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War against Butter

The manner in which a recent advert on television promoted the consumption of margarine in preference to butter got my blood boiling.  Only part of the information is conveyed, thereby slanting the message in favour of margarine. What also struck me was the inference that parents who spread butter on their children’s bread are causing them harm.  Interestingly, early in the advert, the comment is made that butter ‘flows through the blood vessels’ – which is correct.  It does flow, as opposed to sticking to blood vessel walls.  Butter is a natural fat and, consumed in small quantities, generally does not cause any bother.  Although margarine is made from plant oils, its structure has been changed and the body can’t do anything with this changed structure.  It is these trans-fats that cause considerable damage to our health.  Consider the following:

Both butter and margarine have the same amount of calories.

  • Butter is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8 grams compared to 5 grams in margarine.
  • Eating margarine can increase heart disease in women by 53% over eating the same amount of butter, according to a recent Harvard Medical Study.
  • Eating butter increases the absorption of many nutrients in other foods.
  • Butter has many nutritional benefits where margarine has a few only because they are added!
  • Butter tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the flavours of  other foods.
  • Butter has been around for centuries where margarine has been around for less than 100 years.

And now, for Margarine..

  • Very high in trans fatty acids
  • Triple risk of coronary heart disease.
  • Increases total cholesterol and LDL (this is the bad cholesterol)
  • Lowers HDL cholesterol, (the good cholesterol) …
  • Increases the risk of cancers by up to five fold…
  • Lowers quality of breast milk…
  • Decreases immune response
  • Decreases insulin response.

And here are the most disturbing facts….

HERE IS THE PART THAT IS VERY INTERESTING!   Margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away from being PLASTIC…….And margarine is initially BLACK, but it is DYED YELLOW to look like butter.

YOU can try this yourself: purchase a tub of margarine and leave it in your garage or shaded area. Within a couple of days you will note a couple of things: no flies, not even those pesky fruit flies will go near it  (that should tell you something) … it does not rot or smell differently because it has no nutritional value, nothing will grow on it…even those teeny weeny microorganisms will not  find a home to grow.

If you are still not comfortable with using butter or margarine but would like to use a spread, try these alternatives:

*  mashed avocado
*  tahini
*  hommus