Oleic acid , health benefits

There is an increasing interest in the lipid characteristics of nut oils as they seem to be an interesting source of bioactive constituents and functional ingredients [170,174,187]. Among tree nuts, hazelnut has many beneficial health attributes and is among three most popular and commonly consumed tree nuts in Europe [188] and other Western populations [179]. The benefits of hazelnut inclusion into the human diet is partly related to its fat components (around 60%), most of which are highly rich in MUEA (primarily oleic acid), tocols (a-tocopherol), phytosterols (p-sitosterol), polyphenols, and squalene [10,12,99,104,117,160,170,189]. 

Olive oil is a good example of a lipid that provides numerous health benefits when included in the diet. The main type of lipid found in all types of olive oil is monounsaturated fatty acids, or MUFAs, with the 18-carbon oleic acid being the predominant component (see Table 8.1 for its formula). MUFAs are considered to be healthy lipids. There is evidence that dietary MUFAs help lower total cholesterol levels in the body, and especially the levels of undesirable low-density lipoproteins (LDLs). Some research results show that MUFAs may help maintain normal blood clotting and normal blood pressure and may aid in the control of blood sugar levels. 

Fatty acids, which are made up by long chains of carbon atoms, are extremely useful in the characterization of olive oils. The health-related benefits of olive oil have also partly been attributed to the high amount of oleic acid present in this type of vegetable oil (Moghaddam et al., 2012). The virgin olive oil composition depends on numerous factors such as the interaction between the cultivar and the environment, cultivation techniques, fruit ripeness and the oil extraction system. 

The benefits of the intake of oleic acid have been associated with the decrease of ingestion of saturated fat by changing dietary patterns and the use of food technology to modify the fatty acid profile of foods naturally rich in saturated fatty acids in favor of oleic acid. Recently, oleic acid has received much attention because of its availability and health benefits, which include... 

Contesini, FJ Madeira Junior, JV Lopes, DB Speranza, P Teixeira, CB Ceresino, EB Macedo, GA. Microbial transformations of oleic acid. In Silva LP, editor. Oleic Acid Dietary Sources, Functions and Health Benefits. New York Nova Publishers 2013, 171-184. 

Chapter 2 - Various studies in the literature suggested a link between the eonsumption of olive oil and different food products enriched with oleic acid (OA) and various positive health effeets. The central focus of this research field is on learning and predieting how OA intake induces these health benefits. In recent years, there is a growing interest in understanding the biologieal role of this monoimsaturated cis fatty acid in regulating eell... 

A number of PUFA are essential micronutrients or have been ascribed particular health benefits, including oleic acid, linoleic acid, y-linolenic acid (GLA), EPA and DHA [see Chapters 8, 9 and 10]. There is strong and well-documented evidence that n-3 (commonly referred to as omega-3) long-chain PUFA such as EPA and DHA can lower the risk of coronary heart disease. There is also growing evidence that they can have beneficial effects related to inflammatory diseases, early development, neurological diseases and cognitive performance. 

In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA, 2006) has approved a health claim for conventional canola oil that states canola is high in unsaturated fats and consnming 1.5 tablespoons of canola oil per day may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease . Potential health benefits of conventional canola oil are largely due to its relatively low levels of saturated fatty acids (SFA 1% of total fatty acids) and high amonnts of the monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA), oleic acid (OA 61% of total fatty acids Canola Council of Canada, 2008). Conventional canola oil is also a good source of two essential polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), linoleic acid (LA 21% of total fatty acids), an n-6 PUFA, and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA 11% of total fatty acids), an n-3 PUFA. This composition of LA and ALA results in a low, 2 1 ratio of n-6 n-3. 

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