What's the healthier spread?
Choosing healthier fats and oils
There are a lot of mixed messages about the different types of fats and oils and which one we should be choosing for a healthy diet. The most important thing to look for when trying to choose healthier fats and oils is the saturated fat content and the trans fat content.
Saturated fats (or saturated fatty acids) are the ‘bad’ fats that increase blood cholesterol levels. They are usually solid at room temperature and are the main type of fat in butter, cream, ice cream, fatty meats, chicken skin, cakes, some biscuits, pastries, some confectionery and fried fast foods. Coconut and palm oil are also high in saturated fat.
Butter or margarine spreads?
There is a lot of confusion about whether butter or margarine spreads are better for you. Many dieticians and nutritionists recommend margarine spreads over butter for a number of reasons:
1. Margarine spreads contain 65% less saturated fat than butter
Each 10 gram serving of a typical margarine spread (enough for two slices of bread) contains 1.7g of saturated fat compared to 5.0g of saturated fat in butter. That means margarine spreads contain 65% less saturated fat than butter! Saturated fat is known as a ‘bad’ fat as it raises cholesterol levels, which increases the risk of heart disease.
2. The oils in margarine spreads contain no cholesterol
Margarine spreads are made with plant and seed oils which are naturally cholesterol free. Butter is fat derived from animals and contains around 8mg of cholesterol in a 10 gram serving (enough for two slices of bread). Margarine spreads typically contain less than 0.3mg per 10g serving.
Margarine spreads are made with plant and seed oils which are naturally cholesterol free. Butter is fat derived from animals and contains around 8mg of cholesterol in a 10 gram serving (enough for two slices of bread). Margarine spreads typically contain less than 0.3mg per 10g serving.
3. Most margarine spreads contain only a trace amount of trans fats whereas butter contains 3-4% trans fats
Most margarine spreads contain less than 1% of trans fatty acids, which is a very low level. Trans fats are now recognised as being more harmful than saturated fats as they raise LDL-cholesterol (‘bad’ cholesterol) and decrease HDL-cholesterol (‘good’ cholesterol), which significantly increases the risk of heart disease. Governments and public health organisations around the world advise that we should choose foods low in saturated and trans fats as part of everyday eating.
4. Margarine spreads contain more ‘good’ unsaturated oils than butter
Scientific research now shows that good oils, including canola and sunflower oil, are an important part of a healthy balanced diet. Standard margarine spreads are made up of around 65% ‘good’ oils and so retain all the benefits of these oils. Light and lower oil level margarine spreads are also available and these also contain the goodness of vegetable oils.
5. Canola margarine spreads contain omega-3 whereas butter does not contain any omega-3
Margarine spreads made with canola oil, are a natural source of omega-3. Omega-3 fats are valuable nutrients in a healthy diet – scientific evidence shows that omega-3 fats are beneficial to health throughout all stages of life and are essential for healthy development and function of the brain and eye, and supportive of good cardiovascular health.
Expert bodies around the world have similar recommendations on spreads with the main messages being to eat less saturated fat (butter) or to replace spreads containing saturated fats (butter) with spreads containing unsaturated oils.
The table below shows the spread recommendations from some leading Australian bodies:
Click here to see and hear what the experts have to say.
Most margarine spreads contain less than 1% of trans fatty acids, which is a very low level. Trans fats are now recognised as being more harmful than saturated fats as they raise LDL-cholesterol (‘bad’ cholesterol) and decrease HDL-cholesterol (‘good’ cholesterol), which significantly increases the risk of heart disease. Governments and public health organisations around the world advise that we should choose foods low in saturated and trans fats as part of everyday eating.
4. Margarine spreads contain more ‘good’ unsaturated oils than butter
Scientific research now shows that good oils, including canola and sunflower oil, are an important part of a healthy balanced diet. Standard margarine spreads are made up of around 65% ‘good’ oils and so retain all the benefits of these oils. Light and lower oil level margarine spreads are also available and these also contain the goodness of vegetable oils.
5. Canola margarine spreads contain omega-3 whereas butter does not contain any omega-3
Margarine spreads made with canola oil, are a natural source of omega-3. Omega-3 fats are valuable nutrients in a healthy diet – scientific evidence shows that omega-3 fats are beneficial to health throughout all stages of life and are essential for healthy development and function of the brain and eye, and supportive of good cardiovascular health.
What do the experts recommend regarding spreads?
Expert bodies around the world have similar recommendations on spreads with the main messages being to eat less saturated fat (butter) or to replace spreads containing saturated fats (butter) with spreads containing unsaturated oils.
The table below shows the spread recommendations from some leading Australian bodies:
Click here to see and hear what the experts have to say.
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