Physiological Mechanisms of Palm Oil Triglyceride Stereospecificity on Postprandial Lipid Metabolism: A Review

This journal discusses how the triglyceride structure of palm oil affects lipid metabolism after eating. The background is the increasing attention to the quality of dietary fats, not just the amount of fat intake, but also the position of fatty acids in the triglyceride molecule. This study uses a PRISMA-based systematic literature review with a Scopus search, screening 939 publications until 41 studies were obtained for qualitative synthesis. The findings indicate that the typical configuration of palm oil—more saturated fatty acids at the sn-1/sn-3 positions and oleate at sn-2—plays a role in digestion, absorption, chylomicron formation, and postprandial lipid response. However, differences in response compared to other fats are generally contextual and influenced by food composition, study design, and individual metabolic conditions. The implication is that the health assessment of palm oil needs to be based on mechanistic evidence and more standardized human studies.