Mailbag: Is Oil or Butter Better? The FINAL Answer
By
Dr. Scott Olson, ND
Posted November 21, 2023
“Which is healthier to cook with? Oil or butter?”
-Jackie from Harrisburg, PA
Dear Jackie,
Sometimes, I sit on the fence about an issue. Butter versus oil is NOT one of those.
Butter wins EVERY time.
The easiest way to understand why butter is better is to look at nature.
If you could erase all the inventions of the modern world, you’d find it essentially impossible to eat concentrated seed and nut oils (for some reason, marketed as vegetable oils).
Sure, these fats DO exist in the natural world. But only in small amounts. You see, the making of vegetable oil is an industrial process requiring the use of petroleum solvents and other chemicals.
The fats you could get your hands on in any quantity in the pre-modern world were saturated fats. Which, of course, come from land and sea animals.
Society has taught us to fear these saturated fats. They’re often blamed for the rise of heart disease.
But that’s just nonsense.
The truth is our bodies KNOW what to do with saturated fat. So, it should come as no surprise that modern studies consistently show eating it does NOT increase your risk of heart disease.
Oils, on the other hand, contain all sorts of strange molecules our bodies have no clue how to handle. They’re easily oxidized, leading to damaging inflammation.
The oxidation worsens with heating. And that raises your risk for diabetes, heart disease, and other illnesses.
Saturated fats…
- Are very stable,
- resist damaging oxidation, and
- taste DANG good (in my professional opinion, of course).
The bottom line is butter and other saturated fats, such as coconut oil and lard, are fine to cook with and include in your diet.
P.S. Have a health concern that’s worrying you? CLICK HERE to submit your question and get featured in the weekly mailbag!
Source:
Teicholz N. “A short history of saturated fat: the making and unmaking of a scientific consensus.” Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2023 Feb 1;30(1):65-71. doi: 10.1097/MED.0000000000000791. Epub 2022 Dec 8. PMID: 36477384; PMCID: PMC9794145.
Written By Dr. Scott Olson, ND
Nearly 25 years ago, failed mainstream medical treatments left Dr. Olson in constant pain – and his health in ruins. And that’s when he did something REVOLUTIONARY. He began his career in medicine – and dedicated his life to uncovering the true, underlying causes of disease.
Through his innovative medical practices in Tennessee and Colorado, Dr. Olson has helped cure countless seniors from across America of arthritis… heart disease… diabetes… and even cancer. All without risky prescription drugs or painful surgeries.
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