McDonald's Is Making a Big Change to the McMuffin — But Is it Healthier?

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McDonald’s signature breakfast sandwich is getting a makeover to its fat profile. (Photo: McDonald’s)

This has been the year of fast food changes.

In the past six months, Panera and Chipotle announced plans to “unengineer” ingredients on their menus, Starbucks added real pumpkin to its pumpkin spice latte, and fast food giant McDonald’s rolled out lettuce burgers.

Now McDonald’s is making another notable move: They’re messing with the McMuffin.

The chain is starting to cook its bagels, biscuits, and English muffins (used in the McMuffin) with real butter instead of liquid margarine, CNBC reports.

The switch is rolling out as McDonald’s locations use up their existing supply of liquid margarine, sources tell CNBC, and some McDonald’s are already advertising the move.

But will the change make the McMuffin healthier?

In terms of calories and fat, no, certified dietitian-nutritionist Lisa Moskovitz, RD, CEO of NY Nutrition Group, tells Yahoo Health. According to McDonalds.com, the Egg McMuffin has 300 calories and 13 grams of fat, and Moskovitz says the spread swap shouldn’t alter those numbers.

But the big issue is hydrogenated oils, i.e. trans fats, found in liquid margarine which Moskovitz says is the “worst type of fat you can eat.” Trans fats raise bad LDL cholesterol and lower good HDL cholesterol — over time, that can lead to heart disease, the leading cause of death for men and women, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Related: 10 “Happy Meals” With Shocking Fat and Calorie Counts

Registered dietitian-nutritionist Karen Ansel, co-author of The Calendar Diet: A Month by Month Guide to Losing Weight While Living Your Life, tells Yahoo Health that liquid margarine also has a “long list of chemically altered fats and preservatives,” making it a spread you want to avoid.

But the change still doesn’t qualify the McMuffin as a health food, says Ansel. While she says butter is better than liquid margarine, it contains a “substantial amount of saturated fat which also boosts LDL cholesterol, just not to the same extent as trans fats.”

While Moskovitz points out that the saturated fat in butter is usually fine for normal, healthy adults, having larger quantities of it has been linked to clogged arteries, high cholesterol, and heart disease. “Basically, butter is the lesser of two evils here,” she says.

Related: What Diet Experts Eat at McDonald’s

New York City registered dietitian Jessica Cording tells Yahoo Health the move is a step in the right direction, adding that the Egg McMuffin is a “decent choice” compared to other McDonald’s alternatives that contain more sugar and less protein.

The change isn’t ideal for everyone, Cording says: It may make the McMuffin off-limits to people who have a serious lactose intolerance and previously just removed the cheese.

And sorry, McMuffin fans: Despite the positive change, experts still agree that McDonald’s should be an occasional indulgence and not an every day pit stop.

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