Oil’s
well
As
the issue of food safety gains momentum and consumers become increasingly
health conscious, Shyam Suri and Alokparna Das present their perspective
on the use of healthy cooking oils
Modern-day
diets, high in hydrogenated vegetable oils, are implicated in causing
a significant increase in heart disease and cancer. Given the sedentary
lifestyles that a large amount of professionals lead, coupled with a
lack of physical exercise it is not surprising that the rise of oil-related
health hazards has sent alarm bells ringing in not just the medical
world but also the entire society at large. Needless to say that in
informed societies, restaurants and hotels have been compelled to review
and even change their cooking medium or edible oil in accordance with
whatever is best suited to the health of their customers and
guests.
To
cite one instance, in September last year, McDonald’s US arm announced
that it was changing its cooking oil, reducing transfatty acids by 48
per cent and increasing the usage of polyunsaturated fats by 167 per
cent. This step was taken by the company on the feedback received by
them from consumers and food experts.
According
to the Solvent Extractors’ Association of India, cooking oils can be
divided in four main categories according to the preponderance or desirable
proportion of the particular type of fatty
acid:
- Saturated
fatty acids: coconut oil, palm oil, butter, ghee
- Monounsaturated
fatty acids (MUFA): mustard oil, olive oil, canola oil, groundnut
oil, rice bran oil
- Polyunsaturated
fatty acids (PUFA): corn oil, cotton oil, sunflower oil, soya
oil
- Transfatty
acids: all hydrogenated vegetable oils (vanaspati).
As
far as transfatty acids are concerned, these are fatty acids which are
converted from unsaturated to saturated fatty acids by partial hydrogenation.
These
oils have been found to reduce HDL (good cholesterol) and increase LDL
(bad cholesterol). Therefore, the use of cooking medium having transfatty
acids is not recommended.
Saturated
fatty acids are chains of carbon atoms that have hydrogen filling in
every bond. In food, they normally range in length from 4 to 22 carbons.
Because of their straight configuration, saturated fatty acids pack
together easily and tend to be solid at room temperature. Butter, tallow,
coconut oil and vanaspati are classified as saturated fats, as they
contain a preponderance of saturated fatty acids.
Polyunsaturated
fatty acids have two or more double bonds. As there is a bend at each
double bond, these fatty acids do not pack together easily and tend
to be liquid, even when cold. Soybean oil, safflower oil, sunflower
oil, corn oil, cotton oil are all polyunsaturated oil.
Polyunsaturated
fatty acids are beneficial in lowering cholesterol levels. But these
oils have poor oxidation stability and thus the food cooked in these
oils does not have a long shelf life.
According
to certain experts, prolonged use of these oils can lead to the production
of free radicals in human body which in turn may lead to immune deficiency,
arthritis and cataract.
Polyunsaturated
fatty acids are chains of carbon atoms that have one double bond between
two carbons. Normally, they range from 16 to 22 carbons. They have a
link to bend at the position of the double bond, so the molecules do
not pack together easily.
Monounsaturated
oils tend to be liquid at room temperature, but become solid when refrigerated.
Olive oil, groundnut oil, mustard oil, rice barn oil, canola oil are
classified as having high and desirable percentage of monounsaturated
acids. These oils have better oxidation stability, as compared to polyunsaturated
oils and therefore are better for overall health.
Most
cooking oils have a mixture of different fatty acids and their properties
depend on relative percentages of different types of fats. Says BV Mehta,
Executive Director, The Solvent Extractors’ Association of India, Mumbai,
“Most animal fats like butter, lard and tallow have large proportions
of saturated fatty acids. Desi ghee, for instance, is rich in saturated
fats which has a tendency to increase total cholesterol including HDL
(so called good cholesterol) and LDL and VLDL (so called bad cholesterol).
Saturated
fatty acids can produce a good lipid profile if the food cooked in them
is combined with a fibre (wholegrain chapatis and leafy vegetables)
and physical activity. These appear to be difficult to come by in the
present day urban life.”
The
same is not true about vanaspati, the most common form of transfatty
acids, which tends to ......
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