The term ‘saturated’ refers to hydrogen, in that all carbons contain as many hydrogens as possible.
They carry the maximum complement of hydrogen atoms the structure will allow.
Saturated fatty acids are usually oxidize or ‘burned’ to provide energy for physical activity and cellular processes.
Saturated fatty acids have been positively correlated with the prevalence of cardiovascular disease in many epidemiological studies. Saturated fatty acids occur in both animal and plant fats. Fats high in saturated fatty acids, such as animal fat and solid vegetable shortening, tend to be solid at room temperature.
The most common saturated acids in foods are lauric, mytristic, palmitic, and stearic acids worth 12, 14, 16 and 18 carbons, respectively. They are straight, have no kinks, contain no double bond, are slow to react with other chemicals, and carry no electric charges.
Palmitic aid is the most abundant in butter, beef fat and poultry fat.
Saturated fatty acid
