Which Is Good For Cooking Butter Or Margarine?

The general rule is now familiar to many: an excess of saturated fats (contained in butter) and fatty acids or hydrogenated (contained in the margarine) increases the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and some cancers.

However often we wonder which of these two types of fat is potentially more harmful. So, in the kitchen is better to use butter or margarine?

Both would limit them, of course, the spontaneous response, but willing to learn something from the biochemical point of view we come to the conclusion that between the two is preferable to use butter.

Margarine is actually a fat that does not exist in nature but is derived from a blend of vegetable oils and animal fats processed through industrial processes.

First point against margarine: fats used to achieve it are often of poor quality and very low food value.

Since the vegetable oils are liquid in nature, are rendered solid by the process of hydrogenation.



Second point against margarine : the process of hydrogenation inactive substances positive for the organism, not only, these biochemical changes are recognized as foreign by the body that tends to accumulate these fats in the form of low-density lipoprotein , the famous LDL or bad cholesterol .

Third point against margarine: Recent studies have shown that margarine, unlike butter, not only increases the so-called bad cholesterol, but decreases while the good one, with highly deleterious effects on our health.

Given a choice between butter and margarine is therefore better to prefer the first, paying attention to its quality and provenance and, of course, do not overdo the quantity. From the energy point of view both foods have the same calorific power. The 100% vegetable margarine has no cholesterol and often this feature is well advertised on the packaging, almost as if it were a health food.

It should be remembered that margarine is in a lot of prepackaged foods such as pastries, cookies and the like; we recommend that you also limit the intake of these foods and read the nutrition labels when buying.