USDA Research Confirms Margarine Recommendation

A new study from the USDA confirms what many health groups have been saying for years—margarine, particularly the softer varieties, is the tablespread of choice in a heart-healthy diet, says a report from the National Association of Margarine Manufacturers.

As reported in a USDA release on September 22, 1998, research was conducted by Dr. Joseph Judd, a prominent nutrition researcher at the USDA Agricultural Research Services' Human Nutrition Research Center in Beltsville, MD. Dr. Judd and his colleagues recently completed a clinical study with 46 men and women that compared butter with two types of margarines (margarine with either a moderate amount of trans fat or no trans fat). Dr. Judd found that even margarines with a moderate amount of trans fat had a much better effect on blood cholesterol levels than did butter. While the margarine that contains the moderate amount of trans fat lowered levels of "bad" cholesterol compared to butter (which is rich in saturated fat), the trans fat-free margarine fared slightly better. Neither of the margarines lowered the levels of good cholesterol, either.

"One reason we saw these results is that, compared to butter, most margarine products contain more poly- and mono-unsaturated fats than trans or saturated fats," stated Dr. Judd. "Too many times, consumers get confused by scientific reports on specific fats; then they translate those reports to changes in their eating behavior."

Seven other studies published or presented during the past two years, involving nearly 70,000 people, confirm Dr. Judd's results. And all of these studies support the conclusion reaffirmed this year by the American Heart Association (AHA), recommending the use of the soft and liquid margarine products instead of butter.