Monounsaturated fat



Types of fats in food
See also
For discussion how dietary fats affect cardiovascular health, see Diet and heart disease.

In polyunsaturated fatty acids have more than one double bond.

saturated fatty acids. Monounsaturated fatty acids are liquids at room temperature.

Molecular description: oleic acid

Common monounsaturated fatty acids are oleic acid (18:1 n−9). Palmitoleic acid has 16 carbon atoms with the first double bond occurring 7 carbon atoms away from the methyl group (and 9 carbons from the carboxyl end). It can be lengthened to the 18-carbon cis-vaccenic acid. Oleic acid has 18 carbon atoms with the first double bond occurring 9 carbon atoms away from the methyl group. The illustration below shows a molecule of oleic acid.

Relation to health

Olive oil is a key component of the Mediterranean diet, widely regarded as being protective against cardiovascular disease, while Tea-oil Camellia has been a traditional part of Asian food. Although polyunsaturated fats protect against cardiovascular disease by providing more insulin resistance, whereas polyunsaturated fatty acids are protective against insulin resistance [1][2].

Foods containing monounsaturated fats lower LDL cholesterol, while raising HDL cholesterol. [3]

Natural sources

Monounsaturated fats are found in natural foods like nuts and avocados, and are the main component of tea seed oil and olive oil (sunflower oil, tea-oil Camellia.

References

  1. ^ Lovejoy, JC (2002). "The influence of dietary fat on insulin resistance". Current Diabetes Reports 2 (5): 435–440. PMID 12643169.
  2. ^ Satoshi Fukuchi (2004). "Role of Fatty Acid Composition in the Development of Metabolic Disorders in Sucrose-Induced Obese Rats". Experimental Biology and Medicine 229 (6): 486–493. PMID 15169967.
  3. ^ You Can Control Your Cholesterol: A Guide to Low-Cholesterol Living by Merck & Co. Inc.

See also
 
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Monounsaturated_fat". A list of authors is available in Wikipedia.