Understanding mustard oil

Fat adds taste to meals. Almost everyone will vouch for that. Yet, for years it has been getting a bad rap to the extent that now when we hear the word "fat," we automatically think "bad" and are constantly on a hunt for fat-free foods. 

Thankfully the tide has turned and the new advice going around is ‘fat is okay - but you have to eat the right kind’. So, which are the right kinds of oils? Well, there is huge confusion regarding that too.

Ghee’s reinvention as the best thing for us ever is now a familiar story. For the longest time, coconut oil was banned in some countries as unhealthy. It’s back now in a big way. And, rightfully so. Similarly, mustard oil too was given a bad rap on account of high erucic acid content as some thought that it might be harmful to the heart. I have always believed it to be not a concern and propagated its use.

Now, a recently published study by researchers from AIIMS seems to have cleared the air for good.

This study compared two types of mustard oils, one with, and other without erucic acid and they actually found that the intermediate cardiac markers (lipids and other markers) were better after consumption of mustard oil containing erucic acid.  

Now that this is settled (hopefully!), let’s talk about other positives of this ubiquitous oil a lot of Indians have been consuming by default for ages - from pickle preparations to cooking dry vegetables, curries and fried foods. The oil is commonly used in the Bengali cooking as well as in Gujarat, Assam, Orissa, Bihar, Haryana, Punjab, and many other parts of India. I personally love to cook with mustard oil as it rounds out the flavours of most ingredients really well.

For some people, it might take a little getting used to its pungent, sharp, and nutty taste but my advice is to persevere it’ll grow on you fast enough. 

So what are the good points?

For starters it has low saturated fat (only 12 per cent) in comparison to other cooking oils, is free of trans fats and cholesterol, and has a good fatty acids combination: has about 60 per cent monounsaturated fatty acids (42 per cent erucic acid and 12 per cent oleic acid), about 21 per cent polyunsaturated fats (6 per cent the omega-3 alpha-linolenic acid and 15 per cent the omega-6 lanoleic acid). Being rich in monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats help reduce the bad cholesterol (LDL) and raise the good one (HDL), leading to better cholesterol balance in the body. This lower the triglyceride levels too and thus helps the heart immensely.

It is an antibacterial agent and can fight bacterial infections in the colon, intestines and other parts of the digestive tract. The selenium in it helps cut inflammation in the body and is a cancer protector.

The foods we eat help nourish our bodies as well as the hair and skin. Mustard oil is great for our skin and hair. Ayurveda suggests its use for skin and hair massages quite extensively. It can also be rubbed on gums to strengthen them and protects the teeth from germs.   

Also, it is perfectly suited for the Indian way of cooking as it has a high smoking point, which means it can be used for deep frying and high heat stir frying without turning carcinogenic. But one should deep fry only occasionally and remember to change the oil after every round of deep-frying as it gets degraded and oxidised. Repeated usage of used oil can actually prove to be harmful to our heart. 

You, of course, need to be careful of the adulterated mustard oil often mixed with cheaper argemone oil. This can be toxic as it causes oxidative stress and death of red blood cells. Also, moderation is the order of the day. Too much of any food can be bad for us but, in small doses, it is a panacea, no doubt. 

Finally, I’d like to reiterate that fats are very important for our health and deliver essential fatty acids our body needs. Instead of focusing on any one kind of oil we should use a variety of oils in our diet, as each oil has a unique composition and using only one kind can cause deficiency of other fatty acids, which are not present in that particular oil.

Also read: How yellow mustard seed carves out a New Year body