Dow Agrosciences
Dow AgroSciences is a top tier agricultural company providing innovative crop protection, pest and vegetation management, seed, and agricultural biotechnology solutions to serve the world's growing population.
Dow AgroSciences also provides omega-9 canola and sunflower oils that represent the "next generation" of food industry oils because they contain no trans fat, the lowest amount of saturated fat among oils, and the highest level of heart healthy monounsaturated fat. Oils made from Dow AgroSciences canola and sunflower seeds have a unique combination of high oleic (>70 percent) and low linolenic (<3 percent) fatty acids. This patented profile gives the oils their outstanding flavor and performance attributes.
Canola oil has received a qualified health claim from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, stating "limited and not conclusive scientific evidence suggests that eating about 1 ½ tablespoons (19 grams) of canola oil daily may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease due to the unsaturated fat content in canola oil. To achieve this possible benefit, canola oil is to replace a similar amount of saturated fat and not increase the total number of calories you eat in a day."
Current trends among medical and food professionals embrace the concept that education about health and cooking trends are more essential than ever before. The greatest attention has been related to the risk of disease associated with trans fats from partially hydrogenated oils. In a review paper on the health impact of trans fat, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the near elimination of trans fat in the United States would reduce coronary heart disease, the primary risk factor for heart attack, by 23 percent per year.
Hydrogenation is a process used in the production of some margarines, shortenings, and other food products. This process involves adding hydrogen to liquid oil to make it creamier or even more solid at room temperature. In other words, by making it more solid, it becomes more saturated. The transformation of this oil into a solid fat creates trans fatty acids, a term that is commonly used to identify these partially hydrogenated oils. Trans fat created by partial hydrogenation should not be confused with the trans fats that occur naturally in beef and dairy.
In the last few years, compelling scientific data proves that trans fats from partially hydrogenated oils are "metabolic poison". The scientific literature finds that they exert more negative effects for the development of heart disease than saturated fat. Trans fats raise serum cholesterol, low density lipoproteins, lipoprotein a, and triglycerides while also decreasing the level of protective high density lipoproteins. In addition, trans fats from partially hydrogenated oils may also contribute to the development of Syndrome X, a group of risk factors ranging from hypertension and elevated blood lipids, to type II diabetes. Trans fat also promote inflammation and clot formation in blood vessels of the heart, brain, and other parts of the body. As the intake and production of trans fats from partially hydrogenated oils have increased in the United States, so has the rate of heart disease.
All foods that contain fat contain a blend of different types of fatty acids (e.g. saturated, polyunsaturated, and monounsaturated). It is common to refer to the food based on the majority of type of fatty acids it contains (e.g. monounsaturated oil)
Fatty acids that contain double bonds are referred to as unsaturated. If the fatty acids contain one double bond, they are referred to as monounsaturated, two or more as polyunsaturated.
The system of naming oils with an omega designation refers to the position of the first double bond in the fatty acid carbon chain. For example, omega-3 fatty acids have the first double after the third carbon and omega-6 fatty acids start their double bond after the sixth carbon. Both the omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fatty acids because they contain multi double bonds in their fatty acid chains. Omega-6 fatty acids are predominant in seeds oils such as corn, sunflower, soybean, and cottonseed. Omega-3 fatty acids are found in walnuts, walnut oil, flax seeds, flax seed oil, and cold water fish. Omega-9 fatty acids are considered monounsaturated and are found in canola oil, avocados, olives, nuts, nut oils, and high oleic oils.
Food processors are more familiar with these terms as they implement the recent 2006 FDA mandate regarding tans fat labeling that requires trans fat to be listed along with saturated fat and cholesterol on retailing packaging Nutrition Facts labels. Restaurants can get trans fats out of their kitchens by simply switching to new oils that deliver great taste and improved nutrition. These new oils have zero trans fats and lower saturated fats, and studies show they perform equal to, or better than, existing frying oils without compromising taste.
References
Katan, MB, Zock PL, Mensink, RP, Trans fatty acids and their effects on lipoproteins in humans. Annu Rev Nutr. 1995;15:473-93.
Ascherio A, Willet WC. Trans fatty acids and coronary heart disease. New England Journal of Medicine. 1999;340:1994-1998.
Mozaffarian D. Katan MB. Ascherio A. Stampfer MJ. Willett WC. Trans Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease. New England Journal of Medicine. April 13, 2006. 354;15:1601-13.
New England Journal of Medicine, Trans Fatty Acids and Cardiovascular Disease, April 2006
Tarrago-Trani MT, Phillips KM, Lemar LE, Holden JM. New and existing oils and fats used in products with reduced trans-fatty acid content. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, June 2006;106(6):867-80. (Reprinted with Permission of the American Dietetic Association)