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Showing posts with the label olive oil

Not All Oils Good for You

I don't know about you but I've been using olive oil on just about everything I can, because of its heart-healthy qualities.  But now a new study has found that some oils touted to be good for you can actually cause heart disease. According to newswise.com, "Some vegetable oils that claim to be healthy may actually increase the risk of heart disease." Which ones are they?  Corn and safflower oil, it appears, from the study, which was done in Canada. True, they're probably better than the saturated fats they're replacing (and we won't even get into trans fats ), but they don't contain omega-3 linolenic acid, the heart-healthy oil. In Canada omega-6 linoleic acid, the less healthy acid, is found in mayonnaise, margarine, chips and nuts. Canola and soybean oils, which are healthier, are the most common forms of oil in the Canadian diet, newswise.com reports. What does this mean for us in the U.S.?  I guess, the same thing.  Stay away from corn ...

Fish Oil: What's Good for the Heart May Be Good for the Head

We've all heard about the benefits of fish oil (even if we don't like the taste).  But now tests are showing that not only does it help protect our hearts, but it may also help us beat stress, too. Researchers at Michigan Technological University have been able to prove that fish oil may counteract the "detrimental" effect of mental stress to the heart, according to newswise.com. It might even prevent heart disease. Tests judged heart rate and muscle sympathetic nerve activity in people taking fish oil compared to those taking just olive oil and definitely found that the former had a more "blunted" reaction to stress than their counterparts.  In other words, their hearts were shielded more from stress. If you just can't stand the aftertaste fish oil tablets leave in your mouth, try two servings of fish a week, preferably salmon or others rich in omega-3 fatty acids.