Recommended Article #22June23
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This recommended article "What Is Oxidation and Why Does It Matter?" is curated and sourced from CocoTherapy. If you loved this article, please do feel free to share it around.
What Is Oxidation and Why Does It Matter?
Ever notice how some oils may go bad and smell rancid? Find out why some fats oxidize and why consuming these fats is bad for your health.
Oil that has been oxidized can go bad because oxidation is a chemical reaction that occurs when a substance comes into contact with oxygen or another oxidizing agent.
In this article, we'll examine in more detail what causes fats to oxidize and discuss why they're pro-inflammatory and damaging to your health. Additionally, we'll talk about free radicals and how coconut oil can help prevent free radical damage.
What Happens When Oils Oxidize?
Oils go through a process known as rancidification when they oxidize. At this point, the oil's fats start to disintegrate and create new compounds. Free radicals are produced as a result, which can harm DNA, proteins, and cells.
What Causes Oils to Oxidize?
Oxidation happens when a substance interacts with oxygen or another oxidizing factor, as we previously mentioned. Oils typically oxidize when they are exposed to air, heat, or light.
The absence of missing hydrogen atoms or double bonds in the carbon chain gives all saturated fats an advantage over unsaturated fats (mono- and polyunsaturated fats).
Single bonds found in saturated fats, which have their carbon chains fully loaded with hydrogen atoms, make them very stable. This indicates that, unlike unsaturated fats, saturated fats are not vulnerable to oxidation and the generation of free radicals.
Food manufacturers add fats like coconut oil or palm oil to foods to prevent spoilage caused by free radicals since they are aware of the stability of saturated fats. In order to boost shelf-life stability, they have more recently used hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils.
The Problem With Hydrogenation
Unsaturated vegetable oil is chemically changed during the hydrogenation process to produce more saturated fat. High heat is used while hydrogen atoms are added, resulting in the production of toxic trans-fatty acids. Artificial fats called trans-fatty acids have been linked to a number of health issues.
Double-carbon bonds, which are the weak linkages that are easily broken to create free radicals, are NOT present in coconut oil. Because of this, coconut oil may be exposed to heat, light, and oxygen without significantly oxidizing or producing free radicals, unlike fish oil or other vegetable oils.
The fact that coconut oil maintains its stability even when heated to typical cooking temperatures is a significant benefit.
Since oxidized fats are pro-inflammatory, frequent consumption of them can cause serious oxidative stress on the body. Therefore, be careful to only consume fresh, unoxidized oils or those that aren't prone to oxidize, like coconut oil.
Why Free Radicals Are Bad News?
Let's explore the science of free radical formation in more detail to comprehend why they are so damaging.
A molecule that is unstable and has lost an electron from its outer shell, leaving an unpaired electron, is said to be a free radical. This results in the formation of a highly volatile, unbalanced molecule that will attack and steal an electron from a neighboring molecule.
With one less electron, the second molecule changes into a highly reactive free radical and will grab an electron from yet another molecule. A destructive chain reaction affecting many molecules will result from this process continuing.
Free radicals have been linked to the cause and development of degenerative diseases and aging, according to research. Once a molecule becomes a radical, it is physically and chemically changed. Free radical damage has been linked to the loss of tissue integrity and physical degeneration.
Free radical damage is caused by many substances, including:
- Pollution
- Cigarette smoke
- Oxidized fats and oils
- Pesticides
- Chemical additives in food
Antioxidants to the Rescue!
Antioxidants are nutritional compounds that can stop the free radical chain reaction from damaging more cells. When a free radical comes into contact with an antioxidant, the destructive chain reaction is stopped.
As a result, doctors, veterinarians, and nutritionists now advise us to include antioxidants in our diets as well as topically use them on our pets' (as well as our own) skin.
Great antioxidants that help against further free radical damage are vitamins A, C, and E. Organic, colorful fruits and vegetables like blueberries, raspberries, spinach, beets, and kale are examples of foods high in antioxidants.
A powerful antioxidant that is oxidation-resistant is virgin coconut oil. It defends against the formation of free radicals when applied topically and consumed orally.
How to Choose a High-Quality Virgin Coconut Oil
Make sure to choose a high-quality, virgin coconut oil that is safe and unrefined before including coconut oil in your pet's (or your own) diet.
Therapeutic-grade coconut oil is very stable and has a shelf life of around two years, which is considerably longer than most other oils, in contrast to its inferior imitation. The moisture content of therapeutic-grade coconut oil is extremely low (.06% or less), and a high Lauric Acid content of at least 53%.
Therapeutic-grade coconut oil, like CocoTherapy Virgin Coconut Oil, may be safely stored in the kitchen cabinet and doesn't require refrigeration because of these unique properties.
You can purchase CocoTherapy virgin coconut oil from our retailers today!
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JJ E-Homez Holistic Pet, a Singapore online pet store that focuses on the holistic well-being of your beloved furkid. Our recommended products aim to support and improve health, emotional and physical well-being, and help your pet have a better quality of life without compromise. Look out for Essential, Trendy and Premium quality pet products that are specially curated, with the pet parents concerns' as a priority.
This blog first appeared on the CocoTherapy website, where the article "What Is Oxidation and Why Does It Matter?" was curated and sourced from.
Original source: https://www.cocotherapy.com/blogs/blog/what-is-oxidation-and-why-does-it-matter
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