In 2018, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) banned partially hydrogenated oils from food products such as margarines. to reduce the amount of trans fats that damage the heart.
A new study from the University of Minnesota School of Public Health recently compared the nutritional composition of margarine products to butter to see which is now the healthiest option in terms of cardiovascular health.
Scope of the US market
What the study found is that in today’s US market, margarines are now a better choice than butter for health.
The study is the first to comprehensively analyze margarine versus butter since the FDA ban went into effect. Details of the study were recently published in the journal Public Health Nutrition. Specifically, the study found:
After the ban, margarine and butter mix products contain substantially less saturated fat and cholesterol compared to butter, and contain no artificial trans fat.
Softer margarine products in squeeze tubs and tubs were found to contain less saturated fat than stick margarines, making them the best nutritional choice among margarine products.