Living heart healthy can be as simple as cooking with the right oils. By choosing to replace unhealthy cooking oils with healthy cooking oils you can make a considerable positive difference on the health of your heart. Healthy cooking oils will help you change the type of fat you consume, which can help protect you from heart disease.
Heart Disease
Heart disease has been linked to a number of causes, including poor diet. Unhealthy fats and high calories can increase your cholesterol levels and induce weight gain, both of which can increase your risk of experiencing a heart attack or stroke. Healthy fats, on the other hand, can help you achieve lower cholesterol levels and a reduced risk of heart disease. By choosing healthy cooking oils, you can help increase your healthy fats and decrease your intake of unhealthy fats.
Cooking Oils to Use
Heart-healthy cooking oils contain high amounts of the unsaturated fats, monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat. These fats provide heart-healthy nutrients such as omega-3 fatty acids and do not clog your arteries in ways unhealthy fat do. Olive oil is a commonly used heart-healthy cooking oil and it offers a rich source of monounsaturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids. Olive oil has a rich flavor, which means you can use less and still add considerable flavor to your food. Canola oil is also a heart-healthy monounsaturated fat rich cooking oil. This oil has a bland flavor, which makes it blend better with baked goods. Other heart-healthy oils include flax seed oil, which is rich in omega-3, sunflower oil, walnut oil, soybean oil and peanut oil.
Cooking Oils to Avoid
Cooking oils containing high amounts of saturated fat, cholesterol and trans fats can be unhealthy and when consumed as a regular part of your diet they can contribute to a greater risk of heart disease. To protect your heart, keep your saturated fat intake to a minimum, because too much saturated fat increases your cholesterol level. Oils containing high amounts of saturated fat -- such as butter, palm oil, coconut oil and palm kernel oil -- should be replaced with healthier oils.
Remove as much trans fat from your diet as possible. Even when consumed in small amounts, trans fats increase your bad cholesterol and lower your good cholesterol. Some types of vegetables oil, margarine and vegetable shortening are made with trans fats. Avoid using any oils that contain the ingredient partially hydrogenated vegetable oil.
Moderation
Even when using heart-healthy cooking oils, moderation is still important. According to Family Education website, all oils contain considerable amounts of fat, even if they are heart-healthy. In every tablespoon of oil, you add 13.6 g of fat and 120 calories to your food. Therefore, to maintain the heart-healthy benefits of cooking oil, use it in moderation. Cut down on the amount of oil you use in your cooking and replace some of the oil in your baked goods with pureed fruits such as applesauce. Cutting back on oils overall will ensure you do not experience unhealthy weight gain, which can increase your risk of heart disease.
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