Cooking oil that helps dieters to fight fat while frying

A new cooking oil can help the overweight to fight fat while they fry. The product, known as Functional Oil, contains a mix of olive oil, coconut oil and flaxseed oil. Male volunteers who were fed a typical North American diet made with the oil lost an average of 1lb a month. But women who ate the same "greasy spoon" diet - did not lose weight. It did, though, reduce the cholesterol levels of both sexes by up to 13 per cent.

A new cooking oil can help the overweight to fight fat while they fry. The product, known as Functional Oil, contains a mix of olive oil, coconut oil and flaxseed oil. Male volunteers who were fed a typical North American diet made with the oil lost an average of 1lb a month. But women who ate the same "greasy spoon" diet - did not lose weight. It did, though, reduce the cholesterol levels of both sexes by up to 13 per cent.

Professor Peter Jones of the School of Dietetics and Human Nutrition at McGill University, Montreal, said the oil was more easily burnt off as energy than other oils. He said: "It is directed towards the liver for combustion. It is not stored in the body as fat and heightens the metabolism, which is a key in maintaining a healthy body weight. There is also some provocative data suggesting that these sort of oils reduce your appetite."