Demand hotting up for cold pressed oils in city

Hyderabad: Health-conscious people are these days increasingly rooting for cold pressed oils rather than refined oil. People are choosing healthier alternatives over any cheaper options available today in the market.

The growing awareness about the importance of healthy living and eating right is making people switch back to traditional methods. Even as organic foods and vegetables are going off the shelfs at a faster rate, people are warming up to fervent calls of nutritionists and traditional foods advocates to prefer cold pressed oils in their diet.

Poly-unsaturated fatty acids which are commonly present in many of the oils like vegetable oil, sunflower oil, canola oil, rapeseed oil are crushed and processed through highly intensive chemical and heat press methods, which chemically alters the structure of the components and makes them not friendlier to human use.

Oils that are extracted through expellers in which heat and pressure is passed is called hot pressed extraction method. This method is deployed in large refineries, expellers which are pulling out oils at a very great temperatures in large quantities.

Normally, in hot pressed method, heat at 230-degree centigrade is used to extract the oils, in which the final product oxidizes easily. Due to this oxidization process issues like cancer, inflammation on the skin arises causing complication to the human body. High-temperature crushing also can be termed as carcinogenic on the body.

Extracting oil through cold-pressing involves crushing the seed or nut and forcing out the oil. Cold pressing is a mechanical process in which the oil is extracted and separated without chemical interventions and without the addition of any substances, at a temperature that does not exceed 35 C. No heat is used in the whole process, therefore, the name cold pressed.

Cold press oil is known to be the healthiest way to cook food which contains an adequate amount of nutrients that can easily be absorbed by the body, it has been proven to contain more nutrients than the oils made in a centrifugal method. Cold pressing oils are super packed with nutrients and vitamins that go straight to your bloodstream.

Cold pressed oil is known for its antiviral and antibacterial activity, as well as anti-inflammatory benefits. The flavor and antioxidant retention are the two main benefits of choosing cold-pressed.

They have lesser cholesterol levels; they are not refined, deodorized or processed in any way, Cold pressed oils to contain no added chemicals or preservatives, they contain natural antioxidants such as Tocopherols (e.g. vitamin E) and Phosphatides (e.g. Lecithin). The natural flavor and odor are retained, enhancing the taste of the food.

"No doubt that cold pressed oil is much better than refined oil but it is not suitable for our Indian culture, these oils can be used in salads or can be cooked at low temperatures," says Dr Joythi Chabria.

"No matter what oil we use, it is very important that we change the oil ever three months (i.e. if coconut oil is used for three months, olive oil or sunflower oil should be used for the next three months). Different oils have different advantages, it's like getting the best of everything" she adds.

Many types of cold pressed oils are available in the market for healthy cooking as well as for healthy skin and hair:

1. Grapeseed Cold Pressed Oil
2. Marula Cold Pressed Oil
3. Argan Cold Pressed Oil
4. Coconut Cold Pressed Oil
5. Peanut Cold Pressed Oil
6. Sunflower Cold Pressed Oil
7. Soybean Cold Pressed Oil
8. Wheat Germ Cold Pressed Oil
9. Safflower Cold Pressed Oil
10. Walnut Cold Pressed Oil
11. Sesame Cold Pressed Oil
12. Canola Cold Pressed Oil
13. Avocado Cold Pressed Oil
14. Flaxseed Cold Pressed Oil

By Maina Manga