Vegetable margarine comes from an industrial process of hydrogenation or non-hydrogenation of unsaturated fats. Various types of oils or fats can be used.

Unfortunately, to obtain vegetable margarine, such as coconut oil, coconut fat, palm oil, heart palm oil are used, which contain significantly saturated fats. Moreover, the chemical process with which these plants are treated worsens the situation from a healthy point of view.

The hydrogenation process deactivates substances useful for the human body.

The process that makes the margarine non-hydrogenated is called fractionation and leaves the saturated part in the non-hydrogenated margarine, separating the unsaturated fat part that will have a different destination.

In the food sector there is a tendency on the part of producers to abandon hydrogenated margarine in favor of the non-hydrogenated one.

It is therefore necessary to check the composition of margarine even if producers rarely indicate the hydrogenation process.

Various margarines containing trans-fatty acids were marketed as being healthier because of the absence of cholesterol, suggesting to use margarine instead of butter. Fifteen years ago, research documented the grave health risk of trans-fats (T-fat). US FDA in 2015 finalized its decision that T-fat is not safe and set a three-year time limit for complete removal of T-fat from all foods. The greatest danger from T-fat lies in its capacity to distort the cell membranes. The primary health risk identified for T-fat consumption is an elevated risk of coronary heart disease. T-fats have an adverse effect on the brain and nervous system. T-fat from the diet is incorporated into brain cell membranes and alter the ability of neurons to communicate. This can diminish mental performance. Relationship between T-fat intake and depression risk was observed. There is growing evidence for a possible role of T-fat in the development of Alzheimer´s disease and cognitive decline with age (1).

Margarine, like lard, is a major source of trans-fatty acids and saturated fatty acids. The association between these fats and a high risk of cardiovascular disease has been widely demonstrated. Moreover, animal models with high fat content represent the classic and most common method to study obesity. The results of this study showed that a high dietary intake of margarine and lard could induce a specific inflammation of the deposit with a reduced expression of anti-inflammatory type M2 adipose tissue in white adipose tissues (2).

Recently, in order to overcome the health problems mentioned above, a "trans-free" margarine with the characteristic of not containing saturated fats was placed on the market.

Margarine studies

References_________________________________________________________________________

(1) New data on harmful effects of trans-fatty acids.  Ginter E, Simko V.  Bratisl Lek Listy. 2016;117(5):251-3.

(2) Depot-specific inflammation with decreased expression of ATM2 in white adipose tissues induced by high-margarine/lard intake.  Wang N, Guo J, Liu F, Wang M, Li C, Jia L, Zhai L, Wei W, Bai Y.  PLoS One. 2017 Nov 15;12(11):e0188007. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0188007