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Palm Oil

Palm oil is a type of vegetable oil or cooking oil made from the fruit of oil palm trees. It is edible and one of the most commonly used vegetable oils in the world. Palm oil is made by either squeezing the fleshy fruit of the oil palm tree or crushing the kernel at the center of the fruit. The oil can be listed under palm oil or one of about 200 alternative names.

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Palm Oil Uses

Palm oil is in almost everything. It’s incredibly versatile, which means it is used in more than half of all packaged goods people in the United States eat, including pizza, doughnuts, ice cream, instant ramen, and chocolate. Nutella even has palm oil in it—palm oil is the second listed ingredient on the label. Palm oil is also sold as cooking oil: In this case, it will be clearly labeled. Remember those alternative names? They can make it difficult to identify which foods have palm oil in them.

Non-Edible Products

Palm oil is in food, but it’s also in consumer products such as deodorant, lipstick, soap, detergent, and toothpaste. (It really is versatile.) Palm oil is in so many products—and it has so many names—that it’s nearly impossible to avoid.

Nutritional Value

So is palm oil healthy? It depends. In short: Palm oil is healthier than some cooking fats and oils, but it is not as healthy as vegetable oils such as olive oil and canola oil. Some studies say palm oil as part of a healthy balanced diet does not increase the risk of heart disease; others say it can be linked to higher heart disease-caused mortality rates.

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