Olive Oil vs. Canola Oil: Fat Profiles
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I'm the first to admit that I swear by olive oil. It's pretty much the only oil that I cook with and I've tried all different kinds of olive oil to find what I like. But I'm also the first to admit that it's just a personal preference. I know that some people find the taste of olive oil to be too strong, especially for cooking certain kinds of foods, and so they prefer a canola oil or vegetable oil in place of the olive oil. I'm not likely to change my mind on the topic anytime soon since I've spent a lot of time figuring out what I like about olive oil. But I'm willing to open my mind long enough to see what the differences are between olive oil and these other oils, at least in terms of my health.
In doing my research into the different oils, I found that the main thing that's different between the two of them is the fat that they contain. And since I do like to try and keep my good fats up and my bad fats down, I figured it was worth learning some more about this. It took me a little while to find the information that I was seeking. The problem turned out to be that both canola oil and olive oil are basically filled with "good fats", the monounsaturated fats that are considered to be the healthy kind of fat that your body can use.
Since both canola oil and olive oil have these "good fats", most people think that the two kinds of oils are basically the same in terms of their health benefits. But I continued to do my research, and I found out some of the nuances that make canola oil and olive oil different. Olive oil generally has a higher proportion of these "good fats", up to about a third more than would be found in a comparable amount of canola oil. But it turns out that olive oil also has a higher proportion of the saturated fats that are the "bad fat". Canola oil and olive oil both have low levels of saturated fat in comparison with other oils but the amount in canola oil is lower, sometimes considerably so.
So that had me a little bit confused. Mostly, I was thinking that canola oil was looking to be healthier than olive oil because it has less fat in general and less of the "bad fat" than olive oil has. But then I looked into the issue even further and I found out that canola oil has considerably more polyunsaturated fat than olive oil, enough to make a huge difference between the two oils. While polyunsaturated fats aren't necessarily "bad fats", it's better to have less of them than more. And while we're on the topic of having more fat, canola oil also has some additional fats in there that are really bad trans fats.
So, I was open minded and I did my research but as far as I'm concerned, olive oil is still the way to go. It might have a little bit more of the bad fats but it has less fat in general than canola oil does and it doesn't have the really bad stuff. If I was someone who used a lot of butter, then I could see the benefit of switching from that to canola oil. As far as the oils go, it's not a bad one. But I'm sticking with olive oil.
- Good Fats vs. Bad Fats Chart
There's a great chart here that highlights the amount of each fat in each kind of oil. - Olive oil buying guide. What does extra virgin olive oil mean?
- Facts to Know about Olive Oil
- Olive oil's health benefits
- NEXUS: The Great Canola Con
- Go Ask Alice!: Difference between olive oil and corn oil
- Most Commonly Asked Questions About Olive Oil
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Comments
Hey, great reasearch and interest of the topic. As I began trying to eat and exercise to improve my health found the the world of "oil" to be a bit confusing also at first. Olive oils is definitely where it's at, and it's all about monounsaturated fats as you mentioned.
Olive is definetely the better choice. I've been using it for years.
I beg to differ, just a bit. According to this article Canola Oil has no trans fat. This came from
http://www.uscanola.com/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&{E621F2EA-3B81-4A18-B7D3-10B042988CBC}
Healthy Oil May Help Reduce the Risk of Cardiovascular DiseaseWASHINGTON, DC – Canola oil is now eligible to bear a qualified health claim on its ability to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) due to its unsaturated fat content, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today. The claim, which canola oil bottlers and makers of eligible products* may use on labels, states:
Limited and not conclusive scientific evidence suggests that eating about 1½ 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. One serving of this product contains [x] grams of canola oil.
“The type of fat consumed is as important as the amount,” said John Haas, president of the U.S. Canola Association (USCA). “Availability of this claim will promote public health by informing consumers about a simple, affordable and convenient strategy to reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease. The claim may also encourage food manufacturers and food service providers to substitute canola oil for other oils with less favorable nutritional profiles.”
Canola oil is high in healthy unsaturated fats (93%), free of cholesterol and trans fat, and the lowest in saturated fat (7%) of any common edible oil. This composition helps reduce the risk of CHD by lowering total blood and low-density lipoprotein (“bad”) cholesterol, according to Guy H. Johnson, PhD, who wrote the qualified health claim petition on behalf of the USCA.
“There is ample scientific evidence to demonstrate these benefits from the unsaturated fats in canola oil,” he said. “By using it in place of other common edible oils, consumers can increase their compliance with the latest dietary recommendations.”
In addition, canola oil is multi-functional with a high smoke point, neutral taste and light texture.
“The lack of consumer barriers to using canola oil at the table and in cooking with respect to cost, taste, convenience and availability makes it very attractive,” Johnson concluded.
Thanks that was very usefull =)
canola oil contains higher then average amounts of long-chain fatty acids, and thus all benifits are neutralized.
and because of the long-chain fatty acids heating it to make the taste more palatable causes a higher then averige (sunflour/olive oil) Transfatty acids amount which also according to the FDA shouldn't be consumed on a daily basis in high-doses.
canola oil doesn't have transfat but as i said before it contains long-chain fatty acids which when cooked are turned into transfat.
the fda is pretty well versed when it comes to food safety.
Hi, Kathryn,
These lines in your article misrepresent the facts: "But then I looked into the issue even further and I found out that canola oil has considerably more polyunsaturated fat than olive oil, enough to make a huge difference between the two oils. While polyunsaturated fats aren't necessarily "bad fats", it's better to have less of them than more."
Polyunsaturarted fats are one of the best fats you can have. See reference on http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/fat/NU00262 written by medical doctor.
You may want to look into the different kinds of facts again.
Healthy fats: Polyunsaturated (including omega-3), monounsaturated
Harmful fats: trans fats, saturated fats, dietary cholesterol
Check out this article on webmd (http://www.webmd.com/news/20000314/best-heart-bene
"We expected there to be no detrimental effects at all because they were all good oils. What we found is that two were good and one was not -- olive oil. Olive oil impaired vascular function just like a Big Mac or fries or Sara Lee cheesecake,"
Vital Information:
In a small study comparing different types of oil, olive oil was found to be potentially damaging to blood vessels, while canola oil and fish oil were not harmful.Canola oil and fish oil contain omega-3 fats, but olive oil contains omega-9 fats.One expert cautions that more studies on a larger number of people are needed before these results can be confirmed.
working
bri says:
7 months ago
so true!