Nikita Wadhwani, Indian, mother of two children:
“I’m not afraid of butter, but I think it’s a little fattening, so I use ghee instead. I use ghee in almost everything I cook. Ghee, a form of clarified butter, gives more strength, as it’s good for energy intake for the kids, especially as they are growing up, it’s good for the bones too. I only give them a little bit of butter once or twice a week to spread on their bread for breakfast. Consuming too much of ghee can be fattening, but the advantages are more as compared to oil. In olden days, people mostly used ghee, not oil. My only concern with butter is that it can raise cholesterol, and provide less energy.”
Sia Kalathakis, Greek, Consultant:
“Where I come from, we mostly use olive oil to cook our food, but for the food that requires butter, we mostly opt for substitutes because they help in reducing cholesterol. Ancient Greeks believed butter should be used in limited quantities because excess can be bad for health. Personally, I never use pure butter in my diet, I’m not against it because I know we need some butter [in our diet]. In Europe, they mostly substitute butter with margarine. It is low in fat and reduces cholesterol. It’s also medically proven that within two months of usage, it reduces cholesterol. The smell of pure butter can never be compared to other substitutes, it even tastes better when used to cook pastries.”
Nicholas Brook, Kenyan, Brand Manager
“I consume salted butter mostly, because unsalted version doesn’t have the true flavour of butter. I’m not afraid of butter, I actually love it because it comes from cow’s milk, and since I love drinking milk, I have a strong connection with butter. I use pure butter for almost everything I cook, mainly mashed potatoes, fried eggs, and on bread. I would say I use a tablespoon of butter a day. As for substitutes, I use margarine once in a while. I’m aware that margarine is not healthier than butter, because it’s artificially made and contains chemicals. All in all, the taste of butter is unbeatable.”
Essem David, 24, Kazakistan, Photographer
“As far as I know, if the butter is pure, then it can be very healthy for the bones and the body and although margarine is lower in calories, it is bad for health. I personally avoid margarine and use butter, but in limited quantities. For example, I would have it once a day in the morning and only use it to butter bread. Otherwise, I use olive oil to cook my food, because I don’t fry the food. Butter has a special taste that cannot be found in other substitutes.”
