Heart disease is the number one killer of both men and women in this country, and most healthcare professionals agree that high levels of fat and cholesterol in the blood increase a person’s risk for the disease. With this in mind, the trend has always been toward reducing saturated fat intake and replacing it with unsaturated fats. In other words, oils such as olive oil and canola oil are better for you than butter.

Or are they?

A new study may contradict this edict. Researchers found that butter actually resulted in lower levels of blood fat after a meal than both olive oil and canola oil. The reason for this result is believed to rooted in the makeup of butter fat, which consists of short and medium chain fatty-acids, which are used directly by our bodies to produce energy and do not have as much of an effect on that fat level in our blood. In healthcare circles, these are considered good fatty acids.

Researchers also theorize that the cells in the intestines may preferentially store butter fat instead of the long chain fatty acids found in vegetable oil. However, the authors noted that butter does result in more free fatty acids in the blood, which can present the body with problems.

The researchers arrived at their findings by dividing men and women into groups that consumed either canola-flaxseed oil, butter, or olive oil. The subjects fasted the night before the experiment, and baseline blood samples were taken. Blood samples were then drawn at a specific intervals after the meal and analyzed.

Interestingly, the discrepancy was stronger in men than in women. This may be due to hormonal differences, as well as the differences in metabolism between the sexes, which is a well accepted fact. For women in particular, the results can be greatly affected by hormonal shifts, especially during menstruation.

The findings point to the subtle intricacies of fat metabolism and the complex effects they have on our bodies. While it is known in the long term that butter raises serum cholesterol levels, the short term consequences have not been studied extensively. In light of this, it appears that different fats from food have different effects, both in the short term and the long term. Regardless of its form, fat is a form of energy, and if a person consumes it and doesn’t burn at least some of it off, then it will store in the body, contributing to weight gain and potential problems.

The current health climate has generally focused on cholesterol and its link to heart disease, but many people have higher than normal levels of blood fat, mainly in the form of triglycerides, that are believed to increase a person’s risk for heart disease.

The National Cholesterol Education Program recommends that triglyceride levels be kept below 150 milligrams per deciliter, and anything above 200 milligrams is considered high. By some estimates, 33% of Americans had borderline high levels, and nearly 18% were considered high.

The use of triglyceride-lowering drugs has not been studied extensively, perhaps due to the attention that is given to cholesterol, so for now, the best course of intervention is through diet and lifestyle choices. These include eating less fat, getting more exercise, and cutting down on alcohol consumption, which stimulates triglyceride production in the liver.

It is important to keep in mind that all fats should be eaten in moderation, and the current findings are not a call to eat more butter. If you have dietary questions or concerns, speak with your doctor or a nutritional expert. For more information about blood fat levels, check out the website for the American Heart Association.