Study funded by butter industry finds butter can be bad for health

Butter is delicious, but excess consumption of it has come to be associated with potential health risks, such as high-cholesterol.

Perhaps hoping to turn the food's image around, the Danish Dairy Research Foundation funded its own exploration into the issue, but the results did not come out in their favor.

It was determined that even in moderate amounts, butter can raise cholesterol levels overall and spur a specific increase in LDL cholesterol -- the sort that accumulates and can cause blockages of the arteries.

In performing the study, researchers put participants on diets that involved different sources.

During the two 5-week stretches, some had foods containing olive oil, while others enjoyed dishes including butter.

Neither the research team nor the participants were told who was consuming which one or when.

Follow-up examinations at the end of the test period showed that those with the butter-enhanced diets had higher cholesterol levels than the olive oil group.

Though the study's results are much like those of many explorations before it, the fact that the funding entity's product was regarded unfavorably is decidedly more unique.

In recent times, industry-driven research has declared many controversial products, from sugary soda to high-fat cheese, to be perfectly safe.

See some healthier butter substitutes you can use in your cooking and baking: