Palm oil vs. soybean oil: which is the lesser of two evils?

draperygoddess · Post by **draperygoddess** » Mon Jul 16, 2012 8:05 am

I am trying to decide which is worse for me: palm oil or soybean oil. The GF non-dairy creamers available in my area contain one or the other (I can't tolerate rice or coconut, so the other substitutes are out). My Enterolab tests showed a 9 for soy after I had been basically soy-free for a couple of months, and I know I can't handle legumes in general, so I have operated on the assumption that soy is not my friend. But I have read that some people don't have a reaction to the oil. All the recent discussion about palmitate has me worried about the palm oil as well.

The truth is that I'm just not ready to cut out my cup of coffee in the morning, and I can't stand it without creamer. My diet at this point consists of meat (non-injected, and grass-fed whenever I can afford it), blueberries, sunbutter, a handful of vegetables (can't do nightshades, corn, or legumes), green tea, honey, and coffee. So my question is, which creamer is the lesser of two evils? I have been using the one with the soybean oil and was thinking I should switch, but now I'm not so sure.

Post by **tex** » Mon Jul 16, 2012 8:38 am

Have you tried hemp milk? It seems to be creamier than a lot of the other milk substitutes.

Tex

draperygoddess · Post by **draperygoddess** » Mon Jul 16, 2012 9:43 am

Nope--where do you get it?

I googled it and the only brands I found also contained rice syrup and vitamin A palmitate.

Post by **tex** » Mon Jul 16, 2012 10:30 am

I doubt that you're going to be able to find it without vitamin A added, because all these alternative milks are typically formulated to at least appear to be more nutritious than cow's milk (remember, most people believe that cow's milk is nutritious, even though it's really not). And rice syrup is a somewhat popular sweetener for many "health foods". As long as you keep your daily intake of retinol below about 5,000 IU, you should be OK (the upper tolerance limit is around 10,000 IU). Retinyl palmitate is in a lot of foods and supplements, so apparently it's not a huge threat.

Dietary Sources:

Vitamin A, in the form of retinyl palmitate, is found in beef, calf, and chicken liver; eggs; fish liver oils; and dairy products, including whole milk, whole milk yogurt, whole milk cottage cheese, butter, and cheese.

The body can also make vitamin A from beta-carotene and other carotenoids, fat-soluble nutrients found in fruits and vegetables that give them their color. Most dark-green leafy vegetables and deep yellow/orange vegetables and fruits -- sweet potatoes, carrots, pumpkin and other winter squashes, cantaloupe, apricots, peaches, and mangoes -- contain substantial amounts of beta-carotene. By eating these beta-carotene rich foods, you can increase levels of vitamin A in your body.

Available Forms:

Vitamin A supplements are available as either retinol or retinyl palmitate.

Tablets or capsules are available in a variety of doses. The tolerable upper limit, or safe upper limit, is 10,000 IU. For any dose close to that amount, a doctor should help you determine the amount to take. Most multivitamins contain the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for vitamin A (see "How To Take It").

Unlike vitamin A, beta-carotene does not build up in the body. However, there is some evidence that high doses of beta-carotene can carry some risk. Talk to your doctor before taking more than the recommended amount.

We can't completely avoid vitamin A, obviously; we can only try to minimize the risks. Some examples are listed toward the end of the article at this link:

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/vitamin-a-000331.htm

Vitamin A interacts with a lot of drugs, and it's in a lot of foods and supplements. Here's a lot of basic information on vitamin A:

http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Vitami ... fessional/

Tex

draperygoddess · Post by **draperygoddess** » Mon Jul 16, 2012 3:09 pm

So, if I'm going to get some of that retinol anyway, would it be simpler just to get the non-dairy creamer with the palm oil?

Post by **tex** » Mon Jul 16, 2012 5:02 pm

Personally, I consider soy to be much more of a general health problem than palm oil.

Tex

draperygoddess · Post by **draperygoddess** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 9:03 am

That's kind of the conclusion I came to as well. I got some of the non-soy kind and will see if I notice any difference, but even if I don't, as long as I'm not reacting to the new kind, I'll stick with it. That's about the only soy left in my diet, so I will happily kick it to the curb.

carolm · Post by **carolm** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 9:36 pm

Cynthia,
did you say you are intolerant to coconut milk? If not, that might be good in your coffee as an alternative.

Carol