Omega-9 Oils for healthier hearts

September 29, 2011 – Dow AgroSciences’ Omega-9 Oils are helping Canadians show their health some love on World Heart Day today.

Omega-9s are monounsaturated fats that have been shown to reduce low-density lipoprotein (LDL or “bad”) cholesterol while promoting the formation of high-density lipoprotein (HDL or “good”) cholesterol. This improves the good cholesterol to bad cholesterol ratio in a person’s blood, reducing their risk of heart disease.

To deliver these health benefits to consumers and offer the food industry a healthier alternative to “bad” saturated and trans fats, Dow AgroSciences has developed a line of high omega-9 canola and sunflower oils.

“The oil itself has a clean, light, very neutral taste, so it really lets the flavour of the food come through,” says Dave Dzisiak, Dow AgroSciences’ healthy oils global commercial leader. “It doesn’t bring any other sensory notes or tones to it. It’s pretty invisible, so really, food tastes like a food is supposed to.”

Unlike omega-3s, omega-9s are naturally stable oils. Dzisiak says that makes them resistant to oxidation, “so they work well in a packaged food system where you need to have some shelf-life, like cookies or crackers or biscuits.”

Dow AgroSciences reports that its omega-9 oils have already helped foodservice operators and food manufacturers remove more than half a billion kilograms of saturated and trans fats from the North American diet.

For more information on Dow AgroSciences Omega-9 Oils, visit www.omega-9oils.com.