Do you know what RBD stands for? It stands for “refined, bleached and deodorized”. You want to know if it’s healthy for you, you must first get to know how it is made.
To obtain RBD coconut oil, first, a crude version of the oil is extracted from dried coconut or commonly known as copra.
But this crude oil appears pretty dirty (brownish yellow in color) due to the unhygienic drying process coconut farmers use that exposes copra to bacteria, molds and other contaminants. It’s not edible at this point.
To make it edible, coconut oil companies need to refine and bleach the crude oil to remove impurities and contaminants. These processes will produce a clear refined coconut oil. On top of that, its natural coconut aroma will be removed in the refining process.
Just a side note, if the refined oil still looks yellowish and you can still smell a mild coconut scent (usually together with a smoky stench), this is simply a refined coconut oil and not RBD.
Needless to say, RBD is inferior to unrefined virgin coconut oil in terms of nutritional benefits and overall quality. Although oil companies try to retain as much nutrients as possible during the RBD process, some portions of nutrients will lose inevitably due to the high temperature involved.
Nonetheless, you’ll still gain good nutritional benefits from RBD coconut oil as compared to other vegetable oils, which contain lots of unsaturated fats that encourage free radical activities and promote oxidation.
Additionally, the demand for this type of coconut oil comes from those who want to reap the health benefits but do not want its natural aroma and flavor either because they don’t want the coconut flavor to overpower the dishes or they simply can’t stand the odor.
If you’re one of those people, you’ll love RBD coconut oil.
Do take note, coconut oil makers may hydrogenate RBD oil by pumping hydrogen gas into the oil as converting the remaining 8% unsaturated fats to saturated fats can help to prolong the oil’s shelf life. The shelf life is usually 2 years without hydrogenation. But with hydrogenation, it can extend to indefinite shelf life.
This is no good because hydrogenation produces trans fatty acids that are extremely harmful to our health. So, make sure you read label carefully when buying RBD coconut oil. And make sure what you get is a RBD oil that retain its natural chemical properties.
