Small Steps, Sensible Choices, Superior Health.

Margarine vs Butter
You Be The Judge

In the margarine vs butter debate, people still wonder which is the healthier choice. The advertisements would have you believe that margarine is better for your health. 

I think we all know that the advertising goal is to make money, not promote the truth.

In my opinion, there is NO question, healthy butter is the best.

Once you read about how margarine is made, common sense will prevail and you'll see why butter is the clear winner.

We all know a natural food product is healthier than a processed food product. Margarine is a highly processed product.

After reading below, I think you will be shocked at how margarine is made!

If you're a tub margarine lover, I hope you'll reconsider your butter vs margarine decision.

How Is Margarine Made?

Margarine is made from some type of vegetable oil like soy, corn, cottonseed or canola using extraction methods that make the oil rancid.

It is then mixed with metal particles and subjected to hydrogen gas in a pressurized heat reactor.

The next step is to add emulsifiers and starches to give it a nice consistency.

Then it gets steam cleaned to remove the rancid odor.

Since margarine's natural color is an unappealing grey (sound yummy?), it must be bleached out.

Finally dyes and artificial flavorings are added to make it similar to butter.

Now it's ready to be packed as sticks or in tubs and sold as a healthy alternative to butter!

Margarine vs butter, is there any question?!

I could not have made this up if I tried.

But if you want more information on this process or the science of fats, click here.

How is Butter Made?

Butter begins with a cow that grazes on fresh grass. The cream from the cow is made into butter.

I know that commercially prepared butter probably has a few more steps.

However, it's far more appealing and less processed than margarine.

Not all butter is healthy butter.

The key to getting healthy butter is to make sure the cream is from cows that are grass fed.

Grass fed cows produce far superior milk that is loaded with nutrients.

Especially, conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which helps protect us from cancer.

Many commercial dairy industries are using grains as feed and the cows are frequently treated with hormones, antibiotics and other chemicals.

Butter made from the cream of these cows will be less beneficial to your health.

Finding Quality Healthy Butter

If you're done with the margarine vs butter debate, let's move on to finding quality butter. To make healthy choices in butter, you really have some options.

• Find a farm that sells a quality cream and make your own
• Find a farm and purchase butter from them
• Purchase organic butter from the store, it's the next best thing.

My favorite butter is KerryGold Irish butter.  It's made from grass fed cows.  It's a deep golden color, creamy and absolutely delicious! 

Costco carries it at a very reasonable price. I have seen smaller sticks of it in local grocery stores, but it's pretty pricey.  But do try it, you'll taste the difference.

When checking out local farms, just ask them about how and what their cows are fed.

If they are supplemented with grains, ask about the quality of the grain, since a large majority of corn is genetically modified these days.

Cows were intended to eat grass.  Their digestive system is not designed to handle corn.

Making homemade butter is really very simple. My daughter made a batch of butter in about 10 minutes, simply using heavy cream and a little sea salt.

We didn't have raw milk, so we used a good quality organic cream (non ultra pasteurized). It was delicious!

Ending the Margarine vs Butter Debate

Butter contains many beneficial nutrients that actually protect us from heart disease. It contains Vitamin A, lecithin, it has a number of antioxidants, it's rich in selenium.

The saturated fats in butter have anti-cancer and anti-tumor properties. Butter also contains conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) which provides excellent protection against cancer.

Bottom line, butter is natural, wholesome and one of the healthiest fats in the world. Healthy butter has withstood the test of time, unlike margarines and hydrogenated tub spreads.

The vegetable oil industry has done a great job of fooling us into thinking that margarine is healthier than butter, but that simply isn't true!

I hope this information helps to end the margarine vs butter debate. But you have to judge for yourself.