Feature Articles: Food, Fitness and Cooking and Produce
Match Margarine to Use
Susan Mills-Gray, Nutrition Specialist in Cass County, University of Missouri Extension
One of the most common questions I receive is “Should I use margarine instead of butter?” Butter and margarine both pose the challenge of being laden with calories and saturated fat/trans fat, which is connected to increasing risk of chronic disease. I generally encourage consumers to use either butter or margarine sparingly. While butter is butter, there are so many different types of margarine on the market, how do you know which to purchase for spreading, cooking or baking?
First, let’s define “margarine”. Whether in stick or tub
form, to be a true margarine, it must contain at least 80%
oil (the rest is mostly milk and water). It is made from
various vegetable oils such as soybean and corn. If the
product contains less than 80% oil, then it must be labeled
as a “vegetable oil spread”. In order to produce margarine
in a solid form, the vegetable oil must undergo
hydrogenation, which is a process that adds extra hydrogen
to the oils. This process changes the chemical composition
of the vegetable oils resulting in the oils becoming a solid
at room temperature. The hydrogenation process also produces
trans-fat, which converts the healthy unsaturated fats of
the vegetable oils into solid saturated fats. This
characteristic makes many of the margarines on the market no
better or worse than butter in terms of nutrition and
health.
Let’s consider the types of margarine you can choose:
- Traditional stick margarine. It’s the least healthful of all margarines, because it’s highest in fat and particularly trans fat. The more solid a margarine, the more trans fats it contains from partially hydrogenated oils. Uses? The same as butter – spreading, melting, baking, and sautéing.
- Regular tub margarines/spreads. Most contain 61% -79% vegetable oil and many are now labeled as trans-fat-free, though they may still contain some partially hydrogenated oil. Gimmicky ingredients like sweet cream buttermilk, yogurt and olive oil aren’t typically present in large enough quantities to be of much help, except for flavor. But tub margarines with added calcium – at 100 milligrams per tablespoon, which is 10% of the Daily Value recommendation – might be a helpful calcium boost. Uses? Spreading, melting, sautéing. Avoid use in baking, as it reduces volume of baked product.
- Light, Low-Fat, and Fat-Free tub spreads. These range from 0% (fat-free/nonfat) to 40% vegetable oil (light/lower fat) and are your most healthful choices. Each of these products contains a large quantity of water and this greatly affects potential use. Uses? Spreading, though the water content can cause sogginess if given time. Do not use for baking, it results in poor quality products. Also, avoid using for frying or sautéing. These spreads can add flavor to recipes that already contain moisture, i.e. macaroni and cheese or casseroles.
- Plant Stanol and Sterol Ester spreads. These spreads include plant sterols and stanols that are proven to lower blood cholesterol IF you use 2to 3 tablespoons daily and that can add calories fairly quickly. Brand name examples are: Benecol and Promise. Uses? Spreading. Don’t use for baking for same reason as light spreads. Also do not use for frying or sautéing.
- Spray/pump products. These are extremely low in saturated and trans fats, hence their liquid nature. Uses? Topping and sautéing.
Three tips for choosing the healthiest margarine/spread:
- Check the Nutrition Facts label to be sure trans fat is 0 and saturated fat is no more than 1.5 grams per tablespoon.
- Be sure oil or water is first in the list of ingredients.
- Scan the ingredient list for partially hydrogenated oils; avoid brands with them.
For more information, contact your local University of Missouri Extension Center or Susan Mills-Gray directly at mills-grays@missouri.edu.
Resources:
Environmental Nutrition, April 2007; http://www.recipestips.com
Last update: Wednesday, August 20, 2008
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