HEALTHY COOKING OILS

Oil Overview

• The best cooking oil has a high smoke point, does not break down when heated, contains healthy ingredients, lacks unhealthy ingredients and has an appropriate flavor.
• All oils are fats (NOT all fats are oils).
• All fat has 9-calories per gram. This is true of all oils, too.
• There are three basic categories of fat (based on their fatty acid content) -- Monounsaturated, Polyunsaturated and Saturated.

Health Factors

• In general, healthy oils tend to break down into unhealthy chemicals when heated.
• Unless heated, the healthiest fat is Monounsaturated fat. It raises the good HDL cholesterol ratio.
• When heated, Monounsaturated fat tends to break down and become unhealthy.
• The unhealthiest fat is Saturated fat. It is associated with the bad, artery-clogging LDL cholesterol, but it is also the most stable when heated.
• Trans fatty acids are twice as unhealthy as saturated fats.
• Trans fatty acids are in hydrogenated and partially-hydrogenated oils. Avoid them.
• Linolenic (Omega-3) and Linoleic (Omega-6) are essential fatty acids. They are healthy (especially Omega-3), but they break down and become unhealthy when heated.
• Western countries typically consume too much Omega-6 and not enough Omega-3. They must be balanced.

Shelf Life

• Oils have a relatively short shelf life and become rancid rather quickly. Rancid fats have been associated with atherosclerosis, heart disease and cancer.
• Shelf life for cooking oils is about 3-months to 1-year. Exposure to oxygen, heat and light diminish an oil's shelf life.
• Refined oils stay fresh longer and can be heated to higher temperatures, but they contain more impurities than unrefined oils.
• Saturated fat has the longest shelf life, but it is the most unhealthy fat.
• Polyunsaturated fat readily combines with oxygen in the air to become rancid.
• Dark cooking oils have shorter shelf lives than light-colored or clear oils.
• Anti-oxidants extend an oil's shelf life.

Internal Links

• Avocado Oil
• Canola Oil

External Links

• All About Oils
• What Oil Should You be Cooking With, and Which Should You Avoid?
• Demystifying oil
• Oils and Fats Introduction
• Healing with Food, Natural Cooking, Vegetable Oil Guide
• The Food Storage Faq - Fats and Oils
• What You Should Know About Triglycerides and Fatty Acids
• USDA Nutrient Database

Yahoo! News

• Trans fat rules rejected as burden on food industry
  02/07/2012 01:36 PM
  Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq is standing firm on taking a voluntary approach with the food industry on trans fat, even though newly released documents show her department was ready to impose regulations in 2009.
  

• Coconut oil continues to rule low
  02/07/2012 11:14 AM
  Coconut oil prices continue to rule at lower levels in Kerala and Tamil Nadu markets. The much-awaited demand-led rally is still to materialise as traders continue to hold on to fair amount of stocks.
  

• A Published Review of Controlled Studies in Attention Deficit Disorder Suggests the Addition of Omega-3 ...
  02/07/2012 04:03 AM
  A Newly published review revives the interest in supplementation of Omega-3 in children with Attention Deficit Disorder, unresponsive to traditional therapies. Agreeing with this recent review, Nutri-Med Logic Corp adds that the review of all published studies in PubMed, relating to Omega-3 and children with Attention Deficit Disorder, suggests that even for those children with an effective ...
  

• NutraCea's RiBran DF Reduces Oil Pickup in Frying by Up to 30% While Maintaining Flavor and Texture
  02/07/2012 09:00 AM
  SCOTTSDALE, AZ-- - NutraCea , a world leader in production and marketing of stabilized rice bran , rice bran oil and their derivative products, announced the commercial launch of RiBran DF, a low oil content ...
  

• Coconut oil and Alzheimer’s
  02/05/2012 06:30 PM
  IN THIS column more than 11 years ago, on November 21, 2005, we discussed the controversy about the health effects of coconut oil which has been going on for decades. The question still remains: Is coconut oil ingestion beneficial or harmful to our body?
  

• Omega-3 fatty acids tied to lower heart arrhythmia risk
  02/01/2012 09:14 PM
  (Reuters) - Older adults who had the highest blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids, most commonly found in fish, were 30 percent less likely to later develop an irregular heartbeat than peers with the lowest blood levels of omega-3s, according to a U.S. study. Up to nine percent of U.S. residents will develop atrial fibrillation by the time they reach their 80s, according to some estimates. The ...
  

• Breaking down fats
  02/06/2012 01:04 PM
  Quick, name the good fats (and their sources) from the following: monounsaturated, saturated, polyunsaturated, trans.
  

• Local olive oil producers call this year's crop devastatingly low
  02/06/2012 09:50 PM
  Local olive oil prices may be going up soon because of a much smaller crop than usual. Olive growers say this year is one of the worst they've seen in a while, calling the yield exceptionally small.
  

Archive

• Food manufacturers have until Jan. 1, 2006, to list trans fat on the nutrition label.
  "On July 9, 2003, FDA issued a regulation requiring manufacturers to list trans fatty acids, or trans fat, on the Nutrition Facts panel of foods and some dietary supplements. With this rule, consumers have more information to make healthier food choices that could lower their consumption of trans fat as part of a heart-healthy diet. Scientific reports have confirmed the relationship between trans fat and an increased risk of coronary heart disease."
  http://www.fda.gov/oc/initiatives/transfat/
  http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/transfat.html