Palm oil is obtained from the mesocarp (flesh) of palm fruit.
Fat content:
- 50% of saturated fatty acids (trace amounts of lauric and myristic acid, large amounts of palmitic acid),
- 40% of monounsaturated fatty acids,
- 10% of poliunsaturated fatty acids;
Palm oil does not contain trans isomers of unsaturated fatty acids.
A quotation from the review of studies on palm oil from 2016, carried out at the University of Ghana:
„West African nations have a long history of treating palm oil as a nutritious heaven – it served as the main source of fat in a diet and also as a remedy for diseases.”
Palm oil contains:
- α-, β- and γ-carotenes
- phytosterols, such as sitosterol, stygmasterol and These lipophilic sterols are easily absorbed in the digestive system and then transformed in the chain of enzymatic reactions into cholesterol, which is the main precursor of steroid hormones,
- squalene
- vitamin E, composed of many tocopherols and tocotrienols.
Smoke point of unrefined palm oil: 235^C, which makes palm oil ideal for both deep and shallow frying.
Source:
Boateng L, Ansong R, Owusu WB, Steiner-Asiedu M. Coconut oil and palm oil’s role in nutrition, health and national development: A review.Ghana Medical Journal. 2016;50(3):189-196 (link).
Tags: fatty acids, nutrition, oil, palm oil
