The World Of Tzu Chi(Vol.113)

TZU CHI 113 57 Ng Hui Ling A nutritionist with a Bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and a Master’s degree in Sports Science, who served at the Singapore Heart Foundation before becoming self-employed, providing dietary consultations to vegetarians and writing a nutrition column for a health magazine. would insist on only healthy food for her daughter. How could I have known the driedmangoes would taste so sweet?” she retorted. My friend related her experience to us when paying us a visit, leaving us in mirthful laughter. The myth of the “best” food source The old lady listened attentively to my anecdote from the beginning in silence, but erupted in laughter towards the end. “So your friend and I are of the same mind!” she professed. Nutritional value is not the sole determining factor that influences my food choices. Rather, I would take various factors into consideration before deciding on a particular type of food to buy. I informed the old lady that I would switch between different variants of cooking oil from time to time, with the sole exception of palm oil. “What’s the matter with palm oil?” she enquired. Based on my experience, the notion that it is impractical to categorize food into the “best” and “worst” types might seem simple enough to be imparted to the general public, but driving the message home remains a challenge. Palm oil is best valued for its advantage of remaining stable under high temperatures, making it an ideal choice for deep-frying at high heat. Yet, it is of little use to me, as I rarely prepare deep-fried food. Conversely, the most worrying property of palm oil is its high content of saturated fat in the form of palmitic acid and stearic acid, both of which raise the risk of cardiovascular diseases if consumed in large amounts over time. Nevertheless, several studies have shown otherwise by concluding that palm oil does not contribute to an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases, unlike other plant-based oils. Therefore, there is a need for more rigorous scientific research to address the question of whether palm oil consumption has a causal relationship to cardiovascular diseases. Palm oil is the most common variant of cooking oil used in manufacturing processed food. We are highly likely to consume it through processed food, even if we avoid it in home cooking. A closer scrutiny of nutrition labels on food packaging reveals palm oil as a common ingredient in biscuits, instant noodles, frozen food e.g. French fries, meat products e.g. fried chicken wings, pizzas, cakes, deep-fried titbits e.g. potato chips and shrimp sticks, ice-cream, chocolate and many other types of food. Hence, it is advisable to prepare meals at home more often, as we are allowed the freedom to opt for healthier ingredients. Health-conscious individuals are relentless in their pursuit of the “perfect” wholesome food as the ultimate goal. However, we should adopt a diverse, varied diet across food groups instead of relying on a single food source. The “perfect” type of food is a myth, much less the “perfect” cooking oil. So why should we trip over ourselves in our obsession with foods purported to be “healthy”? Food for thought, indeed.