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Is palm oil good or bad for cholesterol?
Does palm oil lower or raise cholesterol?
There are some studies that state that crude palm oil, that is, red or unrefined palm oil, could decrease the amount of bad cholesterol or LDL cholesterol in the body.
Which is better for cholesterol, palm oil or coconut oil?
Obviously, the concentration of saturated fats in refined palm oil (the palm oil normally sold in grocery stores) is lower than that of coconut oil.
Coconut oil is a type of oil whose ingestion has always been considered responsible for increasing bad cholesterol. In addition, palm oil has a contribution of monounsaturated fatty acids, in the form of oleic acid, almost 4 times higher than coconut oil.
All this makes palm oil a healthier oil from a food point of view than coconut oil.
Is refined palm oil good for cholesterol?
Although palm oil is healthier than coconut oil, the high saturated fat content of consuming this type of oil should not be underestimated.
Palm oil contains 49% saturated fat (mainly palmitic acid and stearic acid) and 46% unsaturated fat, most of which are monounsaturated in nature. (oleic acid) (See: composition of palm oil and composition of coconut oil)
The unsaturated portion of fat could be considered to offset the negative effects of the saturated portion. Therefore, the negative cholesterol effects of palm oil are not comparable to those of coconut oil.
Despite this, we should not be tempted to consider palm oil as a recommended oil to lower cholesterol, contrary to what we should consider olive oil or sunflower oil, which are really effective. in the decrease of «bad cholesterol» or LDL cholesterol
Do specialist recommend palm oil to people with cholesterol or to prevent cholesterol?
In general, most specialists do not recommend palm oil to people suffering from cholesterol problems or to those who want to prevent its formation. On the contrary, most consider that an excess of their consumption is not highly recommended, because, although it does not contain cholesterol, the large proportion of saturated fat, consumed in excess, can end up increasing it equally and causing the same problems.
More information on palm oil
