Butter does contain more saturated fat than margarine and does have cholesterol. But cholesterol isn’t the devil it’s made out to be. It’s present in every cell of the body and 90% of our blood cholesterol is produced by our own liver. We would die without it.

History can also guide us in this debate. Saturated fats have been used for thousands of years as the main form of cooking oil. For instance, lard, used in China, butter in Europe, ghee in India and coconut oil in the tropics. The people of Okinawa are known for their longevity and their main cooking oil is lard.

The French diet is loaded with saturated fats and yet they have a low rate of coronary heart disease. In Canada, the Inuit diet is mainly meat and lard and they too have a lower rate of heart disease. Today there’s new evidence that saturated fat isn’t the bad guy it’s been portrayed as lately.

Let’s also consider how margarine is made. fie process is called “hydrogenation,” which makes liquid oils solid at room temperature. To do this, hydrogen is added to the oil, but this also creates trans fatty acids, not found in nature, which have been linked to heart disease. Today trans fats have been largely removed from margarine but it’s still a manufactured product.

Another selling point for margarine is that it contains healthy, essential omega-3 fatty acids. But few consumers know that not all omega-3 essential fatty acids are the same. For instance, margarine is made from plant sources such as soybean and canola oils. Several experts claim that these oils are not as good as the omega-3 fatty acids in fish.

I stopped listening to my cardiologist years ago. I don’t believe that the farmers’ hens and cows are responsible for the increased rate of heart disease. I think it’s a combination of human folly, such as the epidemic of obesity, diabetes, hypertension and general lethargy that’s become so much a part of our society.