The Best Cooking Oils for Better Health

An Examination of Vegetable Oils and Overall Health

Something that is not touched on enough regarding health is the use of oils for optimum health. I have been enlightened on the virtues of good vs. bad cooking oils. In the health food industry, coconut oil has surged in popularity. And, it seems for good reason. The saturated vs. unsaturated debate has been around for some time now. Also, many people are now aware that hydrogenated oils are not good for cholesterol or arterial health. In fact, research shows that hydrogenated oils may be quite artery clogging. I never really embraced the margarine kick and have always preferred the taste of butter over margarine. As a vegetarian, cholesterol does not present a problem for me, and so I enjoy butter with my cooking and on bread and toast. But, for years I used olive oil in the mistaken belief that cooking with it was guilt-free. Not so it turns out.

Uncooked vegetable oils have distinct health benefits, including a good source of natural Vitamin E, some are high in the essential fatty acids. Olive oil has been shown through studies to benefit cholesterol, and an essential ingredient of the seeming healthy Mediterranean diet. While all the oils have some benefit when used in salad dressing or as condiment ingredient, prevailing wisdom now has it that all vegetable and nut oils turn bad when cooked.

Cooked vegetable and nut oils all break down with even low heat to form powerful carcinogens and toxic compounds. Using vegetable and nut oils in cooking may significantly contribute to ill health by promoting exposure to toxic compounds. The only oils that do not break down with heat are Coconut oil, Palm Kernel oil, animal fat such as lard, and butter, (clarified butter is best where the solids are separated from the oil.) Of course, nothing makes me happier than the evidence supporting the use of butter for its' health giving properties. Starting with Coconut oil, these fats do not break down with heat, and additionally food cooked in Coconut oil will preserve longer in the refrigerator than food cooked in vegetable oil.

A trip to your local health food store will reveal that there are ever more emerging brands of coconut oil on store shelves. Cooking with coconut oil is just about as guilt free as you can get. It is not a long chain fatty acid as with other vegetable oils. Coconut oil is an MCT or medium chain triglyceride. It does not go to fat storage and only goes to producing energy. Also, Coconut oil may possess anti-carcinogenic properties, may help with cholesterol, and has an anti-yeast compound called caprylic acid.

So, these days when I cook and fry food, I use a teaspoon of coconut oil and a pat of butter. Less coconut taste is imparted to the food to be cooked, and more of the buttery flavor comes through. Something also I should impart here. In India, the word for butter is 'Ghee', which means life force. Ghee in India is considered an essential ingredient for optimum health and is believed to have medicinal properties. Clarifying butter by lightly heating it and letting the milk solids settle before spooning off the oil may be a healthier way to consume butter by removing some of the sodium content, and some of the inherent negatives present in milk solids. I have recommended the book before, 'The Coconut Oil Miracle', widely available in health food stores and through Amazon.com and other online resources.

A toast to your health. Please call us or contact us with your health concerns. We have a very knowledgeable customer care department at Western Herbal. Please visit our website at www.westernherbal.com for more information on health. Also note we have terrific remedies for Hemorrhoids, Gout, I.B.S., and constipation.