Monday, July 10, 2006

Beware plant sterols in margarine!

The Better Health Channel (a questionable title!) states that plant sterols added to our margarine make it a healthier choice than butter. These sterols can reduce your cholesterol.

Mmmm.. so where do they come from?

These phyto-sterols include beta-sitosterol, campesterol and stigmasterol, all estrogen-like compounds derived mostly from wood-pulp effluent. They are hormone-like compounds from plants, and they are present in large numbers in the effluent from the wood pulp business. Canadian, UK and Scandinavian scientists have shown that water contaminated with phytosterols causes endocrine damage to fish downstream from wood-pulp plants. The fish become "sex-inverted" and hermaphroditic; fertility is also reduced. For more on this go to this site at Weston Price


It is worth your while to read that full article.. for a look behind the scenes at this addition to our 'foods' - so what is the message here? Eat the original - don't get caught up in the hype about cholesterol - good quality natural foods are worth way more than anything that has been manipulated to appear healthier than the original!

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