fats

Question
Dear Tanya,

I have read several articles about the importance of the mediteranean diet, including olive oil.

These is my question: Should I add olive oil to my diet? The only oils I consume are oils that are part of processed foods (other than trans fat and hydrogenated). I don't eat butter, margarine, etc. I add lemon juice or vinegar to my salads.

I hesitate about olive oil because it contains saturated fat which is considered unhealthy. So it seems that olive oil is both healthy and unhealthy, at the same time.  This is confusing.

Thanks.

Jack Richman


Answer
Any oil contain saturated fatty acids, it's a balance what matters. I listed below several kinds of foods, most of them are considered good for your health (not the animal fat of course, I included it for comparison)

Avocado oil is close to olive in this respect and fish oil, which is powerful heart protector, is much higher in saturated fats. So, see for yourself.

Olive oil is good also due its beneficial ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acids, plus, it doesn't' reduce its quality being heated during cooking.

BTW, next time you shop, take a look at new margarine brands containing omega-3 fatty acids and no hydrogenated oils (they should mention that they used gelatin for hardening or something like that  - I live in France and this is what they write on this margarine boxes here, don't know about American brands.

Here goes the list:

Olive

Saturated   13.45 g   
Monounsaturated   73.90 g   
Polyunsaturated   10.00 g   
Cholesterol 0.00 mg   


Animal fat (from bacon)

Saturated   39.00 g
Monounsaturated   44.87 g
Polyunsaturated   11.14 g
Cholesterol   95.00 mg

Huselnut

Saturated   7.40 g
Monounsaturated   78.00 g
Polyunsaturated   10.20 g

Avocado

Saturated   11.56 g
Monounsaturated   70.55 g
Polyunsaturated   13.49 g


Canola

Saturated   7.10 g
Monounsaturated   58.90 g
Polyunsaturated   29.60 g

Fish oil, cod liver

Saturated   22.61 g
Monounsaturated   46.71 g
Polyunsaturated   22.54 g
Cholesterol   570.00 mg

Hope it helps,

Tanya Zilberter, PhD

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