Is Butter Bad for your Health?

In the late 1980s, fats were considered an “enemy”, while today those who eat healthy add butter to their morning coffee or coconut oil to the scouts.

Science has previously held that fat-rich foods are to blame for everything from high cholesterol and heart disease to obesity. Since then, researchers have learned a great deal, as is the very important fact that not all fats are equal.

This does not lead to the question, is butter bad for your health?

According to nutritionists, the era of “butter is bad” is over and it can be used in any healthy diet, though in limited quantities.

One large spoon full of butter contains about 100 calories and 11.5 grams of fat, of which 7 are saturated fat. These 7 grams represent 35% of the daily recommended intake of saturated fat, based on a 2000 calorie diet.

By comparison, the same number of calories would be consumed by 1.25 cups of blueberries, which contain both fiber and antioxidants. But fat will make you more saturated.

Butter is a much better choice than margarine (which may also contain trans fats that raise bad LDL cholesterol and increase the risk of cardiovascular disease), and calories are about the same as olive oil or avocado (even less caloric than them) and can be used for cooking instead of oil.

Butter contains the most saturated fat, whose excess intake is linked to increased cholesterol, while olive oil or avocado contains monounsaturated fats that improve heart health.

If one’s diet does not include too much butter, there is no reason to increase its intake unless it is necessary to increase calorie or fat intake, which happens but is not too common.

Healthy individuals who like butter should consume it moderately – about one tablespoon a day.