Palm Oil: Why It's Bad for You — And Why Cold Pressed Mustard Oil Is Better
Palm oil is in everything from biscuits to instant noodles — but the science on what it does to your heart, your hormones, and the planet is damning. Here's the full picture, and why cold pressed mustard oil (kachi ghani sarson ka tel) is the smarter, healthier choice for Indian kitchens.
What Is Palm Oil?
Palm oil is extracted from the fruit of the oil palm tree (Elaeis guineensis), native to West Africa but now grown at industrial scale across Indonesia, Malaysia, and increasingly India. It is the world's most widely produced vegetable oil — and also one of the most controversial.
There are two types:
- Crude Palm Oil (CPO) — extracted from the fruit pulp, deep orange-red in colour
- Palm Kernel Oil (PKO) — extracted from the seed inside the fruit, lighter in colour
The palm oil you encounter in processed foods has almost always been refined, bleached, and deodorised (RBD) — a high-heat industrial process that strips out colour, odour, and most of the natural nutrients, leaving behind a neutral-tasting fat that is cheap to produce and has a very long shelf life.
The Problem with Palm Oil: What the Science Says
1. It Is Loaded with Saturated Fat — the Wrong Kind
Palm oil is approximately 50% saturated fat, dominated by palmitic acid (C16:0). This is where the health concerns begin.
A landmark 2020 meta-analysis published in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology found that palmitic acid specifically raises LDL (bad) cholesterol and total cholesterol levels more than most other dietary fats. Unlike the saturated fat in dairy or coconut oil (which contains shorter-chain fatty acids with different metabolic effects), palmitic acid from palm oil has a particularly strong association with cardiovascular disease risk.
The American Heart Association's dietary guidelines specifically call out palmitic acid as a fat to limit. The WHO's 2023 guidelines on dietary fat recommend reducing intake of foods high in palmitic acid.
For Indian consumers who already have a genetic predisposition to cardiovascular disease — South Asians develop heart disease at younger ages and at lower BMI than Western populations — this is not a minor concern.
2. Refined Palm Oil Contains Toxic Processing Contaminants
When crude palm oil is refined at high temperatures (above 200°C), it generates two classes of toxic compounds that have alarmed food safety regulators worldwide:
Glycidyl Fatty Acid Esters (GE) — formed during the deodorisation step at temperatures above 200°C. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) classified glycidol (the compound GE breaks down into in the body) as genotoxic and carcinogenic in 2016. EFSA's 2016 report found that palm oil contained 2–3 times more GE than other refined vegetable oils.
3-MCPD and 2-MCPD esters — another class of processing contaminants formed during refining. 3-MCPD is classified as a possible human carcinogen (Group 2A) by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Studies have found these compounds in refined palm oil at levels that exceed the tolerable daily intake for regular consumers.
The European Commission introduced maximum limits for GE in palm oil used in infant formula in 2018, and extended limits to other food categories in 2020. India has no equivalent regulation as of 2026.
3. It Disrupts Hormonal Balance
Palmitic acid has been shown in multiple studies to promote insulin resistance — a precursor to Type 2 diabetes. A 2019 study in Diabetes Care found that diets high in palmitic acid impaired insulin signalling in muscle cells and promoted fat accumulation in the liver.
For India, which already has the world's second-largest diabetic population (over 100 million people), this is a critical concern. The widespread use of palm oil in processed foods consumed daily — biscuits, namkeen, instant noodles, packaged rotis — creates a chronic low-level exposure that compounds over years.
4. It Promotes Inflammation
Palmitic acid activates inflammatory pathways in the body. A 2021 review in Nutrients found that high palmitic acid intake was associated with elevated levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) — key markers of systemic inflammation. Chronic low-grade inflammation is now understood to be a driver of heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer's disease, and metabolic syndrome.
Cold pressed oils rich in omega-3 fatty acids — like kachi ghani mustard oil — actively counter inflammation. The ALA in cold pressed sarson ka tel suppresses the same inflammatory pathways that palmitic acid activates. This is the opposite effect, and it is one of the strongest arguments for switching from palm oil to cold pressed mustard oil in your daily cooking.
5. The Environmental Cost Is Catastrophic
Palm oil production is the single largest driver of tropical deforestation in Southeast Asia. The expansion of oil palm plantations has destroyed over 3.5 million hectares of rainforest in Indonesia and Malaysia since 1990 — habitat for orangutans, Sumatran tigers, and pygmy elephants, all critically endangered.
The burning of peatlands to clear land for palm plantations releases enormous quantities of stored carbon, making palm oil one of the most carbon-intensive foods on the planet when land-use change is accounted for. A 2018 study in Nature Climate Change found that palm oil's carbon footprint, when deforestation is included, is 3–8 times higher than most other vegetable oils.
India's growing domestic palm oil cultivation programme — targeting 6.5 lakh hectares in the Northeast and Andaman Islands — raises similar concerns about biodiversity loss in ecologically sensitive regions.
Palm Oil vs. Cold Pressed Mustard Oil (Kachi Ghani Sarson Ka Tel): A Direct Comparison
| Property | Refined Palm Oil | Cold Pressed Mustard Oil |
|---|---|---|
| Saturated fat | ~50% (palmitic acid) | ~12% |
| Omega-3 (ALA) | Negligible | ~6–10% |
| Omega-6 (LA) | ~10% | ~15–20% |
| Omega-9 (oleic acid) | ~40% | ~25–30% |
| Erucic acid | None | ~40–45% (traditional varieties) |
| Processing temperature | 200°C+ (refining) | Below 45°C (cold press) |
| Toxic processing byproducts | GE, 3-MCPD esters | None |
| Natural antioxidants | Stripped by refining | Fully intact |
| Glucosinolates | None | Present (antimicrobial) |
| Allyl isothiocyanate | None | Present (anti-inflammatory) |
| Shelf life | Very long (due to saturation) | 6–12 months (natural) |
| Smoke point | ~235°C | ~250°C |
| Environmental impact | Very high (deforestation) | Low (traditional crop) |
A Note on Erucic Acid in Mustard Oil
Mustard oil contains erucic acid, which at very high doses in animal studies showed cardiac effects. However, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and multiple independent reviews have concluded that erucic acid at the levels present in traditional mustard oil consumption in India does not pose a health risk for humans. Indian populations have consumed kachi ghani mustard oil (cold pressed sarson ka tel) as a dietary staple for thousands of years with no associated cardiac epidemic — the opposite of what has happened since palm oil entered the food supply.
The FSSAI permits mustard oil for cooking in India. The erucic acid concern is primarily relevant to industrial rapeseed oil used in Western countries, not to traditional kachi ghani cold pressed mustard oil consumed in normal dietary quantities.
What Makes Cold Pressed Mustard Oil (Kachi Ghani Sarson Ka Tel) Genuinely Good for You
Rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Cold pressed mustard oil has one of the best omega-6 to omega-3 ratios of any cooking oil — approximately 2:1, close to the ideal ratio recommended by nutritionists. Most modern diets are severely omega-3 deficient, with ratios of 15:1 or worse. Switching to kachi ghani sarson ka tel helps correct this imbalance naturally.
Omega-3 fatty acids (specifically ALA in mustard oil) reduce triglycerides, lower blood pressure, reduce inflammation, and support brain health. Refined palm oil provides essentially none.
Allyl Isothiocyanate — The Pungent Compound That Protects You
The characteristic pungency of cold pressed mustard oil comes from allyl isothiocyanate (AITC), a compound released when glucosinolates in the seed are broken down during the cold pressing process. This is only preserved because kachi ghani cold pressed oil is extracted below 45°C — heat refining destroys it entirely. AITC has been shown in multiple studies to have:
- Antimicrobial properties — inhibits the growth of E. coli, Salmonella, and Staphylococcus aureus
- Anti-inflammatory effects — inhibits COX-2 enzymes (the same pathway targeted by ibuprofen)
- Anticancer activity — shown to induce apoptosis in cancer cells in laboratory studies
This compound is completely absent from refined palm oil, which has been stripped of all volatile compounds during processing.
Vitamin E and Natural Antioxidants
Cold pressed mustard oil retains its natural tocopherols (Vitamin E) and phytosterols — compounds that protect against oxidative stress and support cardiovascular health. Refining destroys these entirely. The deep golden colour of quality kachi ghani sarson ka tel is itself a visual marker of intact carotenoids and antioxidants — something you will never see in refined palm oil.
High Smoke Point — Safe for Indian Cooking
A common misconception is that cold pressed oils cannot handle high-heat Indian cooking. Cold pressed mustard oil has a smoke point of approximately 250°C — higher than refined sunflower oil (~225°C) and comparable to refined palm oil (~235°C). It is entirely suitable for tadka, deep frying, and high-heat sautéing. The best cold pressed mustard oil does not just match refined oil for cooking performance — it surpasses it nutritionally at every temperature.
The Hidden Palm Oil in Your Kitchen
Palm oil does not always appear on labels as "palm oil." Watch for these names:
- Vegetable oil (when unspecified, almost always palm in India)
- Palmolein / RBD palmolein
- Palm stearin
- Palm kernel oil
- Hydrogenated vegetable fat
- Partially hydrogenated oil
Check the labels on your biscuits, namkeen, instant noodles, packaged rotis, ready-to-eat meals, and cooking oil blends. You will find palm oil — or one of its derivatives — in the majority of them.
Making the Switch to Cold Pressed Oil
Replacing palm oil in your kitchen is straightforward:
For daily cooking, tadka, and frying: Cold pressed mustard oil (kachi ghani sarson ka tel) is the natural replacement. It handles high heat, adds authentic flavour, and delivers genuine nutritional benefits that refined palm oil simply cannot match. If you are in Gurugram or the Delhi NCR region, cold pressed mustard oil from Dune Aura is available for home delivery and B2B supply.
For baking and neutral-flavour applications: Cold pressed soya oil or cold pressed rice bran oil are excellent alternatives with clean flavour profiles.
For salad dressings and finishing: Cold pressed sesame oil or cold pressed almond oil add depth and nutrition without any processing.
The shift away from palm oil is not about perfection — it is about reducing chronic daily exposure to a fat that the evidence increasingly links to cardiovascular disease, metabolic disruption, and inflammatory conditions.
Indian kitchens ran on cold pressed mustard oil — kachi ghani sarson ka tel — for centuries. The shift to palm oil happened in the last 30 years, driven by price and industrial convenience — not by nutrition or tradition.
The original choice was the right one.
Dune Aura produces the best cold pressed mustard oil in Gurugram, extracted below 45°C at our facility using traditional wooden Ghanis. No heat, no chemicals, no refining — just pure sarson seed and slow pressure. Available in 500 ml, 1 L, 2 L, 5 L, and bulk quantities for home and B2B supply across Gurugram and Delhi NCR.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is palm oil considered dangerous compared to cold pressed mustard oil?
Palm oil has a saturated fat content of approximately 50 percent and an Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio of 46:1, which promotes chronic inflammation. Cold press mustard oil has only 12 percent saturated fat and a 2:1 Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio. Beyond nutrition, palm oil production is linked to deforestation, habitat destruction, and significant carbon emissions.
Is palm oil banned in India?
Palm oil is not banned in India. India is actually one of the world's largest importers of palm oil, used extensively in processed foods, packaged snacks, and commercial cooking. However, FSSAI requires palm oil to be declared on food labels, and there is growing consumer awareness about its health and environmental impacts.
How do I avoid palm oil in packaged Indian foods?
Read ingredient labels carefully. Palm oil appears as "palm oil," "palmolein," "vegetable oil" (often palm-based), "palm kernel oil," or "hydrogenated vegetable fat." It is found in biscuits, namkeen, instant noodles, margarine, chocolate, and most commercial fried snacks. Choosing products that specify the oil type (like cold press mustard oil) helps avoid palm oil.
Is cold pressed mustard oil a sustainable alternative to palm oil?
Yes. Mustard cultivation in India is rain-fed in many regions, requires less water than palm cultivation, and does not require deforestation. Cold press extraction uses mechanical pressing without chemical solvents, producing minimal industrial waste. Supporting Indian cold press oil producers like Dune Aura also supports local agriculture and reduces import dependence.
What are the environmental impacts of switching from palm oil to cold pressed mustard oil?
Switching from palm oil to cold press mustard oil reduces demand for a crop associated with tropical deforestation and orangutan habitat destruction. It supports Indian mustard farmers, reduces import-related carbon emissions, and promotes a more sustainable domestic food system. The environmental case for cold press Indian oils is as strong as the nutritional case.
Order in Gurugram and Delhi NCR
If you are looking for cold pressed mustard oil for your kitchen, Dune Aura offers local ordering options for readers in Gurugram and the wider Delhi NCR region. Explore cold pressed mustard oil in Gurugram and cold pressed mustard oil across Delhi NCR to compare availability and choose the right option for your household.
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Dune Aura — Sector 9A, Gurgaon
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Written by
Surya Bhan SinghBSc Hotel & Hospitality Management, NCHMCT · Founder & MD, Dune Aura Industries Private Limited · Former Dubai & Singapore hospitality professional · Full credentials