Food safety is no small matter. How to choose healthy edible oil in life?

The oil we usually talk about is fat. According to energy calculation, the fat intake per person per day accounts for 20%~25% of the total energy. Oil is divided into animal oil and vegetable oil. Nowadays, many people prefer vegetable oil. In fact, the nutritional value of animal and vegetable oils is different.

1. What are the benefits of vegetable oil?

Monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fatty acids contained in vegetable oil can not only provide energy for human body and assist the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K, but also provide essential fatty acids that human body cannot synthesize, such as linoleic acid and α -linolenic acid. It can combine with cholesterol in the body to form esters, remove excessive serum cholesterol and prevent it from depositing on the inner wall of arterial blood vessels, which can play a role in preventing atherosclerosis.

Unsaturated fatty acids can also stimulate the liver to produce more high density lipoprotein cholesterol. This kind of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol is called "scavenger" in blood vessels, which can remove excess cholesterol attached to blood vessel walls to the outside world and maintain cardiovascular health.

Sesame oil, rapeseed oil and soybean oil contain 0.6~0.8 mg of vitamin E per gram of unsaturated fatty acid, which is a kind of oil with balanced nutrition. Corn oil, rice bran oil and safflower seed oil also contain saponified substances (including plant cholesterol, vitamin E, etc. ), which is very beneficial to prevent arteriosclerosis. Olive oil and tea oil are rich in monounsaturated fatty acids, which are more conducive to reducing blood lipids and improving the body's antioxidant capacity, and preventing cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Second, what should I do if I only eat vegetable oil but not animal oil?

However, if you only eat vegetable oil, too many unsaturated fatty acids are easy to oxidize by themselves, and a large number of oxygen free radicals are produced in the body. These oxygen free radicals will erode cells, destroy the genetic material deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), lead to cell mutation and cause cancer.

Dr Kenneth Carroll, an American biochemist, believes that unsaturated fatty acids in vegetable oils are not carcinogens, but they contribute to the growth of cancer cells. Animal experiments show that the rate of colon cancer and breast cancer in animals with unsaturated fatty acids is higher than that in animals and vegetable oils.

Third, is eating animal oil "harmful"?

Animal oils such as lard are rich in saturated fatty acids and cholesterol. Excessive intake can easily lead to dyslipidemia, arteriosclerosis, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, etc. However, animal oil can promote the absorption and utilization of fat-soluble vitamins, and cholesterol is also an important component of human tissues and cells, helping the human body to synthesize bile and some hormones. Lard contains a substance "conjugated linoleic acid", which has anti-cancer effect.

After analyzing the fat of geese, ducks and other poultry, scientists found that its chemical composition is close to olive oil, which has a protective effect on the cardiovascular system. In particular, fish fat is rich in eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which has the functions of reducing blood lipid, preventing platelet aggregation and delaying thrombosis, and is of great benefit to the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.

Should vegetable oil be used instead of animal oil?

It is said that oil with less saturated fatty acids and more unsaturated fatty acids is good oil, so should vegetable oil replace animal oil?

This standard is desirable, but it does not mean that all vegetable oils are healthier than animal oils, which depends on the fatty acid content of each oil. Duck oil is animal oil, but its saturated fatty acid content is nearly half lower than palm oil in vegetable oil, and its monounsaturated fatty acid content is higher than soybean oil and peanut oil. Although palm oil is vegetable oil, its saturated fatty acid content is similar to lard, so it cannot be generalized.

Nutritionists point out that eating oil should be scientific and the collocation of meat and vegetables should be reasonable. The ideal ratio of animal oil to vegetable oil should be 1: 2, and patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases should be less than this ratio.

5. How to use oil scientifically in daily cooking?

Nutritionists suggest that we choose different oils instead of one oil in different cooking scenes, and peanut oil can be used if we need high-temperature cooking or cooking. Olive oil, tea oil and sesame oil are all good choices when eating cold dishes. Soybean oil, sunflower oil and corn oil are suitable for daily low-temperature cooking. Coconut oil and palm oil are not recommended at any time.

Oil also has a shelf life, and the kitchen environment is also prone to oxidation and deterioration. Therefore, when buying oil, it is recommended to buy a small bottle and replace it with new oil when it is used up. At the same time, it is best not to put the oil bottle too close to the furnace, so as not to shorten the "life" of the oil at high temperature.

In addition, we should diversify our diet and reasonably control the quantity and quality of animal and vegetable oils in order to obtain balanced nutrition and achieve a balance of fatty acids. At the same time, you should always eat foods rich in carotene and vitamins C and E, which will help prevent oil oxidation.

The fundamental purpose of eating oil is to ingest various fatty acids, because fatty acids, like vitamins, amino acids and other nutrients, have an irreplaceable role in maintaining health. Both vegetable oil and animal oil have their own advantages and disadvantages, and they are indispensable. Achieving balance is the most critical. Therefore, from now on, it is wise to establish the awareness of eating oil for health.