Extraction of corn oil
See also: corn oil in cosmetics
The corn oil is extracted from the germ contained in the kernels of the homonymous plant (Zea mays), that is from that kind of particle that is at the apex of the corn grain. The yield is not very high, reaching only 15-20%, but given the large use of this cereal for starch extraction, it is still convenient recover the germ and then extract and market the oil.
Nutritional properties
For a long time, this convenience was particularly high for the Italian market, in the wake of a widespread advertising campaign started in the 1970s; revitalizing properties - supported by jumps of fences and various acrobatics - and a " important preventive action on cardiovascular diseases. In fact, corn oil has excellent dietary requirements, being indicatively composed of 40-60% linoleic acid, 20-40% oleic acid (typical fat of olive oil ) and for only 10-15% of palmitic acid. The content of vitamin E is also excellent, very high in crude corn oil but significantly impoverished by grinding. Another interesting characteristic of corn oil is its resistance to peroxidation, which it acquires only after a refining process (to which virgin olive oils are not subjected). As soon as it is extracted, corn oil has an excessive concentration of free fatty acids, a dark, amber-red color, and a high content of phospholipids, with traces of waxes. All these elements are removed during refining, with which the corn oil acquires limpidity, clarity, neutral flavor and resistance to oxidation, despite the many triglycerides rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids. This characteristic makes refined corn oil an acceptable choice for frying; it is no coincidence that, depending on the sources, it has a smoke point between 160 and 210 ° C.
In the kitchen and in the food sector, corn oil is used as a table and cooking oil and as a base for the production of margarines, through the process of hydrogenation of mixtures of vegetable oils.
The oil that is good for the heart?
As for the much advertised ability to prevent cardiovascular diseases, it must be said that this characteristic is typical of a bit "all seed oils, but on one condition: these oils must be used in moderation and sobriety, without exceeding in the doses, to avoid introducing too many calories. The resulting overweight would in fact cancel all the protective effects of these precious foods; moreover, to exhibit this action, corn oil and other seed oils must necessarily be used in partial replacement of animal fats, not in addition to them; it is also important that they are included in a diet that provides the right doses of essential omega-three fats, which are abundant only in fish and its oil, in seeds and linseed oil, in hemp oil and in canola. The modern diet, in fact, is characterized by an excessive intake of omega-six - abundant in vegetable oils, including corn - and by an "insufficient introduction of omega-three (EPA, DHA and their precursor, the" acid alpha linolenic). This imbalance, according to various studies, increases susceptibility to a series of physical and mental disorders, enhancing the inflammatory state that accompanies many of the diseases of the modern style.
Corn oil, preferably raw, can therefore find space in the daily diet according to individual preferences; however, there are no particular reasons to prefer it to other seed oils, much less virgin olive oils. In addition, corn oil must be inserted in a food context that provides for the consumption of at least three weekly portions of fish and a reduction in saturated fats below 7-10% of daily calories.
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