Thursday, September 24, 2009

Want Some Plastic On Your Toast...?


Sometimes, when you look at the facts...you realize that you don't need to be a rocket scientist to make a smart decision!

I'll admit that I haven't always liked the taste of real butter, often preferring the "taste" of margarine. However, that was before I learned that the flavor was added. Then, after I found out I could add different flavors to real butter, I started changing my attitude.

Check this out...! (BTW...Snopes says that parts of this are NOT true! So read at your own risk!)


DO YOU KNOW the main difference between margarine and butter?

Both have the same amount of calories.

Butter is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8 grams compared to 5 grams.

Eating margarine can increase heart disease in women by 53% over eating the same amount of butter, according to a recent Harvard Medical Study.

Eating butter increases the absorption of many other nutrients in other foods.

Butter has many nutritional benefits where margarine has a few; only because they are added!

Butter tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the flavors of other foods.

Butter has been around for centuries where margarine has been around for less than 100 years .

And now, for Margarine...

Very high in trans fatty acids..

Triple risk of coronary heart disease.
Increases total cholesterol and LDL (this is the bad cholesterol) and lowers HDL cholesterol (the good cholesterol)..

Increases the risk of cancers up to five-fold.

Lowers quality of breast milk.

Decreases immune response.

Decreases insulin response.

And here's the most disturbing fact;

Margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away from being PLASTIC.

This fact alone was enough to have me avoiding margarine for life and anything else that is hydrogenated (this means hydrogen is added, changing the molecular structure of the substance).

You can try this yourself: Purchase a tub of margarine and leave it in your garage or shaded area. Within a couple of days you will note a couple of things:

* no flies, not even those pesky fruit flies will go near it (that should tell you something)

* it does not rot or smell differently because it has no nutritional value; nothing will grow on it. Even those teeny weenie microorganisms will not a find a home to grow.. Why? Because it is nearly plastic. Would you melt your Tupperware and spread that on your toast?

Chinese Proverb:
'When someone shares something of value with you and you benefit from it, you have a moral obligation to share it with others.'

So, I've done my part by sharing this with you! I hope you found this a little educational...or at least a little fun!

Now, my friends, let's get some coffee and sit outside for a bit, OK?

26 comments:

Frugal Canadian Hermit said...

That is some pretty interesting stuff on margarine and butter there Jim. I never realized. I guess I might have to change my ways a little bit and do the butter thing a little more often and the margarine a little bit less.

HermitJim said...

Hey Off Grid...
Glad to see that you are getting something out of all this random stuff that I post. I can't seem to stay in one particular direction with these post!

My mind just wanders all over the place and I want to post so many different things...finally having to settle on whatever I find the most imteresting at the time!

I sure appreciate you dropping by today, buddy!

Ken said...

...wow !...now i have evidence...Jim you are definately moving up my list of heroes...more butter and ALOT less margarine coming up...

Felinae said...

Thanks, Uncle Hermit

Pretty scarey stuff finding out what we put into our bodies.

I haven't used margarine for going on 15 years now.
I switched to the real stuff when my daughter was born.

Catman has never used it, for him the word margarine is taboo. :D

Have a great day!

Hugs~Felinae~

Rae said...

No wonder I have always like butter better. Now I have a good reason to not feel guilty for eating it. I still don't think I want the fried butter served at the fair, but adding some to toast and having a little coffee sounds like perfect.

womanwisdom said...

great you are uncle hermitjim!

so that's why i never really liked that margarine stuff... and that's why i really looooooovvvee the butter! wait...i'll get some and spread on my hot, fresh-baked country bread, (though bakery bought :( ) with freshly brewed mountain coffee of course!

thanks for that post... i'm sharing it through email...

warm sunshine from these islands!

w.w.

HermitJim said...

Hey Ken...
Good to see you buddy! Yep...glad to be of service, my man!

A little more butter never hurt!

Thanks for coming by!


Hey Felinae...
Glad to hear that you are into the butter thing! I think it's a good idea!

Doesn't surprise me about the Catman...after all, he's smart enough to make wise decisions! He chose you, didn't he?

Thanks for the visit today, lady!


Hey Rae...
That's what I'm good at...doing away with the guilt! Gotta put the fun back into eating, ya know?

Thanks for coming by today, Rae!


Hey WW...
Store bought or home made...real butter on fresh bread is hard to beat! Perfect with that fresh coffee!

Good of you to drop by, my friend!

Anonymous said...

Morning Jim;

If it ain't natural DON'T eat it.

Enough said.

See Ya

HermitJim said...

Hey Tony...
Sounds like good advice to me, sir! Certainly better for us than that other stuff!

Thanks for coming by, Tony!

Anonymous said...

Whoa, thats an eye opener. We've been long time butter users ourselves, (just tastes better!) and we're glad to hear damage isn't nearly as bad as it supposedly was.

HermitJim said...

Hey Anon 7:58...
Many of us feel the same way! Always nice to find out that we are doing the right things for the right reasons, huh?

I sure do appreciate you dropping by today!

JoJo said...

OK now I know why I have that really bad LDL level. So I guess, I can't believe its not butter is the same as margarine. Guess I will go back to the butter. Its just so hard to spread and I am not crazy about the taste.
Oh whats a girl to do? better have more coffee and sit and talk this out my Special One.

CoyotePrime said...

Thanks for the info, HermitJim. I've always hated margarine, nasty stuff. At least now I know why. ;-)

2 Tramps said...

My grandma was a Swiss dairy farmer and ate butter all of her long life - she made it to 94 and was still living on her own. Cooking from scratch is better for our health and sure seems easier than combing the inner isles of the store where all the prepared foods seem to be placed.

Thanks for the info, Jim! We eat butter here!

HermitJim said...

Hey JoJo...
One of the secrets is to take the butter out and let it sit at room temp for about 30 minutes before you neede to spread it. Plus, if you Google "flavoring butter" you'll find some really good ways to add some good taste to the real stuff...like honey!

Know what I mean, sweetie? Thanks for coming by this morning!


Hey Coyote...
Yeah...it's always nice to know why our bodies crave certain things and almost reject others!

Ma Nature is a pretty smart cookie!

Thanks for coming by, Coyote!

Anonymous said...

Gross, I guess I should toss my country crock. I sure do like the spreadable stuff.

Enjoy your coffee. I've already moved on to tea this morning.

HermitJim said...

Hey 2Tramps...
You know, sometimes the old ways turn out to be the best!

Cooking from scratch is by far the best way to go! I think of it as a hobby I can eat!

Thanks for the visit today...!

Hey Kris...
You know, even Country Crock makes a spreadable butter...I saw it at Food Town this morning!

Just try and avoid the one with Canola oil, and use the one that has olive oil instead!

Enjoy the tea this morning, and thanks for coming by!

The cottage by the Cranelake said...

I read about that some years ago and since then I only use real butter! To be honest, everything tastes better with butter when one frying it :-)
Have a great day now!
Christer.

HermitJim said...

Hey Christer...
You are right about that! Everything does taste better with butter when frying it!

Hey, thanks for coming by today!

Phil said...

Jesus.
Thanks for the info!
That's the end of that, no mo margarine.
I always preferred butter and now I am sticking with it!

HermitJim said...

Hey Busted...
Makes it a lot easier to stick to the good stuff when we know it's better for us, huh?

I appreciate you coming by today, buddy!

Anonymous said...

Ummm jim bro. who you talking to? I havent commented yet on this post.

Anyway, margarin non dairy plastic gross stuff. Favio luved it, not me.

Thanks for the info. were you commenting on your last post?

HermitJim said...

Hey Off Grid...
I was answering the comment from Frugal Canadian Hermit, and got ahead of myself instead. Put your handle on the answer instead of the Hermit's! Sorry about that...

So you are going to be Eastbound soon, huh? Wrong time of the year to be headed east, my friend. Gets cold there, doesn't it?

Well, if it helps to get you home to the desert...that's a good thing!

Hey, thanks for coming by and sorry about the mix up earlier!

Anonymous said...

Nice urban legend you're spreading. http://www.snopes.com/food/warnings/butter.asp

HermitJim said...

Hey Anon 2:28...
Thanks for the link...I have addedf a disclaimer accordingly!

I appreciate your visit and the information!

Anonymous said...

I wont be going east for a few months and it will be real cold.