Which oils to use and how much: Do’s and don’ts of consuming fats

Subject : science and technology

Section: Health

Context :Too much fat will burn our liver and heart very soon, given our lifestyle of little physical activity and uncontrolled diet.

On quantity, there is relatively less debate: about 3-4 teaspoons should be consumed daily, including the oil used in cooking. An entirely oil-free diet will do harm in the long run, since essential fatty acids in oils are required by the body.

Good Fat

Monounsaturated fat (oleic acid)

Studies showed that one component of fats, monounsaturated fat (oleic acid), when consumed instead of other fats, was highly effective in reducing blood fats and medication in patients with diabetes.
Source –
- While this type of fat is abundant in olive oil and canola oil, we in India have used a similar oil, mustard, for centuries.
- Other rich sources of monounsaturated fat are avocados, pistachios, walnuts, almonds and sesame.

Polyunsaturated fat

The second type of ‘good’ fat is polyunsaturated fat — one example is omega-3 fatty acids, of which fish are a rich source.
Unfortunately, there are not many vegetarian sources of these good fats — walnuts, mustard oil, soybean, sesame, peanuts, canola oil, flaxseeds, chia seeds contain relatively small amounts of omega-3 fatty acids.

Bad Fat: Saturated Fat

The intake of saturated fats carries an extremely high risk of arterial clogging and heart attacks, even though some recent opinions vary.
A particularly adverse component of saturated fats is palmitic acids, a major component of palm oil and dairy ghee, which could, besides acutely increasing the risk of heart disease, also lead to the growth of cancer cells.
All saturated fats get deposited in the liver, causing its shrinkage (fibrosis and cirrhosis)
Source–
- Ghee, coconut oil and Palm oil
- Dairy ghee is replete with saturated fats (60%-80%) and palmitic acid.
- Coconut oil, which is widely used in the southern states, too is rich in saturated fats and palmitic acids. It has been found to raise bad blood cholesterol (LDL), the prime determinant of artery blockages, in six out of seven good studies done till date.
- Bhujias and chips that are widely available in India are made in saturated fat-laden palm oil

Worst Fat: Trans fats

One up on saturated fat for increasing heart and liver risks are trans fatty acids
High amounts of trans fatty acids (which make up 30%-40% of some oils) are highly injurious to the heart, liver, pancreas, and blood arteries. Indeed, this is the most damaging component of oil. Research shows that if we reheat foods at high temperatures in any oil, the levels of trans fatty acids increase by 100%-200%. These cooking practices are common in Indian households, and are uniformly adopted by street vendors and most food establishments.
Source –
- Vegetable ghee — vanaspati and similar oils. (Vanaspati ghee is partially hydrogenated vegetable oil made from vegetable sources; it is different from dairy ghee.)
- Margarine , bakery items, & in baked & fried foods.

Efforts to reduce their intake:

National:
- FSSAI launched a “Trans Fat Free” logo for voluntary labelling to promote TFA-free products. The label can be used by bakeries, local food outlets and shops for preparations containing TFA not exceeding 2 per 100 g/ml.
- FSSAI launched a new mass media campaign “Heart Attack Rewind” to eliminate industrially produced trans fat in the food supply by the year 2022.
  - “Heart Attack Rewind” is a follow-up to an earlier campaign called “Eat Right”, which was launched in July, 2018.
    - Edible oil industries took a pledge to reduce the levels of salt, sugar, saturated fat and trans fat content by 2% by 2022 from the current levels of 5%.
    - Swasth Bharat Yatra, an initiative started under the “Eat Right” campaign is a Pan-India cyclothon to engage citizens on issues of food safety, combating food adulteration and healthy diets.
  - Global:
    - WHO launched a REPLACE campaign in 2018 for global-level elimination of trans-fats in industrially produced edible oils by 2023.