Smart Balance lands a final spot as a healthy butter substitute because the brand loaded their spread with heart-healthy oils, omega-3s, and vitamins, so it tastes yummy and is good for you, too. If you're in the market for a diet butter, you've got 10 great options to choose from.
Full Answer
Is Smart Balance better for you than butter?
While the statistics for both spreads are comparable and healthier than butter, Smart Balance can be part of a vegetarian diet. In fact Smart Balance Lite is vegan, a rarity among butter spreads.
How many calories in Smart Balance butter?
Smart Balance, Smart Balance Light Buttery Spread, 1 Tbsp, 1 Serving (1 serving) Calories: 50 , Fat: 0g , Carbs: 0g , Protein: 0g Show full nutrition information
What are the ingredients in Smart Balance?
smart balance has the following: water, natural oil blend (palm fruit, soybean, canola and olive oils), contains 2% or less of salt, veletable nonoglycerides and sorbitan ester of fattery acids (emulsifiers), soybean leacithin, potassium sorbate, actic acid (emulsifiers), soybean lecithin, potassium sorbate, lactic acid (to preserve freshness), …
Is Smart Balance butter healthy?
Smart Balance lands a final spot as a healthy butter substitute because the brand loaded their spread with heart-healthy oils, omega-3s, and vitamins, so it tastes yummy and is good for you, too. The diet butters you should skip If you're in the market for a diet butter, you've got 10 great options to choose from.
Is butter better for you than Smart Balance?
Smart Balance lands a final spot as a healthy butter substitute because the brand loaded their spread with heart-healthy oils, omega-3s, and vitamins, so it tastes yummy and is good for you, too.
What is the healthiest butter alternative?
Best Health-Conscious Butter AlternativesGhee. Ghee is butter that goes through a clarification process to eliminate all the water which, we should note, creates a higher smoke point while cooking. ... Greek Yogurt. ... Pumpkin Puree. ... Earth Balance Pressed Avocado Oil. ... Pureed Coconut. ... Olive Oil. ... Avocado. ... Mashed Bananas.
Is Smart Balance better for you?
While Smart Balance may be better than most margarine – if you adhere to the specified “balance” of fats in the rest of your diet – my views about margarine remain unchanged. It is still fat, mostly unhealthy fat, and a highly processed food. The less processed food you eat, the better.
Is Smart Balance margarine heart healthy?
Heart Right Benefits: Plant sterols have been shown in clinical studies to help reduce cholesterol. Omega-3 EPA/DHA promotes heart health. Vitamin E potent antioxidant. Smart Balance has long been the innovation leader in the great tasting spreads that deliver real heart health benefits.
What can I put on toast instead of butter?
7 Healthy Butter Substitute for ToastAvocado.Hummus.Olive Oil.Nut Butter.Cottage Cheese.Ricotta.Coconut Butter.
What is the best substitute for butter?
If your recipe calls for melted butter, which is common in many quick breads, pancakes, brownies, blondies and some cakes, you can substitute an equal amount of neutral oil like safflower, canola or vegetable. If you want to experiment with flavors, try virgin coconut or olive oil.
Is Smart Balance real butter?
Smart Balance and Earth Balance are arguably the 2 most popular non-dairy “butter” spreads. They're sold in most stores, so it makes sense that people on a plant-based or vegan diet would be interested in them....Nutrition Comparison.Smart BalanceEarth BalanceMonounsaturated Fat5 g5 g6 more rows•Jun 3, 2022
What is the healthiest spread for bread?
7 healthy alternatives to spread on your daily breadAvocado. Healthy, natural and good for you. ... Hummus. Another healthy option. ... Olive oil. ... Cottage cheese. ... Ricotta. ... Peanut butter. ... Light cream cheese.
What is the best spread for lowering cholesterol?
Light margarine contains less saturated and trans fat than regular margarine. A spread with heart-healthy plant sterols or stanols; 2 grams per day can help lower LDL cholesterol if your diet is low in saturated fat and cholesterol. This light margarine has fewer calories and fat than regular margarine.
Which is healthier margarine or butter?
Margarine usually tops butter when it comes to heart health. Margarine is made from vegetable oils, so it contains unsaturated "good" fats — polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats. These types of fats help reduce low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad," cholesterol when substituted for saturated fat.
Is Smart Balance good for cholesterol?
We Support Healthy Cholesterol Many Smart Balance products contain our unique, natural blend of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats designed to improve the LDL:HDL ratio.
What's the best butter for a diabetic?
Unsalted butterUnsalted butter or grass-fed (organic) butter is good for diabetic patients. Unsalted butter has no sodium, which is good for diabetic patients as well. What Can Diabetics Use Instead of Butter? Ideally, olive oil, nut butter, or clarified butter can be used by diabetes patients.
What is a healthy substitute for butter in baking?
Ghee, coconut oil, and olive oil have properties that are comparable to butter, which make them appropriate baking substitutes.
What is the best spread for lowering cholesterol?
The Best Options The most heart-healthy options are neither butter nor margarine, but olive oil, avocado oil, and other vegetable-based spreads. 7 In baked goods, consider substituting applesauce, nut butters, or squash purees for butter.
Which butter is best for weight loss?
Peanut butter is a perfect weight loss snack. Here's why. “Peanut butter is a rich source of monosaturated and polysaturated fatty acids. This helps you feel satiated for long.
What is the best butter substitute for high cholesterol?
Butter substitutesgrass-fed butter.Earth Balance spread, a vegan, soy-free, non-hydrogenated option.avocados.avocado oil.coconut oil.olive oil.yogurt.applesauce or a smashed banana for half the fat in baked goods.
What is the color of margarine?
Beta carotene color – the normal color for factory-produced margarine like Smart Balance is a very unappetizing grey, so the color is definitely needed here to fool the masses. Don’t be fooled that this beta carotene adds natural Vitamin A either. Beta caroteneis not true vitamin A!
Is there anything smart about smart balance?
There is Nothing Smart About Smart Balance
Is grass fed butter good for cholesterol?
Natural cholesterol in the diet supplied in forms such as grass-fed butter and eggs are extremely beneficial to health! Folks with low cholesterol suffer from heart disease at the same rate as those with high cholesterol. Don’t tell that to the folks in the marketing department at Smart Balance, though.
Is Smart Balance a good diet?
Is it healthy to use? Nope. It’s still frankenfood and not a good choice for those who understand the critical importance of natural, healthy fats in the diet.
Is Smart Balance a frankenfood?
No way! A frankenfood as complex as Smart Balance or any of the many other “spreads” on the market requires synthesis in a factory in all its high tech, food denaturing glory. Smart Balance and margarine spreads like it is chemistry experiments, not food!
Can vegans eat raw butter?
A vegan community in South Florida suffering from severe dental decay issues likes to eat raw butter straight out of the tub with a spoon, I’m told. Now, that’s a serious craving for the “buttery taste”!
Has Smart Balance removed GMOs?
Let’s analyze the ingredients again 7 years later. Smart Balance has, in the interim, gotten significant press on its “pledge” to remove GMOs from its ingredients. Has it happened yet? Apparently not. Don’t hold your breath on that one. Not much improvement here despite an outcry from consumers to do better.
Can I pay extra for peanut butter?
I wouldn't recommend paying extra for them. For instance, if you can purchase a great quality freshly ground peanut butter or one that has no additives for less, there's no reason to pay more for the Smart Balance. Also be careful about added ingredients. In the case of the peanut butter they add sugars and salt, ...
Is Smart Balance spread good for baking?
I think that their spreads are an OK choice . Smart Balance is higher in monounsaturated fats and was one of the first spreads to eliminate trans fats. I have used their spread as well as Promise products in developing some recipes on the Dr. Gourmet web site. One of the best applications is in baking, as they are lower in calorie but cream together well with sugar and egg yolks for a good batter. In most cases I recommend folks use these occasionally and in sparing amounts.
Is there a reason to enrich peanut butter with Omega 3?
As far as their other products, I have not used them so I can't speak to their quality. Personally, I don't see a reason to enrich milk or peanut butter with Omega-3 fats. Using great quality fresh ingredients is the key to healthy eating and there's no evidence that using these products does much of anything but cost more because they have additional processing or ingredients. I wouldn't recommend paying extra for them. For instance, if you can purchase a great quality freshly ground peanut butter or one that has no additives for less, there's no reason to pay more for the Smart Balance.
How to find retailers that stock Smart Balance products?
It’s easy to find retailers that stock Smart Balance products with our Product Locator. Select the Smart Balance product you’re looking for and enter your zip code. A list of stores, including addresses and phone numbers, will appear. Most of our products are available in all 50 states.
How to get a copy of Smart Balance?
You can download a copy of the Smart Balance Food Plan here, request a copy using the Contact Us page, or call our Consumer Response Department at 201-421-3970 .
How to avoid trans fats in spreads?
There are three key ways to avoid trans fats in spreads: 1) Lowering fat content to limit trans fats to less than one-half gram per serving, thereby qualifying to claim zero trans fat content per serving; 2) Full hydrogenation and interesterification, two separate chemical processes using heated oil with a metal catalyst, which saturate the fat with hydrogen so that trans fats can’t be formed; and 3) Use of natural saturates in place of partial hydrogenation or full hydrogenation and interesterification. Smart Balance uses natural saturates (palm fruit oil) and balances it with polyunsaturates from soy and canola oils. This comprises the patented Smart Balance blend that we believe to be superior to other methods of avoiding trans fatty acids.
Why is palm fruit oil used in Smart Balance?
Palm fruit oil is a key ingredient in the natural oil blend we use in our spreads because it allows Smart Balance products to maintain a spreadable consistency without using chemically modified fats or adding trans fat. Do Smart Balance products contain trans fat?
Is Smart Balance Buttery Spreads cholesterol free?
Smart Balance Buttery Spreads are free of dietary cholesterol. Please see nutrition information on each product label for fat and saturated fat content.
Does fat help with cholesterol?
Researchers at Brandeis University have discovered that the right blend of fats can help support healthy cholesterol levels that are already within normal limits by improving the ratio of “good” HDL to “bad” LDL when at least two-thirds of fat intake comes from our buttery spreads or the Smart Balance Food Plan.
Can Smart Balance buttery spreads be frozen?
Most Smart Balance Buttery Spreads can be frozen until the “best by” date printed on the packages. Smart Balance Light Buttery Spread varieties should not be frozen due to their lower fat content.
Is margarine better than butter?
Margarine has the same calorie and fat content as butter, but less saturated fat. But it can contain trans fat, which is also damaging to your heart. Soft spreads that are low in saturated and trans fats are a definite improvement, says Alice H. Lichtenstein, D.Sc., Gershoff Professor of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University in Massachusetts. Here’s the lowdown on the different types of toast toppers.
Is spread fat or saturated fat?
Spreads are typically lower in calories, fat, and saturated fat than butter or margarine. Some brands boast that they’re made with olive oil or canola oil, but that doesn’t mean they have the same nutritional profile as the oils themselves. Most are a blend of the featured oil and other vegetable oils. And all spreads—even those made with olive oil (such as Olivio) or yogurt (Brummel & Brown)—have trans or saturated fat. Our tasters liked Brummel & Brown 35% Vegetable Oil Spread (which contains partially hydrogenated soybean oil) and I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Light (which has palm and palm kernel oils). Both have 45 calories, 5 grams of fat, and 1.5 grams of saturated fat.
What is Kerrygold butter made of?
But what really sets the brand apart from other butter brands is that Kerrygold butter is made with cream from grass-fed Irish cows, and the difference is pretty noticeable.
Is Smart Balance a butter?
And Smart Balance is just one such brand. Once again, Smart Balance is not technically a butter product , it is a vegetable oil spread. Smart Balance contains a vegetable oil blend made up of canola, palm, extra virgin olive, and flaxseed oils, as well as salt, water, sunflower lecithin, vitamin A palmitate, beta carotene, and even more.
Is Cabot butter good?
Reviews of Cabot butter range from pretty critical, to pretty positive actually. "I don't think this tastes nearly as good as other butters," one reviewer wrote. However, another praised the product. "This butter had such a nice rich but gentle flavor. You can really tell the difference between this and store brand or other name brands," they said. So, Cabot Creamery butter might just be one that you have to try for yourself to see whether or not you like it. Whatever the case, it's pretty mediocre, that's for sure.
Is Country Crock butter?
One of the most popular butter brands out there is definitely Country Crock. Though not technically butter, Country Crock certainly tries to imitate that butter taste in a smooth, spreadable creation. The ingredients in Country Crock, though, are a bit concerning. There's a variety of oils including soybean, palm kernel, and palm oil, as well as salt, lecithin, and Beta Carotene, among other artificial ingredients.
Is Brummel and Brown butter healthy?
Brummel & Brown is far from your typical spread. The product claims to be healthier than actual butter because it's made from yogurt. But when you look at what is actually in it, there are still some vegetable oils and other ingredients that make it far from the ideal butter product. For instance, there's soybean oil, nonfat yogurt, palm kernel and palm oil, modified corn starch, salt, mono and diglycerides, potassium sorbate and more. So Brummel and Brown isn't really healthy. More than that, it doesn't taste that great.
Is organic valley butter healthy?
Not only is Organic Valley butter obviously organic, but it's pretty healthy and, tasty. Organic Valley butter is made with only pasture-raised milk, and sometimes salt, but the ingredients are of the highest quality, and you can't deny the flavor is beyond amazing.
Is Vital Farms butter better than Kerrygold?
Reviews of Vital Farms butter definitely make it clear that the brand isn't the best. "It doesn't really melt as well as Kerrygold. I mean they are the standard. And if [Vital Farms] can't compare then back off. Especially with this price. Awful," one reviewer wrote. "Kerrygold is better in terms of flavor, smell, and color," another put it simply. Whatever the case, Vital Farms isn't the best store-bought butter out there, that's for sure.
Why would you want to buy a healthy butter substitute over regular butter?
Diet butter may be a good choice if you're trying to cut back on saturated fats, trans fats, or partially hydrogenated oils , according to Amy Gorin, MS, RDN, a plant-forward registered dietitian nutritionist in the New York City area. Most plant-based butters have removed or greatly reduced these ingredients in their products, resulting in a low-calorie, low-fat option.
What is the healthiest butter substitute?
Here are 10 of the healthiest butter substitutes nutritionists recommend. 1. Earth Balance Pressed Avocado Oil. Palinski-Wade says this is a smart choice because it only has three ingredients and is rich in monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, which can have a favorable impact on blood lipids.
How many calories are in plant butter?
Aim for less than 100 calories and seven grams of saturated fat per serving, she recommends. Look for minimal ingredients. "I like for a plant butter to have an ingredient list made up mostly of whole-food ingredients—so no artificial preservatives or additives," says Gorin.
What is low fat butter?
For starters, it's a pretty big market. There are low-fat butters made from olive or canola oil. There are butter sprays and mists that promise to reduce your serving size without reducing flavor. Then there are margarine brands, plant butter, and low-calorie butter made with ingredients like buttermilk and yogurt.
Is butter substitute bad for you?
Now, healthy butter substitutes eschew partially hydrogenated oils for healthy fats. That's a really good thing because a 2015 review of studies published in the British Medical Journal found that trans fats were associated with an increase in coronary heart disease (CHD) and in the number of deaths caused by CHD.
Is Miyoko vegan butter gluten free?
Miyoko's Vegan Butter. Unlike some other vegan butter substitutes, you can use this brand for baking and cooking. Plus, it's also free of palm oil and is soy, lactose, and gluten-free, says Palinski-Wade, making it a versatile choice for many shoppers. 8. WayFare Salted Whipped Butter.
Does Gorin use dairy butter?
Gorin says when she chooses a diet spread or spray, she makes sure a one tablespoon-sized serving contains less fat and calories than traditional dairy butter (otherwise, there's not a lot of benefit to opting for an alternative).
Which spread is better for your heart: butter or margarine?
Which spread is better for my heart — butter or margarine? Answer From Katherine Zeratsky, R.D., L.D. Margarine usually tops butter when it comes to heart health. Margarine is made from vegetable oils, so it contains unsaturated "good" fats — polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats.
Is butter a saturated fat?
These types of fats help reduce low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad," cholesterol when substituted for saturated fat. Butter, on the other hand, is made from animal fat, so it contains more saturated fat. But not all margarines are created equal — some margarines contain trans fat. In general, the more solid the margarine, ...
Do all margarines have trans fat?
But not all margarines are created equal — some margarines contain trans fat. In general, the more solid the margarine, the more trans fat it contains. So stick margarines usually have more trans fat than tub margarines do. Trans fat, like saturated fat, increases blood cholesterol levels and the risk of heart disease.
Does trans fat lower cholesterol?
In addition, trans fat lowers high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good," cholesterol levels. So skip the stick and opt for soft or liquid margarine instead.
