Canola Oil Linked to Abdominal Fat Loss

02 Nov 2016 --- Consuming canola oil as part of a healthy diet may help to reduce abdominal fat in as little as four weeks, according to health researchers.

Researchers found that after one month of adhering to diets that included canola oil, participants had 0.11 kilograms, or a quarter pound, less belly fat than they did before the diet.

They also found that the weight lost from the mid-section did not redistribute elsewhere in the body.

“As a general rule, you can't target weight loss to specific body regions,” said said Penny M. Kris-Etherton, Distinguished Professor of Nutrition, Penn State, “But monounsaturated fatty acids seem to specifically target abdominal fat.”

The dangers of abdominal fat are becoming increasingly well documented, with experts suggesting excess fat around the mid section can lead to cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and low HDL.

“Visceral, or abdominal, fat increases the risk for cardiovascular disease, and is also associated with increased risk for conditions such as metabolic syndrome and diabetes,” said Kris-Etherton.

“Monounsaturated fats in canola oil decrease this fat that has adverse health effects.”

The study showed that when participants consumed conventional canola oil or high-oleic acid canola oil for just four weeks, they lost abdominal fat.

The researchers tested the effect of five different vegetable oil blends in 101 participants' diets through a controlled study. The subjects were randomly assigned to follow for four weeks each of the treatment oil diets. Either conventional canola, high-oleic acid canola, high-oleic acid canola with DHA (a type of omega-3 fatty acid), corn/safflower and flax/safflower.

After each four-week diet period, participants were given a four-week break before starting the next diet period. The participants consumed two smoothies during the day, which contained the specified treatment oil. The quantity of oil was calculated based on the participant's energy needs.

All of the participants had abdominal obesity, or increased waist circumference, and were either at risk for or had metabolic syndrome, a group of conditions including obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, low HDL (also known as good cholesterol) and excess body fat around the waist.

The researchers suggest that adding canola oil to smoothies and salad dressings, as well as using it for sautéing and baking, can easily incorporate canola oil into the diet, but also point out that further studies should be conducted to look at the long-term effects of a diet high in monounsaturated fatty acids, like canola oil.