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

• A nut above the rest? (Las Cruces Sun-News)
  03/10/2010 02:10 AM
  LAS CRUCES -- You've heard of Canola oil, peanut oil, corn oil and olive oil. But pecan oil?
  

• Atkins diet's return reflects idea that saturated fat shouldn't be demonized (Washington Post)
  03/04/2010 12:00 AM
  For half a century, we've been told that saturated fats are bad for our hearts. That belief led to what many now consider the disastrous switch from saturated-fat-filled butter to trans-fat-filled margarine as the bread-spread of choice. It also led to the government's recommendation, through its...
  

• Omega 3 - fish or pills? (3news)
  03/10/2010 01:35 AM
  Many of us now take fish oil tablets. We take them because they contain that fatty acid that has all sorts of health benefits, omega 3.
  

• Recipe: Asian-Marinated Steak Over Roasted Garlic Smashed Potatoes (Contra Costa Times)
  03/10/2010 03:21 AM
  Asian-Marinated Steak Over Roasted Garlic Smashed Potatoes Serves 41 whole head garlic, plus 4 cloves 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided Kosher salt 2 tablespoons soy sauce 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil ¼ cup seasoned rice vinegar 1 tablespoon sugar ½ teaspoon hot sauce 2 shallots,
  

• Lucero Olive Oil strikes gold (Red Bluff Daily News)
  03/09/2010 01:15 PM
  CORNING For the second year in a row, a Corning olive oil company has struck gold with its product winning big at the California Olive Oil Council Competition in February, including another best of show.
  

• Schiff's MegaRed(R) Omega-3 Krill Oil Grows In Popularity as the Premier Alternative to Fish Oil (PR Newswire via Yahoo! Finance)
  03/09/2010 08:00 AM
  Schiff Nutrition International, Inc. announced today that MegaRed® Omega-3 Krill Oil is gaining in popularity and quickly becoming the premier alternative to fish oil for consumers looking to increase their Omega-3 fatty acid intake.
  

• New Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil From Shelby Signature Foods Now Available in USA (Marketwire)
  03/09/2010 01:26 PM
  DALLAS, TX--(Marketwire - March 9, 2010) - The new organic premium extra virgin olive oil from Shelby Signature Foods, founded by Carroll Shelby, chairman of Carroll Shelby International Inc. ( PINKSHEETS : CSBI ), is now available at select retail stores in the USA and through IDEA Foods, Inc. A portion of sales will benefit charity.
  

• Omega-3 suppliers hit back at ‘misguided’ Proposition 65 attack (Nutraingredients.com)
  03/08/2010 01:56 PM
  The action states a number of omega-3 products exceed limits for polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) established under California’s Proposition 65 rules and demands compensation for consumers of $2500 per person exposed to the PCB-containing products.
  

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