Writing in Indiaâs Financial Express, the eminent American physician and health expert Dr Jonathan Ellen writes that recent criticism of palm oil from Indian commentators is âas stubborn as it is unscientificâ and âsadly continues to muddy the waters of debateâ.
Dr Ellenâs full article can be accessed online at Financial Express: https://www.financialexpress.com/opinion/the-palm-oil-debate-like-diets-needs-to-be-more-balanced/3441129/
The article is in response to Vaishali Dar who wrote in March about âthe unseen dangers of palm oilâ. Dr Ellen assesses the various arguments, and concludes that the allegations are a classic example of âan old trope that remains pervasive despite being disproven by evidenceâ.
On cholesterol and saturated fats, Dr Ellen points out that âabundant research shows conclusively that palmitic acid has no meaningful impact on cholesterolâ, and highlights that alternatives to palm oil âare also significantly more expensive, which is an important factor in a world of high inflation and tight family budgetsâ.
Dr Ellen also recalls the importance of palm oil as a trans-fat free oil: âWhen the âpalm oil is dangerousâ fad was really popular â back in 1980s and 1990s â companies replaced palm oil with ⦠trans fats, which are regarded by many as the most harmful â far more so than saturatesâ
âPalm oil is one of the natural replacements for those trans fats, which is why their popularity is rising across the globeâ
He concludes that âThe lesson here is clear ⦠encouraging consumers to boycott or switch, against the science, can have serious negative repercussions.â
The full article is available in Financial Express: https://www.financialexpress.com/opinion/the-palm-oil-debate-like-diets-needs-to-be-more-balanced/3441129/