What Getting Rid Of Childhood Stuff Taught Me About Growing Up

A recent study conducted by Harvard University and Mass General Brigham found that people who consumed more butter had a 15% higher risk of early death compared to those who used it in moderation. On the flip side, people who preferred plant oils had a 16% lower risk of mortality.

The results shed light on the ongoing question of whether butter or plant-based oils are the better choice for your health. Sadly for butter lovers, the findings suggest that replacing even two teaspoons of butter with the same amount of plant oil could lower the risk of early death by approximately 17%.

For the study, the research team examined dietary data from three major studies: the Nurses' Health Study, Nurses' Health Study II, and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. They tracked over 220,000 Americans' butter consumption, including for both cooking and spreading, as well as their intake of various plant oils, like olive, soybean, canola, corn, and safflower oils.

Over the course of 33 years, the researchers gathered this information via food surveys every four years. Then, they used the data to calculate averages and gain a clearer picture of eating habits.

A total of 50,932 deaths occurred throughout the study, with 12,241 from cancer and 11,240 from heart disease. The team adjusted for variables such as age, physical activity, weight, alcohol consumption, and smoking, which revealed a distinct trend.

Higher butter intake was associated with increased death rates; meanwhile, higher consumption of plant oils was tied to lower death rates. However, not all plant oils had the same effect, as corn and safflower oils showed no significant benefits.

Still, increasing plant oil intake by roughly two tablespoons a day was linked to an 11% reduction in cancer death risk and a 6% decrease in the risk of dying from heart disease.

"Replacing three small pats of butter (approximately 15 grams) with one tablespoon of plant-based oil (approximately 15 grams) in the daily diet could contribute to lowering the risk of premature mortality," the team wrote.

Now, this doesn't mean you need to cut out butter entirely. In fact, the study actually found that butter used for baking or frying wasn't strongly linked to mortality risk. This may be because it's used in smaller quantities or less often.

Butter being spread directly on foods, like bread, showed the strongest connection. So, the researchers suggest making small switches, like swapping out butter for olive oil or canola oil, to maintain taste and enhance your health.

"Even cutting back butter a little and incorporating more plant-based oils into your daily diet can have meaningful long-term health benefits," concluded Dr. Daniel Wang of Harvard's Department of Nutrition.

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1. Not everyone's parents can put them through college. 

"My parents are wealthy, but I grew up in a place where many of my peers' parents were super, duper, crazy wealthy, so I had a skewed understanding of wealth," shared one user.

"It was really eye-opening for me when I went to college. I didn't have to take out student loans; my parents were able to just pay for it. But I had friends who, even with financial aid, had to work their [behinds] off year-round to cover the cost of school. I realized pretty quickly just how privileged I was and that I did, in fact, grow up with wealth."

2. Country clubs aren't the only kind of "clubs" out there. 

"When I was confused about people on Maury complaining their spouse was at 'the club,' and I couldn't figure out what type of country club would let people like that through the front security gate," admitted another user.

3. Not everyone views their parents as good role models. 

"Becoming an adult and realizing that I have extremely good role models as parents because when they have disagreements, they talk them out, and I have never, ever, heard them argue or badmouth each other," one user revealed.

"I also realized that as a kid, my parents got me mental health help that I needed even though it was expensive and continued that care for as long as I have needed it," they added.

"A third [wake-up call] that doesn't seem like much but has had a huge impact was being taught financial literacy from a young age; to budget my money and only buy the things I really, really want."

4. Many people have never left the country.  

"My parents loved to travel. By the time I was 16, I had been to every continent aside from Antarctica. I didn't realize that this was privileged behavior until I went to university, and most of the guys I met had never left the country," a user shared.

"In fact, I grew up thinking I was less privileged because everyone at my school was just obscenely rich. Like, all their stuff was high-end designer stuff while I was in Converse."

5. Some families cannot afford to have pets. 

"My dad was an engineer, so professional wealth, but... probably hearing about a kid whose family had to give his dog away due to the cost in elementary school," another user remembered.

"Giving away our dog wasn't on the radar or even on the table. But it was only out of the question because my parents had the money for it to be out of the question."

6. Owning multiple properties is not the norm. 

"When I learned that not everyone has a summer cottage or trust fund, and not all grandparents have weekend and summer homes," a user noted.

7. Exposure to cultural education isn't a given. 

"I didn't think I grew up in a wealthy family, but when I started high school, I was part of a group of girls who became close friends with me. Apparently, they thought it was very weird that I knew things that I considered cultural knowledge, like the history of some important building in the city or the fact that I actually knew about art and went to museums quite often," detailed a user.

"All this because my parents made me go to museums and theaters my whole life growing up. Apparently, that's not a normal thing for normal parents to do with their kids, and asking your parents if they can take you to the ballet is not something a teenager would normally ask."

8. Some people have never been able to fill up their tanks at the gas station. 

"In college, I went on a road trip with friends, and one asked how much money he should put in the gas tank. I told him to fill it up," recalled a user.

"He kept asking, 'Okay, how much should I pay?' and I kept saying, 'Fill it up!' It turned out he had only ever put $10 to $15 at a time, and it had never occurred to me that some people never fill their gas tanks to the top."

9. Seeing how families abroad make do.

"I realized how privileged I was when I spent a summer with my great-grandmother in a small village in rural Hungary. No indoor running water, the only phone was at the church, and everyone came out to touch the rental car we drove there in. This was in the late 1980s," recalled a user.

10. Learning that not everyone takes their first flight as a child.

"I have been flying around the world since I was 4 months old. When I was 16, my friend told me she'd fly for the first time in an airplane, and I was shocked," said another user.

"I told my dad that I couldn't believe it took her 16 years to fly! I got a stern talk after; my dad is very humble despite it all."