Replacements for Trans Fats

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Created on 01, April, 2008

A newspaper article states that some replacements for trans fats, such as peanut oil, contain lots of saturated fats, and might be just as bad for health. The article also quotes a nurse practitioner saying that good alternatives include soybean, corn, safflower and sunflower oils, in addition to canola and olive oil.

Peanut oil is 17% saturated fat – not much more than soybean and corn (14% and 13%), but another figure to compare is the ratio of monounsaturated to polyunsaturated fat, with a higher ratio being better. Peanut oil is 2:1 (similar to canola oil), which trumps safflower (1:6), sunflower (1:3), corn and soybean (both about 1:2.5).