No dairy butter has cholesterol, as it comes from milk; the best cholesterol-free "butter" options are plant-based butter alternatives (vegan butters) made from oils (like olive, sunflower, avocado) or nut/seed butters, as well as some cholesterol-lowering spreads (like Benecol or Flora ProActiv with plant sterols) designed to actively reduce cholesterol, which are essentially margarine-like products.
Grass-Fed Butter
This type of butter comes from cows that graze on grass, leading to higher levels of omega-3 fatty acids and conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), according to research. This fat profile is healthier for your heart than traditional butter, so I'd consider it the healthiest butter.
One tablespoon of unsalted butter contains 31 milligrams (mg) of cholesterol and 7.2 grams (g) of saturated fat. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommend that anyone who is aiming to lower their LDL cholesterol should get no more than 5–6 percent of their total calorie intake from saturated fat.
Nut butters are a good source of fiber, healthy fats, and plant-based protein. The most nutrient-rich nut butters include almond, peanut, and cashew.
These healthy swaps will blend seamlessly into your baked items and maybe even taste better to you than butter.
There's a lot of conflicting information about saturated fats. Should I eat them or not? The American Heart Association recommends limiting saturated fats to less than 6% of total calories. Saturated fats are found in butter, cheese, red meat, other animal-based foods and tropical oils.
Here are 10 foods to add to your diet for a healthier you
Home Cooking Butter Alternatives
Any butter labeled as "pure butter," "100% butter," or simply "butter," made from cream and salt (or no salt), with no added oils, gums, or thickeners, is 100% butter, like Mainland, Western Star, or The Butter People, and is used for cooking, baking, or spreading. Always check the ingredients list for "cream and salt" and no oils, ensuring it's natural, grass-fed if desired, and free from additives for true 100% purity.
The Healthiest Butter Brands to Consider
Vital Farms Butter: Sourced from pasture-raised cows, this brand emphasizes ethical farming practices and offers a more nutrient-dense option. Organic Valley Butter: This organic butter is made from pasture-raised cream and is free from antibiotics and hormones.
Give cheese on toast a miss and instead use sliced or mashed avocado to top wholegrain toast or crumpets. This quick snack is rich in unsaturated, rather than saturated, fats. Try a sprinkle of seeds or chilli flakes for an extra kick. Read more from our dietitian about avocados and fat.
High intake of foods containing unhealthy fats (saturated fats and trans fats) – such as fatty meats and deli-style meats, butter, cream, ice cream, coconut oil, palm oil and most deep-fried takeaway foods and commercially baked products (such as pies, biscuits, buns and pastries).
A few changes in your diet can reduce cholesterol and improve your heart health:
Substitute butter with healthier oils.
“Butter is essentially pure saturated fat,” says Dr. Bhattacharya. Tropical plant-based oils, such as coconut oil and palm oil, also have a significant amount. If you do have saturated fat, aim to eat no more than 2 grams in one serving.
Have 3 servings of Flora ProActiv Buttery a day as part of a healthy diet and lifestyle and sufficient fruit and vegetables* to start lowering your cholesterol. A daily intake of 1.5 to 2.4g plant sterols can lower cholesterol by 7-10% in 2-3 weeks.
Pure Fats for Nutritional Balance
Unsalted butter contains only the natural fats derived from cream, without any additives. While butter remains a high-fat product, its lack of added sodium makes it a cleaner option for those seeking balance in their diets.
Lurpak is UK's number 1 butter and spreadable brand and has been making real quality butter since 1901. Made with only high quality natural ingredients - 100% fresh milk, pressed rapeseed oil, water and salt - making it the perfect texture to spread straight from the fridge, saving time and effort in the kitchen.
The high abundance of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and low abundance of saturated fat in grass-fed butter make it a better choice than conventional butter for a healthier heart. Grass-fed cow milk contains 500% more conjugated linoleic acid than cows fed typical dairy diets.
Light butter has half the calories, saturated fat and cholesterol of butter. This blend of light butter and oil has heart-healthy monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats (MUFAs and PUFAs). Yogurt butter is a blend of nonfat yogurt, vegetable oils (soybean, palm, palm kernel and canola) and water.
Options for healthy butter substitutes
Applesauce. Greek yogurt. Avocado. Mashed banana.
Most no-butter pancake recipes simply swap the churned cream out for some other kind of fat, often vegetable oil. I chose this “Easy Basic Pancakes” recipe by Martha Stewart, but the story is the same across the web: replace butter with the same amount of vegetable, canola, or olive oil.
To remove cholesterol from your body, adopt a heart-healthy lifestyle by eating more soluble fiber (oats, beans, fruits) and healthy fats (olive oil, fish), exercising regularly (30 mins most days), losing excess weight, quitting smoking, and limiting alcohol, as these changes lower bad LDL cholesterol and raise good HDL cholesterol, with some people needing medication for more severe cases.
Oatmeal, oat bran and high-fiber foods
Oatmeal has soluble fiber, which reduces your low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, the "bad" cholesterol. Soluble fiber is also found in such foods as kidney beans, Brussels sprouts, apples and pears.
Animal fats, such as butter, ghee, margarines and spreads made from animal fats, lard, suet and dripping. Fatty meat and processed meat products such as sausages. There are some foods which are low in saturated fat but high in cholesterol. These include eggs, some shellfish, liver, liver pate and offal.