Should Butter Make a Come Back?

Lately the news has been full of claims that eating animal-sourced fats are healthier than those sourced from plants.  When faced with unsupported claims such as these, we need to go back to what the real science tells us.

In May 2025 a study published by JAMA Internal Medicine compared the impact of eating butter vs plant-based oils on the incidence of death.  (1)  The authors state that the consumption of butter, which is rich in saturated fats, has been associated with adverse health outcomes such as an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, although some recent studies have produced mixed results. Plant-based oils, particularly olive, canola and soybean oils, are high in unsaturated fats and have been linked to reduced inflammation and improved lipid blood levels.  However few studies have looked at the effects of plant-based oils on the risk of death.  This comprehensive assessment set out to discover  the potential associations.

Data used for this study came from three large ongoing analyses with decades-long follow ups; the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (1990-2023), the Nurses’ Health Study (1990-2023), and the Nurses’ Health Study II (1991-2023).  These three investigations are among the most ambitious and fruitful examinations of the risk factors for major chronic diseases ever conducted.  The 221,054 participants who took part in the JAMA study are all individuals from these three analyses who had not been diagnosed with cardiovascular disease, cancer, type-2 diabetes or a neurodegenerative disease at the start of the studies.  (1)

Every four years, these participants answered questions about how often they ate certain types of food. This data included the amounts of butter and plant oils that the participants ate.  Total butter intake included butter and margarine blends added to food during cooking as well as those added later at the table.  Plant-based oil use was based on their reported usage during the frying, sautéing and baking of food; on their presence in salad dressing; and on their use at the table.  The diet and health data of these participants were followed for more than 30 years. Adjustments were made for confounding factors such as race and ethnicity, alcohol intake, body mass index (BMI), smoking status and physical activity level.(1)

 

Study Results (1):

• Participants who ate the most butter had a 15% higher risk of dying during the study period compared with those who ate the least.
• Participants who ate the most plant-based oils had a 16% lower risk of dying during the study period compared with those who ate the least.
• Consuming a higher amount of plant-based oil, with the exception of olive oil, was associated with an 8% lower risk of death from all causes.
• A substitution analysis demonstrated that substituting 10 grams of butter a day (less than 1 tablespoon) with an equivalent calorie amount of plant-based oils was linked to…

…a 17% reduction in the risk of death from all causes

…a 17% reduction in the risk of death from cancer

…a 6% reduction in the risk of death from cardiovascular disease

• Risk of death increased by 4% for each 5 gram/day increment of butter added to food or bread.
• Over the 33 years of the follow-up of this study, 50,932 deaths were documented among the 221,054 participants. A total of 12,241 of these deaths were due to cancer and 11,240 were due to cardiovascular disease.

 

Further Thoughts:

• Health organizations, including the American Heart Association, recommend limiting saturated fat consumption to 6% of daily calories. (2)  Canada’s Food Guide, Heart UK and the World Health Organization (WHO) all recommend shifts towards eating more plant-based foods to reduce the amount of saturated fat in the diet. (3,4,5)
• Plaque build-up in arteries is called atherosclerosis. The plaque is a mixture of fat, calcium, cholesterol and waste from body cells and it can cause the blood vessels to narrow.  Saturated fats in the diet are an important determinant of cholesterol levels because they cause reductions in the number of LDL-receptors in the liver that capture LDL-cholesterol particles and remove them from the body. (14)   Dietary saturated fats not only increase the level of LDL-cholesterol in the body but also influence other lipids like HDL-cholesterol and apo-lipoproteins, inflammation levels and cardiac rhythm, all of which seem to play a part in the development of atherosclerosis.  Dietary patterns with lower intakes of saturated fatty acids and the replacement of saturated fatty acids with polyunsaturated fatty acids have been linked to reductions in the onset of atherosclerosis. (6,7)
• A Cochrane Review found that cutting down on saturated fat led to a 17% reduction in the risk of cardiovascular disease (including heart disease and strokes). It also showed that health benefits arose from replacing saturated fats with polyunsaturated fat or starchy foods. The greater the decrease in saturated fat, and the more blood total cholesterol is reduced, the greater the protection from cardiovascular events. There is no difference between men and women. Currently healthy people appear to benefit as much as those with increased risk of diseases such as heart disease, stroke, high blood cholesterol or diabetes.  (8)
• An abundance of research shows that plant-based oils, especially soybean, canola and olive oil, offer significant health benefits including reduced risk of chronic diseases and improved heart health. They are antiinflammatory and reduce the risk of developing inflammatory diseases and they are high in antioxidants which support overall good health. (9,10).
• One tablespoonful of butter (14 grams) contains 11.5 grams of total fat with 7.29 grams of that fat being saturated. (11)  Butter is composed of 51% saturated fat and 21% monounsaturated fat. (12)
• One tablespoonful of beef tallow (14 grams) contains 12.8 grams of total fat with 6.4 grams of that fat being saturated. Beef tallow is composed of 49% saturated fat and 42% monounsaturated fat . (13)

 

A Final Takeaway:

The authors of the JAMA study (1) make a simple suggestion.  By replacing butter and/or beef tallow with soybean, canola or olive oil, significant long-term benefits for health can be achieved .  Why risk damaging your arteries?  Treat your arteries well and you will optimize the health of your vascular system, allowing important nutrients and oxygen to reach your organs and tissues and reducing your risk of developing chronic conditions like heart disease, peripheral artery disease and stroke.

 

SOURCES:

1   Zhang, Y., Chadaideh, K.S., Li, Y., Li, Y., Gu, X., Liu, Y., Guasch-Ferré, M., Rimm, E.B., Hu, F.B., Willett, W.C., Stampfer, M.J., Wang, D.D. Butter and Plant-Based Oils Intake and Mortality. JAMA Intern Med. 2025 May 1;185(5):549-560. Doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2025.0205. PMID: 40048719; PMCID: PMC11886867.

2  https://www.heart.org/en/healthy-living/healthy-eating/eat-smart/fats/saturated-fats

3  https://www.heartandstroke.ca/healthy-living/healthy-eating/fats-and-oils

4  https://www.heartuk.org.uk/dietary-recommendations/dietary-fat-recommendations

5  https://iris.who.int/server/api/core/bitstreams/463fa93e-6c17-4e5b-a4d7-928354ea34c3/content

6  Maki KC, Dicklin MR, Kirkpatrick CF. Saturated fats and cardiovascular health: Current evidence and controversies. J Clin Lipidol. 2021 Nov-Dec;15(6):765-772. doi: 10.1016/j.jacl.2021.09.049. Epub 2021 Oct 1. PMID: 34649831.

7  https://www.massgeneralbrigham.org/en/about/newsroom/articles/dietary-fat-and-heart-disease

8  Hooper, L., Martin, N., Jimoh, O.F., Kirk, C., Foster, E., Abdelhamid, A.S. Reduction in saturated fat intake for cardiovascular disease. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2020, Issue 8. Art. No.: CD011737. Doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD011737.pub3.

9  https://newatlas.com/health-wellbeing/healths-oils-butter

10  Eichelmann, F., Prada, M., Sellem, L. et al. Lipidome changes due to improved dietary fat quality inform cardiometabolic risk reduction and precision nutrition. Nat Med 30, 2867–2877 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-03124-1

11  https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/foods/butter

12  Paszczyk, B. Cheese and Butter as a Source of Health-Promoting Fatty Acids in the Human Diet. Animals (Basel). 2022;12(23):3424. Doi:10.3390/ani12233424.

13 https://health.clevelandclinic.org/beef-tallow-for-cooking

14  Feingold, K.R. The Effect of Diet on Cardiovascular Disease and Lipid and Lipoprotein Levels. [Updated 2024 Mar 31]. In: Feingold KR, Adler RA, Ahmed SF, et al., editors. Endotext [Internet]. South Dartmouth (MA): MDText.com, Inc.; 2000-. Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK570127/