The debate over butter vs. margarine and tub vs. stick is ongoing. Trans fats, rich in margarine, are a type of unhealthy "bad" fat that are well-known for their harmful effects in your body. Margarine, made from vegetable oil, undergoes extensive processing, and the more solid it is, the more trans fats it contains. In the stick form, margarine typically has more trans fat than margarine in a tub.
Trans Fats
Trans fats can be natural or artificial; for example, animal foods contain some trans fats, but trans fats are also made during processing of certain foods. During hydrogenation of liquid vegetable oil, hydrogen is introduced under great amounts of pressure, turning the liquid into a solid. Trans fats are a negative byproduct of this processing. Food manufacturers use hydrogenation to increase shelf-life of the product and to improve flavor.
Trans Fats in Margarine
A 1 tbsp. portion of stick margarine provides 3 g of trans fat, according to the Cleveland Clinic. This is significantly more than margarine in a tub, which contains only trace amounts of trans fats. Switching to tub margarine cuts your trans fat intake by as much as 70 percent, down to 1 g or less. It can be difficult to eliminate trans fats altogether, but they should not not make up more than 1 percent of your total calories, the Mayo Clinic reports. For the average 2,000-calorie diet, you can have about 2 g of trans fat for the entire day.
Dangers of Trans Fats
Synthetic trans fats are especially harmful because they not only raise your "bad" low-density lipoprotein, also called LDL, they also lower your "good" high-density lipoprotein, or HDL cholesterol, says the Food and Drug Administration. Having this imbalance of cholesterol increases your risk of atherosclerosis, a condition that causes plaque buildup, hardening your arteries. Additionally, a diet rich in trans fats boosts your risk of high blood pressure and heart disease.
Additional Information
All fats contain calories, 9 calories per gram, but some fats are better for you than others. Replacing trans fats in your diet with heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, or MUFAs and PUFAs, contributes to lower cholesterol levels and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. Some tub margarines have added MUFAs and PUFAs, as well as omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3s are a type of polyunsaturated fat that are especially beneficial because they minimize your risk of coronary artery disease and protect against irregular heartbeats, says the Mayo Clinic.
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