Received the following email from SmartBalance

Good response! Remember a while ago (One month exactly) I commented on the new study that suggested Palm Oil was not good for you? I asked the people over at SmartBalance and they got immediately, but posting it has been on my back burner for a while.

Here is their well constructed following reply:

"We would like to respond to your question about why we use palm fruit oil as one of the ingredients in Smart Balance margarines. We are not marketing palm fruit oil per se, but a blend of natural oils which must include the best saturated fatty acid available to increase the HDL "good" cholesterol and improve the ratio of good to bad cholesterol (HDL/LDL).

Scientists from Brandeis University developed the science behind Smart Balance. It is based on the fact that polyunsaturated fatty acids found in oils such as corn, safflower, etc. reduce both HDL and LDL blood cholesterol (if they are not hydrogenated, of course) while saturates raise cholesterol, both HDL and LDL. After nine years of study, Brandeis found that a balanced blend of polyunsaturates and saturates, when used in the diet of animals and humans, actually raised HDL and improved the ratio of good to bad cholesterol. That is why they were awarded a patent by the U.S. Government, #5,578,334,k and CIP's. To work, the Smart Balance concept requires palmitic acid contained in palm fruit oil to join with polyunsaturates from soy or canola. (Emphasis added)

Coconut and palm kernel oils contain lauric and myristic acid in high levels which are more hypocholesterolemic than palmitic acid. Palm fruit oil is unlike these other vegetable sources of saturated fats because it is lower in saturated fatty acid content and contains low levels of myristic and lauric acids. Palm fruit oil should not be grouped with coconut and palm kernel oil.

Smart Balance spreads, which we are able to formulate with no trans fatty acids, are the only margarines or spreads to offer that benefit without use of hydrogenation or interesterification. By now, everyone knows the negative effects of trans fatty acids produced by hydrogenation. The ill effects of interesterification are just beginning to be discovered.

We urge you to try Smart Balance. Forget the bad press about palm oil. This is not just palm oil, it is a blend designed to improve the ratio of good to bad cholesterol when replacing other fats in the diet. The fact that palm fruit oil got a "bad rap" in error along with coconut and palm kernel is not the main point. The main and only point is that you can trust Smart Balance. We would not market it unless we believed in it.

Joan Dippolito

Consumer Relations"