Monounsaturated Fats

Monounsaturated Fats (Omega-9 Fatty Acids)

• Liquid at room temperature
• One double bond in the form of two carbon atoms double-bonded to each other
  • lack two hydrogen atoms
  • kink or bend at the position of the double bond inhibiting packing together as easily as saturated fats
    • therefore, tend to be liquid at room temperature
• Common Fatty Acids
  • Oleic acid (18:1, Omega-9) is most common monounsaturated fat in food
  • Palmitoleic acid (16:1, Omega-7)
  • Cis-vaccenic acid (18:1, Omega-7)
  • Erucic acid (22:1, Omega-9)
• Sources
  • Olive oil, canola oil, and peanut oil
  • Nuts, peanut butter, seeds, avocados, olives
  • Meats and whole milk.
  • See Exchange List and Comparison of Fats
• Preferred in the diet
  • Can lower LDL (bad cholesterol) and maintain HDL (good cholesterol) if substituted for saturated fat
• Monounsaturated fatty acids are resistant to heat-induced degradation, unlike Polyunsaturated fats (Grootveld 2001, Halvorsen 2011)
  • Also see Smoke Point.

References

Grootveld M, Silwood CJL, Addis P, Claxson A, Serra BB, Viana M (2001). "Health effects of oxidized heated oils". Foodservice Research International 13: 41–55.

Halvorsen BL, Blomhoff R (2011). Determination of lipid oxidation products in vegetable oils and marine omega-3 supplements. Food Nutr Res. 2011;55. doi: 10.3402/fnr.v55i0.5792.