So many people are now at home and more people are cooking
at home. This can be good for your health. When you are preparing food for yourself and
your family, what cooking oil are you using?
Just like most things in nutrition there are a lot of myths about what
cooking oils are good for your health and what cooking oils are not so
good. Why would a person buy a cooking oil
that is bad for their heart health? I
noted this before but I was watching a couple in the cooking oil aisle struggling
to figure out what cooking oil to buy.
They would pick up a bottle, look at it, talk about it, put it back and
then pick up another bottle. Choosing
and buying a healthy cooking oil is not hard.
Here are some tips.
One might think most cooking oils are the same. And they are pretty much the same when it
comes to calories and fat content. But,
the type of fat in the oil really makes a difference health wise.
Healthy Choices for Cooking Oils Most experts
now recommend oils high in monounsaturated fats like Olive Oil, Canola Oil or high
in polyunsaturated fats like Safflower oil, Sunflower Oil or Corn Oil. These oils are the healthiest choices. Why?
Because cooking oils high in these fats lower your risk of heart disease. The Cleveland
Clinic recommends “When cooking and eating, it’s important to choose the
most heart-healthy oils.” The American
Heart Association recommends cooking oils that contain more of the better
fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats) and less saturated fats. (See What
are healthy fats?)
o
Olive Oil – this oil is considered heart-healthy
because it is high in monounsaturated fats.
Choose Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO).
Why? Because EVOO
has more of those good antioxidants. Experts
say EVOO seems to have the most health
benefits.
o
Canola
Oil – This
oil is “generally considered a “healthy” oil because it is very low in
saturated fat (7%)”. Similar to olive
oil, the fat in canola oil is a monounsaturated fat. It also contains the heart healthy Omega-3 fat.
Interesting, that canola oil contains a
substance that actually reduces “the absorption of cholesterol into the body”.
o
Corn, Safflower, Soybean and Sunflower Oils –
the American Heart Association also lists these vegetable
oils as heart-healthy oils. Why? Because they contain so little saturated fats.
Not Good Choice for Cooking Oils
· Coconut
oil – although trendy, this oil is not a healthy choice. They are those
that say coconut oil can reduce your belly fat, and is even good for your
immune system. The once popular Paleo
Diet pushed coconut oil. But not so fast.
o
Saturated fat – most people know saturated fat
is not heart healthy. Saturated fat is
the fat that raises your bad cholesterol, the LDL cholesterol. Coconut oil is not only high in saturated fat,
but 80-90% of fat in coconut oil is saturated. That is why coconut oil is solid at room
temperature.
o
LDL cholesterol – this is the cholesterol that
builds up in your arteries and considered the “bad cholesterol”. A number of studies
have found that coconut oil leads to an increase in LDL cholesterol. This would
increase one’s risk of heart disease.
o
Coconut oil is one cooking oil to leave on the
shelf
·
Palm
Oil – another oil high in saturated fat.
I am always disappointed when I try to choose a healthier microwave
popcorn and then the ingredients list “palm oil” as it is not a heart-healthy
oil.
What
cooking oil to choose? Actually, you
may want a couple of oils in your pantry.
Have a bottle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and then have some Corn, Safflower,
or Sunflower Oil. This way you are
getting the benefit of oils that are low in saturated fat and you are getting some
different heart-healthy oils.
Sources: experts
, Cleveland
Clinic, American
Heart Association , EVOO
, Experts
, Canola
Oil , This
oil , vegetable
oils , fat,
studies,
Palm
Oil Image Sources: corn
oil , Heart
healthy oils , EVVO
source https://betterweightloss.info/which-cooking-oils-are-healthy-which-oils-are-not-so-healthy/
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