Caught in Canola Oil Confusion?

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Caught in Canola Oil Confusion?

 

" I recently heard that canola oil is really an industrial oil and not fit for

human consumption. What's your opinion? "

 

-- Susan Foster

 

(Published 12/04/1998)

 

In the past, I've recommended canola oil as an acceptable monounsaturated oil to

use in cooking when the flavor of olive oil -- another monounsaturated oil and

the healthiest type of fat -- was too strong. I now think that there's rarely,

if ever, a need for canola oil. A light olive oil is neutral enough even for

baking.

Canola oil is extracted from rapeseed, a plant in the cabbage family. Rapeseed

oil is the traditional cooking oil of India and southern China, but the kind we

use was bred in Canada to contain less erucic acid, a toxic amino acid, than

other varieties and has been marketed as " canola oil " (Canadian oil) instead.

The truth is that canola oil is monounsaturated and thus healthier than

saturated or polyunsaturated oils, but I still consider it a distant runner-up

to olive oil. We know from research studies that populations that consume olive

oil as a primary dietary fat have significantly lower rates of both heart

disease and cancer than those that don't. We have no comparable epidemiological

data for canola. Also unlike olive oil, canola oil doesn't contain oleic acid,

the fatty acid our bodies process best.

I've always cautioned against buying canola oil found in supermarkets. These

products have been extracted with chemical solvents or high-speed presses that

generate heat. Both methods alter the oil's fatty acid chemistry in undesirable

ways. Furthermore, canola oil producers use a lot of pesticides on their crops,

and I suspect that residues find their way into the finished product. If you do

use canola oil, I suggest buying only the organic, expeller-pressed varieties

sold in natural-food stores.

 

 

 

 

 

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