Butter v. Margarine & Butter Substitute | Healthy Food Blog

In the great butter vs. margarine debate, there are a few important things to keep in
mind. The first is that butter actually has some healthy fat-soluble vitamins in it that
can be beneficial if you're eating the right kind of butter. It is important to make sure
that you're getting organic butter made from organic milk and dairy products. But butter
is high in cholesterol and high in fat.
So it's not a low-fat food, but it does have
a few associated health benefits from it. Now margarine can be dangerous if it's made
with trans fats. If it's made with hydrogenated oils, it is not good for your cardiovascular
system. However, there are new trans-fat-free margarines that are dairy-free, so if you
have an issue with a dairy allergy, some of those trans-fat-free margarines might be healthier
for you. You can also now get soy-free, trans-fat-free margarines to help those of you who are soy
and dairy intolerant.
 From a sodium standpoint, butter can be the better option. If you have
a diet that you need to follow that's low in sodium, you might want to go with no-salt
butter. There are very salty butters and most of the good trans-fat-free margarines are
kind of high in sodium, so you might want to go with the low-sodium to unsalted butter.
Other substitutes you can use are oils. Some people like to use olive oil on their bread
instead of butter or margarine. Other people like to bake with oils like canola oil or
even coconut oil instead of butter or margarine.