Supermarket shelves are packed with oils from budget bottles of sunflower and vegetable oil to pricier olive, avocado and coconut oils claiming health benefits.
Oils and fats have been at the centre of nutritional debate for years and to understand why it matters, it helps to look at the different types of fat they contain, BBC reports.
Not all fats behave the same way in the body – some raise cholesterol while others help lower it.
Cholesterol is a natural fatty substance produced in the liver and can also be found in some of the foods we eat. Too much bad cholesterol can lead to a build-up of fatty deposits inside the walls of blood vessels, causing them to become narrowed or blocked.
With so many shifting messages, knowing which product to pick can often feel overwhelming.
Nita Forouhi, Professor of Population Health and Nutrition at the University of Cambridge, tells the BBC’s Sliced Bread podcast that no single oil holds the magic key to health and debunks three common myths about cooking oils.
