Let’s talk butter!

Tweet

Let’s talk about butter for a minute. I keep seeing people call butter a “healthy fat,” and I think it’s important to actually look at what the research says instead of just repeating whatever the latest food trend happens to be. Butter is high in saturated fat. Saturated fat can raise LDL cholesterol, which is associated with a higher risk of heart disease and stroke. The American Heart Association recommends limiting saturated fat and replacing it with unsaturated fats whenever possible. And this isn’t just based on one study. A systematic review and network meta-analysis looked at 54 randomized trials comparing different oils and solid fats. The researchers found that several unsaturated oils, including olive, canola, sunflower, safflower, flaxseed, corn and soybean oils, were more effective at lowering LDL cholesterol than butter. There’s also newer research. A 2025 systematic review looked at 17 randomized trials involving more than 66,000 people and found that reducing or modifying saturated fat intake may reduce cardiovascular events, particularly when saturated fat is replaced with healthier unsaturated fats. Now, I’m not saying butter is poison or that nobody should ever eat it. Food isn’t that simple. The point is that there’s a difference between saying “butter tastes good” and saying “butter is a healthy fat.” Those are two completely different statements. The current scientific evidence supports choosing more unsaturated fats, such as olive oil, canola oil, nuts, seeds, avocados and fatty fish, and limiting foods that are high in saturated fat, including butter. So if you like butter, enjoy it. But let’s stop pretending that because something is natural or has been around forever, it automatically makes it a healthy choice. Look at the actual evidence. That’s where the conversation should start.