What is cold pressed oil?
Cold pressed oils are drawn out from nuts, seeds and vegetables using steady pressure. This is exactly how oil was extracted by our ancestors. These oils are much healthier and more nutritious for your body, as compared to the highly refined oils. It also enhances the aroma of your food if used for cooking, especially in the case of Indian food.
Why choose cold pressed oils over regular refined oils?
It is important that the oil you use while cooking is not refined. You might come across several varieties in supermarkets that claim weight loss, and have labels like Losorb, blanched, refined, Lite. That actually means that they have been highly processed through extreme heat, and are laden with chemicals. They barely have any nutrients! Such oils have nothing but empty calories.
1. Cold pressed oils include all the important nutrients like antioxidants, vitamins, lecithin, phospholipids and protein also, so they are good for your body.
2. They are natural and free from harmful chemicals, In the process of refining, certain chemicals are used like hexane, sodium hydroxide, sodium bicarbonate, bleaching agents etc are used that are quite harmful for health.Cold pressed oils are organic and free from chemicals like propyl, BHA, gallate, BHT, that are known as preservatives, and are very toxic. If you prefer to eat organic and anything that is free from chemicals, you must switch to cold pressed oils as soon as you can!
3. Cold pressed oils are extracted naturally from seeds with less heat, and that saves all the nutrients present in it. It is healthy for your skin and also helps to lose weight.
4. The natural antioxidants present in cold pressed oil actually help to decrease radical cell damage in the body. They are also rich in vitamin E, which has properties like anti-inflammation and healing.
Some cold pressed oil available in market are sesame oil, sunflower oil, coconut oil, olive oil, groundnut oil, and flaxseed oil
Try to add these oils slowly and steadily to your diet, as your body may not adapt to it quickly if you’re used to eating refined oils.