Quinoa: One of Nature's Healthiest Protein-Rich Foods

If you're looking for a truly healthy food that is rich in protein that your body can easily digest and use, look no further than quinoa. Called the "mother of grains" by the Incan empire, quinoa is native to South America, and is naturally rich in all nine essential amino acids - these are amino acids that we humans can't make from other nutrients, and must obtain from our diet.

Quinoa is particularly rich in lysine, an amino acid that is needed for growth and repair of our tissues. In some individuals, lysine is especially helpful in preventing cold sores, especially when combined with intake of natural vitamin C and avoidance of foods that are rich in arginine.

When cooked, quinoa has a slightly nutty flavor that goes well with its fluffy texture. It's gluten-free, and is a good source of a number of micronutrients, most notably iron, magnesium, copper, and phosphorus.

Which is healthiest oil for cooking??

If you're not sure how to choose healthy oils for cooking, it's important that you understand the essential differences between saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Once you understand, you'll know which commonly available oils are good for your health.

Here's a look at the basic differences between the three types of fatty acids that are found in all commonly available oils:
Saturated fatty acids pack together tightly, making oils that contain a large percentage of them extremely stable when exposed to heat and light. Oils that have a high percentage of saturated fatty acids are your best choice for cooking.
Monounsaturated fatty acids do not pack together as tightly as saturated fatty acids do. They are relatively stable when exposed to heat, so oils that contain a high percentage of monounsaturated fatty acids are a fair choice for cooking.
Polyunsaturated fatty acids do not pack together very well. They are unstable when extracted out of whole foods, so oils that have a high percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids tend to produce significant amounts of free radicals when exposed to heat. These oils should never be used for cooking.

So for cooking, it should be clear that oils that contain a high percentage of saturated fatty acids are more stable. Let's look at coconut oil (% Saturated 91.9; % Monounsaturated 6.2;% Polyunsaturated 1.9 ) is by far the healthiest cooking oil. And Palm oil (% Saturated 51.6; % Monounsaturated 38.7;% Polyunsaturated 9.7) is second only to coconut oil in its ability to remain stable when exposed to heat. Next would be Olive Oil: (% Saturated 13.8; % Monounsaturated 75.9;% Polyunsaturated 10.3) Its high percentage of monounsaturated fatty acids makes olive oil relatively stable when exposed to heat. If you have difficulty maintaining your ideal weight, use olive oil sparingly, as its monounsaturated fatty acids are quite long in structure, which makes them more prone to being stored as fat than short or medium chain fatty acids. Believe it or not, butter is less likely to cause weight gain than olive oil because it contains a high percentage of short and medium chain fatty acids!

Peanut oil? Because it has slightly more monounsaturated fatty acids than polyunsaturated fatty acids, peanut oil is relatively stable when exposed to heat. If you use peanut oil, I recommend that you limit use to just a few times per month. While Sesame Oil has almost equal percentages of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids (41.5% & 43.6%) . It shouldn't be used for cooking on a regular basis, and should be used raw only on occasion.

Although Canola Oil contains a high percentage of relatively stable monounsaturated fatty acids, canola oil goes rancid quite easily, and relative to olive oil, forms high concentrations of trans fatty acids. Canola oil consumption has also been linked to vitamin E deficiency and heart disease, especially when a person is not getting enough saturated fatty acids in his or her diet. I recommend staying away from canola oil whenever possible. Same thing happens to Corn, Sunflower, Safflower, and Cottonseed Oils! I recommend staying away from these oils completely. All of them contain large percentages of polyunsaturated fatty acids. They also have high concentrations of omega-6 fatty acids, which can cause a variety of health problems Hemp and Flaxseed Oil: I don't recommend cooking with these oils because of their high concentrations of unstable polyunsaturated fatty acids. If their manufacturers have minimized exposure to heat and light with their processing and bottling techniques, a small amount of these oils in their raw forms can be a part of a healthy diet. But it's healthier to eat their seeds freshly ground. Grape seed oil should also be avoided when cooking. As with most other vegetable oils, it contains a high percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids which produce significant amounts of free radicals when exposed to heat.

Based on the information above, I generally recommend using mainly coconut oil and/or olive oil for cooking.