Butter-Is it really bad?

I received the following forward from a friend. I sent it on to Jessica, our Dietician, and asked her for some feedback. I thought this information would be useful so first is the forward and then the response from Jessica.

Pass The Butter .. Please.

This is interesting . . .

Margarine was originally manufactured to fatten turkeys. When it killed the turkeys, the people who had put all the money into the research wanted a payback so they put their heads together to figure out what to do with this product to get their money back. It was a white substance with no food appeal so they added the yellow coloring and sold it to people to use in place of butter. How do you like it? They have come out with some clever new flavorings..

DO YOU KNOW.. the difference between margarine and butter?

Both have the same amount of calories.

Butter is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8 grams compared to 5 grams.

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 other 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 flavors 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) and lowers HDL cholesterol, (the good cholesterol)

Increases the risk of cancers up to five fold..

Lowers quality of breast milk.

Decreases immune response.

Decreases insulin response.

Here is the response from Jessica, our Dietician:

Most of that is true. Margarine is very high in trans fat and trans fat should make up less than 1% (it is also found in cakes, cookies, most of your baked goods) of your total intake. Trans fat has been shown to increase heart disease, risk of cancer and others. Butter is mainly saturated fat and although trans fat is the #1 worst fat for you, saturated fat is #2. Saturated fat should not make up more than 7% of your total daily intake. Diets high in saturated fat can also lead to heart disease and increase risk for cancer. Saturated fat is also the fat found in milk, meat, and other animal products. My advice for optimal health is to stay away from trans fat all together and saturated fat in moderation, but also remembering that both of these fats are found in food other than margarine or butter.