So is butter inherently unhealthy? Probably not.
That said, you're probably still far better off replacing butter with a margarine containing significant amounts of polyunsaturated fats.
Sorry butter lovers.
Siri-Tarino, P., Sun, Q., Hu, F., & Krauss, R. (2010). Meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies evaluating the association of saturated fat with cardiovascular disease American Journal of Clinical Nutrition DOI: 10.3945/ajcn.2009.27725
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How in the world can you post these results and then turn around and actually recommend MARGARINE?
ReplyDeleteThere is NOTHING wrong with butter. We NEED those fats! If Margerine is better than butter then how do you explain the LOWER rates of heart disease back when we cooked almost exclusively with butter and lard?
Pretty easily Evil one.
ReplyDeleteYou see the exact same body of evidence that exonerates saturated fat as in and of itself causing a rise in heart disease shows that substituting healthy fats, like the ones found in polyunsaturated enriched margarines, dramatically lowers the risk of heart disease.
Oh, and you may want to brush up on the differences between causality and association.
Saturated fats are not equal! Recent studies show that short length saturated fatty acid found in dairy products are much less damageable.
ReplyDelete@ MrsEvilGenius
ReplyDeleteNot all margarine products are wastelands of hydrogenated oils, artificial flavorings and preservatives. Some even incorporate oils with a pretty favorable ratio of fats, especially when compared to that of butter. If you are at all familiar with the literature on the topic within the past couple decades or so, you will recall that the ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 fatty acids as well as the ratio of unsaturated fat to saturated fat seem to be pretty important as predictors of disease. Hell, even the news could tell you that.
And the higher rate of heart disease can be explained easily: longer lifespan allows diseases of "old age" time to develop, increased medical knowledge allows doctors to diagnose what would have in the past been mysterious illnesses and deaths, other dietary factors may have affected the increase in heart disease, and so on. As Yoni said, you have confused correlation with causation.
Instead of recommending margarine, why not recommend what most societies outside North America use? Heart healthy oils? We are a society who wants to spread things on our bread as opposed to dipping it...
ReplyDeleteCaroline, I didn't actually recommend anything.
ReplyDeleteI simply pointed out that in the fight between butter and margarine, margarine (at least the polyunsaturated margarines) still win.
Regarding the use of oils and dipping, I would need to see a study the looked at the amount absorbed before I made any such recommendation as I wonder whether or not dipping in oil leads to much higher consumption of calories consequent to easier absorption.
There's no evidence that substituting margarine for butter is healthier.
ReplyDeleteButter tastes better, so that's what I use.
I suspect olive oil is a healthier fat than butter, but I don't have hard evidence for that.
-Steve
Hi Steve,
ReplyDeleteDefinitely no evidence that specifically substituting margarine of any sort for butter has benefit.
Of course plenty of evidence that substituting polyunsaturated fats for saturated ones does and butter is a big stick of saturated fats while many margarines these days are tubs of polyunsaturated ones.
Taste, I'm right with you and this most recent study would suggest consumption of butter has no risks inherent to butter itself but perhaps lacks the benefit of a substituted consumption of healthier fats and so I certainly wouldn't be jumping up and down on anyone to ditch the butter.
Can you give an example of a polyunsaturated margarine? Not the oils but an actual brand on the market, oh and also one that does not have a trans fat (trans=change; so changed fat) as it 3rd or 4th ingredient. The reality is that it may not say trans on the label but the key is to read the ingredient list. If there is a "changed fat" so any fat with a word in front of it implying it has been altered, then that product contains trans fat. Manufactures are protected, as long as their product contains 0.5g or less of the ingredient (in this case trans fat) then they can say that the product has 0 or trace amounts. This is why it is important to read the ingredients because no matter is it is 0.5g or less in the tablespoon if I see a changed fat on the ingredient list I KNOW there is trans fat in the product. Trans fat is foreign to our bodies and this is why the current recommendation by Health Canada is to avoid all trans fat. Butter is made from saturated fat. Animals make saturated fat and since we are animals we make saturated fats too. Our body can process saturated fats, which makes it a more healthier choice, where our bodies cannot process trans fat because it is not a natural product. Now although saturated fat is a more natural product and our body, in the ideal situation, is able to process this; however, we need to understand that this is in moderation. Too much and our body does not know what to do with the extra. Also keep in mind we make saturated fats so really we don't need them in our diets, so be sparing! For those that have a predisposition to poorly digestion of fats i.e.) family history of heart disease or stroke it would be in your best interest to avoid the saturated fats and stick to the polys like olive oils.
ReplyDeleteNG~
Earth Balance
DeleteNutriton Girl, we'll often buy PC Celeb margarine but frankly there are umpteen different margarines with 0g of trans-fat that are made primarily of polyunsaturated fat sources.
ReplyDeleteHey Yoni,
ReplyDeleteI know that some say 0g on the nutrition label but my concern is with the ingredient list. It seems that even when the label says 0g of trans fat there is still trans fat in the ingredients.
NG~
Great comments here! Wikipedia says that trans-fat (bad cholesterol) only comes from polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, never from saturated fat. BUTTER is saturated fats. Have you CAUGHT the lie?
ReplyDeleteBeware of misinformation from "leading" associations who are funded by food industry (bought loyalty)!
Many years ago, they too said smoking was good for people and the pregnant! BEWARE!!
Ridiculous. Eat plastic rather then butter.
ReplyDeleteNutrition Girl - I am not sure why you call yourself that because you are clearly very misinformed about nutrition!!
ReplyDeleteIn Canada, food labels are required to list the trans fat content (not Og) if a product contains 0.2 grams per serving or more - not 0.5g as you indicate. You are reporting US information. And actually, that is only if the product is low in saturated fat. If the product contains more than 2 grams of saturated fat, then label must list the trans fat content at 0.1 grams or more.
Also, you are wrong to state that trans fat is not natural and that our bodies do not recognize it. While of course industrial sources of trans fat are not good for us, there is such thing as natural trans fat. It is called Conjugated Linoleic Acid and it is found naturally in dairy and meat products.
Oh, and finding a non-hydrgonated margarine is just about the easiest thing in the world. I don't know why you are having problems. There are millions of options. Becel margarine, probably the most popular variety in Canada is a good example. Here are the ingredients (and before you freak about about the "modified palm oil", that is not a hydrogenated oil nor does it contain trans fat):
Canola and sunflower oils 74%, water, modified palm and palm kernel oils 6%, salt 1.8%, whey protein concentrate 1.4%, soy lecithin 0.2%, vegetable monoglycerides, potassium sorbate, vegetable colour, artificial flavour, citric acid, vitamin A palmitate, vitamin D3, alpha-tocopherol acetate (vitamin E).
Ingredients in PC Celeb margarine:
ReplyDeleteCanola oil (75%), water, modified palm and palm kernel oil (6%), whey protein concentrate (0.5%), mono- and diglycerides, natural flavour, soy lecithin, potassium sorbate, alpha tocopherol acetate (vitamin E), vitamin A Palmitate, vitamin D3, beta-carotene, citric acid.
Ingredients in butter: cream
Which one is more natural?
Have you seen this? http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/cardiovascular-disease/saturated-fat-and-heart-disease-studies-old-and-new/
I always take the evidence.
ReplyDeleteNever take the nutritionists unless they have unbiased evidence, like you just presented. You then dissed it.
Why is it that everyone always ignores the existance of grass fed butter? it has a better ratio of omega 3s to omega 6s then i've ever seen in any kind of vegetable oil with the exception of flax. 1.2 grams of omega 3 to 1.8 grams of omega 6. people are always saying to increase your intake of polyunsaturated fat but say nothing about keeping your ratio of omega 6s to omega 3s at healthy levels. it also has high levels of Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) which has been linked to increased heart health, and suppresion of tumors. Not to mention even non hydrogenated margerines are loaded with artificial flavours, soya lecithin, and "modified" vegetable oils.
ReplyDeleteI didn't read down far enough after the "sorry butter lovers".
ReplyDeleteMan made constructs are clearly wrong. If you can't pronounce what's on the label, don't eat it. One can have 20 letters behind your name and they still won't know as much as ants.
http://images.sodahead.com/polls/0/0/2/5/2/4/1/7/9/ants-vs-margarine-vs-butter-72011612968.jpeg