What Is Margarine Really Made of? How Is It Different From Butter?

Margarine is a type of spread that is often marketed as a healthier butter substitute. Margarine is usually made of plant-based fats and other ingredients.

Margarine is a type of spread that is often marketed as a healthier butter substitute. However, despite its growing popularity, not many know: What is margarine made up of, and is it really good for human health? 

Truthfully, both margarine and butter can have benefits and risks. Both have a similar yellow color and uses in baking and cooking, though their ingredients are different. Due to their varying nutrient profiles, they can affect your body differently based on your dietary needs and genetic tendencies. So, rather than wondering which one is healthier, consider which one will suit your health better.

Read on to find out more. 

Margarine is a fatty, water-in-oil emulsion that's used as an alternative to butter. It can be made from different varieties of animal and plant-based fats. However, those containing vegetable oils  — like soybean oil, palm oil, cottonseed oil, and canola oil  — have become more popular due to growing interest in vegan diets.

Nearly all kinds of margarine are salted. Additionally, most manufacturers add vitamins, colorants, emulsifiers, thickeners, and flavor to make margarine's nutritional value, taste, and texture similar to that of butter. Still, you can also find some unprocessed varieties if that is your preference. 

In many places, margarine is considered the generic name for any type of butter substitute, including low-fat spreads. However, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) identifies a product as margarine only when it contains 80% or more edible fat of either plant or animal origin, dairy milk or milk derivatives, water, vitamin A, and a good edible protein.

You can find many forms of margarine in the market with shapes and packaging similar to popular butter products. Among them, the most common are stick margarine, light margarine (margarine-like spread), liquid margarine, and soft margarine available in tubs and other containers. Due to its flavor, price, spreadability, and ease of use, margarine has become a dietary staple in many parts of the world.

Plant-based oils stay liquid at room temperature and can't be used in margarine in their natural form. To give them a butter-like, hard texture, food scientists initially used hydrogenation. This process turns unsaturated fats into saturated fats — which are solid at room temperature — and gives products greater shelf life. However, this method also produces trans fats as a side product.

Artificial trans fats have been known to be unhealthy due to their ability to cause chronic disorders. To reduce their consumption, the FDA passed an order in 2015 to remove partially hydrogenated oils — a common source of trans fats — from all processed foods. 

As a result, many margarine manufacturers began using interesterification — a process that can harden vegetable oils without producing any trans fats. Margarine made with this method is generally considered healthier. 

Margarine can make a great addition to your diet as a source of various essential vitamins and fatty acids. These are some of the macronutrients found in stick margarine (1 tablespoon):

• Calories: 100 grams
• Total fats: 12 grams
• Cholesterol: 0
• Saturated fats: 2 or 3 grams
• Monounsaturated fats: 5 or 6 grams
• Polyunsaturated fats (PUFA): 3 or 4 grams 

The amount of these fats can also change based on the kind of vegetable oil used and the type of margarine. For example, soft margarine and diet margarine-like spreads are known to have relatively higher amounts of PUFA than other forms. Similarly, light margarine contains fewer fats and calories than regular stick margarine. 

Most margarine products are also fortified with vitamins A, D, and E, as well as omega-3 fatty acids.

Unlike margarine, butter is a concentrated source of dairy fat that is produced by churning pasteurized cream. 

Butter contains much higher amounts of saturated fats and cholesterol compared to margarine. Some manufacturers also add salt to the product. 

Butter is usually available in stick and spread form. People generally used it for baking, cooking, and frying, commonly as an ingredient in pastries, cakes, and sauces. 

Margarine and butter contain different kinds of nutrients that have their own advantages and disadvantages. In addition, their effect on your health will depend on the variety you include in your diet.  

For example, you may come across two varieties of butter, one that comes from grass-fed cows and another that comes from grain-fed cows. Those who eat butter from grass-fed cows commonly have better health due to these beneficial nutrients:

• Vitamin K2: Linked with lower cases of osteoporosis and cancer.
• Omega-3 fatty acids: Known to be good for the heart due to anti-inflammatory properties.
• Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA): Known to reduce body fat content and the risk of cancer.

However, all types of butter also contain high amounts of saturated fats and cholesterol, which can create many health problems.

• Saturated fats: As per the American Heart Association (AHA), a diet rich in saturated fats can raise the LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol) levels in your blood and increase your risk of heart disease. However, studies haven't found a direct link between butter and heart disorders, so more research is needed to fully understand the effect of saturated fats on cardiovascular health.
• Cholesterol: You may have commonly heard that high blood cholesterol content is bad for heart health, though if you get moderate amounts of cholesterol in your diet, it won't increase the levels in your blood. Consequently, you should consume butter only in moderation. 

Those who wish to limit their cholesterol intake often replace butter with margarine because margarine has less saturated fats and cholesterol than butter. Moreover, it's rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA). Studies show consuming PUFA instead of saturated fats can reduce the risk of heart disease by 17%.

However, keep in mind that along with bad saturated fats, margarine also lacks the good saturated fats present in butter, including myristic acid and butyric acid. Margarine also commonly contains these potentially unhealthy compounds:  

• Omega-6 fatty acids: Margarine contains good amounts of omega-6 fatty acids. While this fat is needed in a healthy diet, taking too much of it can increase your risk of chronic disorders and obesity. Research has found that omega-6 fatty acids do no harm to your body when their ratio with omega-3 fatty acids in the diet is between 1:1 and 4:1. However, due to the large intake of processed and baked goods, the ratio among Americans today is often between 14:1 and 20:1.
• Trans fats: Most manufacturers in the USA have now phased out margarine with human-made trans fats due to the rule set by FDA. However, if you get margarine that was made somewhere else, you may still find artificial trans fats in it. Studies show that this fat can cause cholesterol to build up in your arteries, thereby increasing the risk of stroke and cardiac disorders.

Margarine and butter have their own health risks and benefits. None of them represent a perfectly healthy choice. What's more, whether you should choose margarine or butter will also depend on the type of the product, as well as your own dietary needs, genetic tendencies, gender, and current health condition.   

For example, you could choose margarine if:

• You have hypercholesterolemia or heart disease and thus need to maintain a low-cholesterol diet.   
• You need to avoid animal products and need a good vegan alternative to butter.  

If you do choose margarine, check the ingredients list to make sure it doesn't contain partially hydrogenated oils. Also, you may want to look out for animal products since not every margarine brand is vegan. 

Butter can also be an acceptable choice for most people, though. If you prefer butter, consider buying grass-fed varieties. 

The best thing to do in almost all cases, of course, would be to have both margarine and butter in moderation. This would allow you to enjoy the health benefits of both products without adding too much fat to your diet.