Palm oil is an oil of vegetable origin that we find in a multitude of food products, which despite its widespread use becomes an unhealthy option. Find out why.
If you look at the labels of most food products that you currently have in your pantry, it is quite possible that, among its ingredients, you will find palm oil. And it is that, without a doubt, we are facing one of the most used oils in the world, being very easy to find it in a wide variety of products that we eat every day. All this despite not being a very suitable option from both a nutritional and medicinal point of view.
This oil is produced from the fruits of the African palm, a perennial plant that can reach more than 100 years and 40 meters in height, although due to its productive use the truth is that they do not usually reach 25 years and 12 meters high.
Its fruits are grouped in a kind of drupe, which are covered by a waxy tissue, with a hard and round structure inside which we find an almond. From these fruits, what is known as palm oil is obtained.
Where do we find palm oil?
The truth is that we can find palm oil in the composition of a huge variety of products (food and non-food). From a food point of view, the products where we can commonly distinguish the presence of this oil as one of its ingredients are the following:
- Pastries, cakes, cookies and cakes: Especially in the case of industrial pastries as a substitute for hydrogenated fats and butter.
- Toppings and creams: Melting better than chocolate, it tends to be used to hold and store creams and toppings.
- Spreads: It is common to find it in margarines or cocoa creams since, due to its high content of saturated fat, it tends to facilitate spreading.
- Precooked products: It is very common to find palm oil as an ingredient in a wide variety of precooked foods, from pizzas to crisps to breaded foods. The reason is simple, in addition to being cheaper it tends to become less rancid.
- Appetizers and salty chips: Especially since this oil tends to hold more frying than other fats.
Why is it so bad for your health?
Despite its widespread use, being very common to find it in a wide variety of food products that are actually extremely diverse (from cookies to cakes, through pre-cooked pizzas, cocoa creams or salty snacks), the reality is that from a point of view nutritionally view is not a very healthy option.
The main reason is found in its high content of saturated fats (specifically in long-chain saturated fatty acids). In fact, around 50% of the fats in palm oil are saturated. As many scientific studies have shown, a prolonged and regular consumption of saturated fat has a negative influence on the increase in LDL cholesterol in the blood, which doubles the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
But we should not be alarmed, given that for palm oil to actually be harmful to our health we should consume food products made with it every day and in large quantities. If you do not want to continue consuming them, a good option is to look at the labeling of the products that you buy from now on, and analyze if there is palm oil in it.
