Saturated fatty acid: Caproic acid

Caproic Acid is a saturated medium-chain fatty acid with a 6-carbon backbone. It is considered to be a short-chain fatty acid. Caproic acid is found naturally in various plant and animal fats and oils.

It is a colorless oily liquid, with an odor at once suggestive of vinegar and of sweat; its taste is acid and sharp, with a sweetish aftertaste.

Caproic acid or hexanoic acid is widely used in the synthesis of spices, as a medicine, flotation agent, and as an agent for thickening lubricating oil.

It has a high boiling point. So its separation from dilute solution by distillation is extremely energy-intensive. Saturated fatty acid:
Caproic acid

What are the different types of fat in food?

Fats and oil can undergo detrimental flavor changes as a result of two major types of deterioration, oxidation at the double bonds in unsaturated fatty acids and hydrolysis at the ester linkage.

High intakes of fat are linked to health problems and can lead to obesity (overweight). Fats are concentrated sources of energy and many fats contain vitamins A and D which are important for good health. Fats in the body include those consumed in the diet and those produced from carbohydrates and proteins.

There are four main types of fat are saturates, monounsaturates, polyunsaturates and transfats.

Saturated fat
Fats that contain no double bonds are referred to as saturated fats. Saturated fat may raise blood cholesterol levels which may cause heart disease. It is necessary for proper bone development and for the prevention of osteoporosis.

Saturated fats also support the immune system and help keep the human healthy.

Saturated fats are found in meat products such as pies and sausages, dairy produce and cakes and biscuits’ made from hydrogenated vegetable oil or butter.

Monounsaturates
Fats containing some double bonds are known as unsaturated fats – those with one double bond are mono-unsaturated. Monounsaturates are not associated with heart disease and are found in olive oil and rape seed oil.

Polyunsaturates
Fats with two or more double bonds are polyunsaturated. The more double-bonds in a fat, the more fluid it is, and it is this fluidity found in highly unsaturated fatty acids and that is so crucial in brain structure and function. Polyunsaturates lower blood cholesterol levels and are found in sunflower oil and soya oil.

Transfats
Transfats found in pastries, some margarine, fried foods and many snack and convenience foods.
What are the different types of fat in food?

Heart disease and food

Some foods are found to increase the risk of coronary heart disease, while others may protect against it.

High blood total cholesterol and low density lipoproteins (LDL) cholesterol levels are major modifiable risk factors in the development of heart disease.

One group of fats have emerged as a major cause of cell damage leading to diabetes, a heart disease, cancer and many other conditions and these are trans fats. People with diabetes have a higher risk of heart disease and stroke.

Trans fats are found in almost every baked product, to prolong shelf life including potato chips, donut, and most popular breakfast cereals.

In epidemiological studies, fruits and vegetables has been an associated with decreased mortality from a variety of health outcomes including obesity, hypertension, metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease.

Higher consumption of fruits and vegetables has been associated with a lower risk of coronary heart disease.

In the early 1970s scientists found that Greenland Eskimos has extremely low incidence of heart disease and arthritis despite the fact that they consumed a high fat diet.

Scientists discovered that Greenland Eskimos consumption of omega 3 fatty acids play a crucial role in the prevention of atherosclerosis, heart attack, depression, and cancer.

Scientist research found that monounsaturated fatty acids (such as in olive oil), polyunsaturated fatty acids (such as in vegetables oils) and omega 3 fatty acids (such as in fish) may help lower blood lipids.

Diets high in soluble fiber such as in oat or rice bran, oat meal, legumes, barley, citrus fruits and strawberries may help lower LDL cholesterol.

The scientific evidence establishes that diets low in saturated fat and cholesterol are associated with decreased levels of blood total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol and thus decreased risk of developing coronary heart disease.
Heart disease and food 

Saturated fatty acid

Saturated fatty acid are the simplest fatty acids. Saturated fatty acids do not contain any double bonds or other functional groups along the chain.

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