Generality
What is palm oil?
Palm oil is a seasoning fat of vegetable origin, which can be extracted from the fruit of:
- African oil palms (botanical name Elaeis guineensis )
- South American oil palm trees (botanical name Elaeis oleifera )
- Palms maripa (botanical name Attalea maripa ).
This oil is obtained by squeezing the fruits (drupe type), more precisely from the fleshy pulp that surrounds the woody shell of the seed (endocarp).
It is also possible to obtain a second fat portion from the pressing of the endosperm and embryo enclosed in the endocarp, obtaining the so-called "palm kernel or palm kernel oil". Ultimately, two different types of edible oil are derived from the fruits of the palm, often used also in cosmetics.
This article focuses on the dietary aspects of palm oil and palm kernel oil, while for use in cosmetics we refer to reading the articles:
Palm oil in cosmetics
Palmist Oil in Cosmetics
Palm oils VS of palm kernel and coconut: differences
Palm oil is naturally reddish in color, due to the high beta-carotene (pro vitamin A) content of the fruit pulp, which is also orange. Not by chance, unrefined palm oil is commonly called red palm oil .
It is a rather common mistake to confuse palm oil with palm kernel or coconut (botanical species Cocos nucifera ); however, the three products are qualitatively quite different from each other. The most important discrepancies concern:
- the color: palm kernel oil is NOT red, since it does not have the same carotenoid content
- the percentage of saturated fats: palm oil has almost 50% saturated acids, while palm kernel and coconut oil are much richer, reaching percentages of 81 and 86%.
Precisely with regard to the high percentage of saturated fats, together with coconut oil, palm oil and palm kernel oil are among the few solid vegetable fats at room temperature .
None of the three oils contains cholesterol.
Why use palm oil?
Palm oil is commonly used as a cooking fat throughout the tropical belt of Africa, Southeast Asia and most of Brazil. In recent decades, its use in the food industry has rapidly spread throughout the world, thanks to the moderate cost and high oxidative stability of the refined product (widely used for frying).
Production
Processing of palm fruits
After the harvest of palm fruits, and before the oily extraction, the first step of the production cycle is the surface sterilization of the drupes, by applying damp heat (steam).
Subsequently, the fruits are pitted, separating the fleshy portion (pericarp and mesocarp) from the internal woody envelope (endocarp and seed); these two products will be processed differently to obtain different oils.
Production of palm oil
Palm oil extraction
There are two methods of extracting oil from the pulp of palm fruits:
- Hydraulic pressure (squeezing)
- Centrifugation.
Palm oil refining
The crude palm oil has an orange color, due to the very high content of carotenoids, plant precursors of vitamin A. For this reason, before reaching our tables, palm oil undergoes a series of refining processes, which They include:
- deodorization
- Discoloration
- Neutralization: serves to remove free fatty acids, reducing the acidity of the oil.
Unfortunately, during these phases the carotenoids (pro vitamin A of the thermolabile type) are largely inactivated by heat.
Note : chemical refining techniques are common to all seed oils (soy, sunflower, rapeseed, etc.).
Completely prohibited in the production of virgin olive oil, they are instead allowed in the production of olive-pomace oil. The latter, similar to that of the palmists, is not derived from the pulp, but from the seed of the olive.
To learn more: Palm oil: processing and uses
Production of palm kernel oil
Palm kernel oil extraction
Palm kernel oil is obtained from the hazels. These undergo some processes that can be summarized as follows:
- Separation of the external fiber of the endocarp by means of an air flow
- Seed drying
- Seeds break to make almonds
- Almonds drying.
- Almonds pressing
- Oil extraction with solvents
The total yield is around 45-55%.
Nutrition
Palm oil and health
Palm oil, like all seasoning fats, is mainly composed of fatty acids esterified with glycerol. However, it has a rather characteristic acidic composition; witness the fact that, despite being a vegetable oil, rather than being liquid, it tends to be solid at room temperature. This characteristic is due to the generous content of saturated long chain fatty acids (normally abundant in meat, cheese and in general animal fats).
At room temperature (<30 ° C), crude palm oil has a consistency similar to pork fat and beef tallow, horse, sheep, etc.
As shown in the table, palmitic acid abounds in palm oil in particular, to which several studies (including reports from the World Health Organization - WHO) attribute a hypercholesterolemic and atherogenic effect , which increases cardiovascular risk .
On the other hand, in palm oil it is necessary to point out also discrete percentages of the monounsaturated oleic acid, typical instead of the more "healthy" oils such as the olive oil.
In unrefined palm oil, in addition to beta carotenoids (alpha-carotene, beta-carotene and lycopene, which we recall being pro-vitamins A), it has an abundant amount of tocopherols and tocotrienols, ie some forms of vitamin E; both play an important antioxidant activity.
Palm oil also contains CoQ10, phytosterols and glycolipids.
| Acid composition of palm oil | ||
| Caprylic Acid | 8: 0 | 0.1 max |
| Caprico acid | 10: 0 | 0.1 max |
| Lauric acid | 12: 0 | 0.3 max |
| Myristic acid | 14: 0 | 0.8-1.3 |
| Pentadecanoic acid | 15: 0 | 0.1 max |
| Palmitic acid | 16: 0 | 43.0-48.0 |
| Palmitoleic acid | 16: 1 | 0.3 max |
| Magaric acid | 17: 0 | 0.1 max |
| Stearic Acid | 18: 0 | 4.5-5.5 |
| Oleic acid | 18: 1 | 35.0-40.0 |
| Linoleic acid | 18: 2 | 8.5-11.0 |
| Α-Linolenic acid | 18: 3 | 0.4 max |
| Arachic acid | 20: 0 | 0.1 max |
Insights: palm oil: is it good or bad? - palm oil and health
Choose or avoid refined palm oil?
Summarizing the results of the most recent scientific revisions, in a healthy way we can state that:
- Refined palm oil is a good choice as a frying oil : thanks to its excellent stability at high temperatures, it prevents the formation of compounds harmful to health. On the other hand, excessive intake can, unlike good quality oils, have a negative impact on the metabolism; this means that, even if it is an excellent frying medium, the recipes that contain it must however be included sporadically in the diet
- Moreover, even when used as a raw condiment, refined palm oil is a worse choice than extra virgin olive oil and other vegetable oils with a high content of unsaturated fatty acids (such as corn and soy). It would be different by looking at crude, unrefined and vitamin-rich palm oil.
Note : in the industrial field, the use of palm oil is preferable to vegetable fats rich in trans fatty acids .
Palm kernel oil and health
If palm oil contains about 50% saturated long chain fats, very few saturated medium chain fats, about 40% monounsaturated fats and 10% polyunsaturated fats, palm kernel oil is particularly rich in lauric acid .
It is therefore a food rich in medium chain fatty acids, which have a virtually neutral impact on plasma lipids; Furthermore, lauric acid has a remarkable antibacterial power.
Purposes
Uses of palm oil
From a commercial point of view, palm oil has some interesting features:
- Excellent flavor
- Excellent resistance to oxidation (NOT rancid easily)
- Low production cost.
For these peculiarities it is widely used in the confectionery industry, where it can be used as such or subjected to various procedures for the production of margarine.
Thanks to the high smoke point, palm oil is also used for frying.
Regarding the low cost, palm oil is preferred over the more noble condiments; a classic example is its use in partial substitution of cocoa butter in the production of chocolate and spreadable creams.
Use of palm kernel oil
Palm kernel oil is very similar to coconut oil, although darker in color. Due to its richness in saturated fatty acids - similar to what we saw for palm oil - at temperatures of 20-22 ° C it is in the solid state.
Palm kernel oil is widely used for the production of soaps and detergents, while in the food sector it recognizes the same applications as palm oil, being part of the composition of margarines, ice creams, biscuits and confectionery products in general.
Red Oil
General information on unrefined palm oil
Red palm oil has the same food and industrial uses as refined palm oil.
However, contrary to what one might believe, unrefined palm oil is also used as a therapeutic food.
Indications for red palm oil
Thanks to the high content of provitamin A (beta carotene) and tocopherols (vit E), red or unrefined palm oil is indicated in the prevention (or as an adjuvant in treatment) of various conditions.
However, most of these recommendations are not scientifically founded or demonstrated:
- Vitamin A and E deficiency: scientific studies show that the addition of palm oil in the diet of pregnant women and children in developing countries could reduce the risk of developing vitamin A deficiency
- Cancer: inexistent or insufficient evidence
- Degenerative brain disorders: inexistent or insufficient evidence
- Aging: inexistent or insufficient evidence
- Hypertension: inexistent or insufficient evidence
- Hypercholesterolemia: it has been observed that even if the red palm oil is inserted in a specific diet plan, NO cholesterol reduction occurs in people suffering from hypercholesterolemia. On the contrary, some research suggests that palm oil could actually increase cholesterol levels compared to other oils such as soy, canola and sunflower oils
- Cyanide poisoning: inexistent or insufficient evidence
- Weight loss: there are those who claim that red or unrefined palm oil can also increase basal metabolic rate by promoting weight loss; the evidence is non-existent or insufficient.
Security of unrefined palm oil
Red palm oil is considered a fairly safe food, as long as it is consumed in reasonable quantities. For a maximum of 6 months, it is considered safe even if used as a food supplement for adults, children, pregnant women and nursing mothers.
Pharmacological interactions of red palm oil
Unrefined palm oil can interact with anticoagulant / antiplatelet therapy, increasing blood clotting and reducing its effectiveness.
Some of these drugs are acetylsalicylic acid, clopidogrel, diclofenac, ibuprofen, naproxen, dalteparin, enoxaparin, heparin, warfarin etc.
Doses and method of use
In the scientific research we mentioned, red palm oil was used as follows: To prevent vitamin A deficiency:
- About 3 tablespoons (9 grams) per day, for adults and children over 5 years old
- About 4 tablespoons (12 grams) per day for pregnant women and nurses
- About 2 tablespoons (6 grams) per day for children under 5 years.
Sustainability
Palm oil and the environment
The use of palm oil continues to arouse fervent criticism from various groups of environmentalists, since the high economic yield typical of this product has led to an intensification and expansion of the cultivation of palm trees, destroying much of the flora and fauna Indonesian indigenous peoples.
This has reduced the natural habitat of the orangutan and the Sumatran tiger and both species are currently in demographic crisis; the tiger, in particular, results in the so-called "critical danger".
In 1992, in response to concerns over deforestation, the Malaysian government undertook to moderate the expansion of oil palm plantations, guaranteeing to maintain at least 50% of the national forest area.
In 2004, a group called "Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)" was formed, aimed at collaborating with the palm oil industry to seek a win-win solution for both parties.
To know more:
Palm oil: Society and Environment
Palm oil: deforestation and greenhouse effect
