5 better alternatives to margarine

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"It's easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled." Mark Twain.

Hydrogenation turns polyunsaturated (liquid) fat into solid fat - margarine and shortening. Manufacturers use the cheapest oils - soybean, corn, cottonseed, or rapeseed- which have already gone rancid after extraction. 

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High temperatures during extraction processing break the weak carbon bonds of unsaturated fatty acids, especially the triple unsaturated linolenic acid, forming free radicals. ^{(1, 2)}

Additionally, antioxidants like fat-soluble vitamin E, which protect the body from the destructive effects of free radicals, become neutralized or destroyed by high temperature and pressure. Manufacturers often add BHT and BHA, suspected of causing cancer and brain damage, to these oils to replace vitamin E. ⁽³⁾

Refined plant oil ranks one of the worst modern products people should eliminate from their diet.

They mix these oils with tiny metal particles, usually nickel oxide. The oil-nickel mixture then undergoes exposure to hydrogen gas under high pressure and temperature. Next, they squeeze soap-like emulsifiers and starch into the mixture to improve consistency. The oil heats up again during steam cleaning to remove unpleasant odors. Margarine's natural color is gray, so manufacturers bleach it. They add colorants and flavorings to make this mass resemble butter.

Hydrogenated margarine and shortening are even worse than refined oils due to the chemical changes that occur during hydrogenation.

At high temperatures, the nickel catalyst changes the position of hydrogen atoms in fatty acid chains. Usually, in a PUFA chain, pairs of hydrogen atoms at double bonds sit on one side, slightly bending the chain. It's called the cis isomer. During hydrogenation, one hydrogen atom from the pair moves to the other side of the chain, straightening the molecule. This position is called - the trans isomer, which rarely occurs in nature.

What makes them dangerous?

These unnatural trans fats are toxic, but your body doesn't recognize them. It incorporates them into cell membranes as if they were cis fats, partially hydrogenating your cells. Trans fats lead to disrupted cell metabolism.

The altered hydrogenated fats produced from plant oils block the use of essential fatty acids. Their consumption is linked to many diseases, including cancer, atherosclerosis, diabetes, obesity, immune dysfunction, congenital disabilities, and infertility.

Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

In the 1940s, studies revealed a clear link between cancer and the consumption of hydrogenated fats. However, researchers presented the results in a way that blamed saturated (animal) fats! They often attributed data from trans fat studies to saturated fats, giving them a bad reputation.

You might tell me, "Well, everyone knows about the dangers of margarine; there's nothing to discuss." But things were different back then. Manufacturers produced margarine on a massive scale as a healthy substitute for butter, claiming it would lower cholesterol. The world's leading organizations, supposedly "concerned about public health," promoted it for decades.

Until 1990, the American Heart Association (AHA) didn't particularly object to hydrogenated fats. They only advised using softer margarine, knowing full well that these also contained a high percentage of trans fats.

Procter & Gamble, the main sponsor that brought AHA to the world stage, was also the first significant producer of margarine from cottonseed oil called Crisco. P&G initially planned to produce cheap soap from hydrogenated cottonseed oil. However, the product looked similar to lard, opening up excellent prospects for its use as a cooking fat. (the book "The Big Fat Surprise" by Nina Teicholz and the movie “The Men Who Made Us Fat” by Jacques Peretti)

Organizations like AHA provided fertile ground for the widespread sale of this margarine. After 1990, they recognized trans fat as a dangerous enemy (joining animal fats) and focused all attention solely on this component. They ignored the other additives and processes that damage and alter the nature of plant oils.

Did these organizations comment on their harmful recommendations, which led thousands of people to severe chronic diseases and death? No. Those who advertised trans fats as a healthy product continue to preach to the world about their food pyramids today. They smoothly and "imperceptibly" slid from advising people to eat partially hydrogenated fat to suggesting they spread it on bread (which isn't much better than its predecessor).

Experts recommend spread because of its "healthy fatty acid composition" and supposed lack of trans fats (which isn't entirely accurate). They don't consider the industrial processing of plant oils used to achieve the necessary spread consistency.

It's incredible how the idea of replacing butter - a natural, whole, and beneficial product - with something artificial could have emerged in the first place.

So, who do you trust more - nature or chemists?

In the Cheat Sheet, you will learn which fats to use with health benefits. 👇

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Warm regards,
Kos and Helen.

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