Canola - friend or foe?

Canola oil is often touted as the healthiest salad and cooking oil available to consumers. Many scientists endorsed canola oil saying it is supposedly a “heart-healthy” oil, low in saturated fat, high in monounsaturated and a good source of omega-3 fatty acids. However, canola oil may not be all it's been promoted to be and I would think twice before using this oil for cooking or any other way in your diet.

Pitfalls of Canola Oil:

• There is no such thing as a canola plant - canola is actually developed from rapeseed. Rapeseed is naturally high in erucic acid which is toxic, hence they genetically modifiy it to be low in this toxin and higher in oleic acid so they can promote Canola oil as healthy.  
  
  
• Canola oil is used in a large portion of processed foods after being hardened through the hydrogenation process.  The oil is removed by a combination of high temperature mechanical pressing and solvent extraction. Traces of the solvent (usually hexane) remain in the oil, even after considerable refining.
   
• Canola oil must be deodorized and the standard deodorization process removes a large portion of the omega-3 fatty acids and turns them into trans fatty acids.
   
• The high omega-3 fatty acids that people are trying to get from using this oil actually become rancid and foul-smelling when subjected to oxygen and high temperatures. So when canola oil is used for cooking it is actually damaging the omega-3's because omega-3's are not meant to be heated.

So, instead of canola oil I would suggest you check out coconut oil for cooking!

Food Face Off Part II: Vegetable/Canola Oil VS Coconut Oil

Which Would You Choose?

Vegetable/Canola Oil -

Excess polyunsaturates from processed vegetable oils (ie. Canola oil) have been shown to contribute to heart disease, cancer, weight gain and many other health problems. Modern processing damages fragile polyunsaturated oils and they are deodorized to hide the smell of rancidity as well as being full of free radicals. Specifically, canola oil is developed through hybridization of rapeseed, which contains erucic acid that is a toxic and poisonous. Not only that, canola and other vegetable oils are used in a large portion of processed foods after being hardened through the hydrogenation process that creates toxic trans fats. Trans has been shown to produce disease over they long term as well as interfere with the body's ability to ingest and utilize essential and good fats.

"Fully processed oils are the equivalent of refined (white) sugars, and can therefore be called ‘white’ oils. Like sugar, they are nutrient-deficient sources of calories but in addition, they contain toxins that are not present in sugar.”

~Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill, by Udo Erasmus

VS

Coconut Oil -

Coconut oil is an extremely beneficial fat and has been called the “healthiest dietary oil on earth.” Foods cooked in coconut oil taste better longer, where as unsaturated oils turn rancid fairly quickly. Coconut oil is very stable and can be kept at room temperature for many months without becoming rancid and it can also withstand high temperatures making it very good to cook with. Moreover, coconut oil helps protect against heart disease, cancer, other degenerative conditions and even help with losing weight!

“One food that can rev up your metabolism even more than protein is coconut oil. MCFA [medium chain fatty acids] shift the body’s metabolism into a higher gear, so to speak, so that you burn more calories. This happens every time you eat MCFA. Because MCFA increase the metabolic rate, they are dietary fats that can actually promote weight loss!”

~The Coconut Oil Miracle, by Bruce Fife, MD

Find Resources for Coconut Products and more about Coconut Oil