Effects of margarine compared with those of butter on blood lipid profiles related to cardiovascular disease risk factors in normolipemic adults fed controlled diets

Open Access
Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Effects of butter and 2 types of margarine on blood lipid and lipoprotein concentrations were compared in a controlled diet study with 23 men and 23 women. Table spreads, added to a common basal diet, provided 8.3% of energy as fat. Diets averaged 34.6% of energy as fat and 15.5% as protein. Each diet was fed for 5 wk in a 3 x 3 Latin-square design. One margarine (TFA-M) approximated the average trans monoene content of trans fatty acid-containing margarines in the United States (17% trans fatty acids by dry wt). The other margarine (PUFA-M) was free of trans unsaturated fatty acids; it contained approximately twice the polyunsaturated fatty acid content of TFA-M (49% compared with 27% polyunsaturated fatty acids). The tub-type margarines had similar physical properties at ambient temperature. Fasting blood lipids and lipoproteins were determined in 2 samples taken from the subjects during the fifth week of each dietary treatment. Compared with butter, total cholesterol was 3.5% lower (P=0.009) after consumption of TFA-M and 5.4% lower (P< 0.001) after consumption of PUFA-M. Similarly, LDL cholesterol was 4.9% lower (P=0.005) and 6.7% lower (P< 0.001) after consumption of TFA-M and PUFA-M, respectively. Neither margarine differed from butter in its effect on HDL cholesterol or triacylglycerols. Thus, consumption of TFA-M or PUFA-M improved blood lipid profiles for the major lipoproteins associated with cardiovascular risk when compared with butter, with a greater improvement with PUFA-M than with TFA-M.

This publication has 22 references indexed in Scilit: