FATTY ACID COMPOSITION OF DIFFERENT COMMERCIALLY SOLD VEGETABLE OILS WITHIN SOUTHERN KADUNA, KADUNA STATE, NIGERIA

Most of the edible vegetable oils in southern Kaduna are locally processed and are available in a large commercial quantity with little known about their fatty acid (FA) content. The aim of this work was to investigate the fatty acid content of these oils and their potential impact on human health. Six commonly used edible vegetable oil samples sold in various Southern Kaduna markets were analyzed for different fatty acids content using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The result of the analysis showed differences in the contents of saturated fatty acids (SFAs), monounsaturated (MUFAs), and polyunsaturated (PUFAs). Coconut oil and kernel oil showed high content of SFAs (86.21% and 78.76%) respectively, while olive oil and peanut oil displayed significant amounts of MUFAs (75.40% and 47.62%) respectively due to high content of oleic acid (C18:1). Soybean oil with 58.06% of linoleic acid (C18:2) showed the highest total PUFA content of 65.23%. The Health Risk Index (HRI) was evaluated to assessed the impact associated with the overall intake of fatty acids in vegetable oils. The HRI were 1.78 (peanut), 0.04 (kernel), 0.23 (palm), 0.2(coconut), 4.05(soybean) and olive (0.71). Thus, soybean oil, peanut oil and olive oil have the optimum PUFA:SFA ratio according to FAO/WHO recommendations. Hence, they are recommended for mass consumption. The health promotion index (HPI) was also evaluated to assessed the content of certain essential fatty acids in various oils which have specific health benefits. The results of HPI investigation showed that only Soybean oil contains the balanced ω-6: ω-3 fatty acid ratio of 8.1 than others.