Vegetable and seed oils are getting a lot of attention in the media these days. There’s an ongoing debate as to whether or not these oils are healthy for you. To be honest, this debate has been going on for years, possibly even decades. However, I believe one of the main reasons this debate is talked about so much these days is because Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is the Health Secretary and he believes these oils can be harmful to your health.
The purpose of this article is to talk about what vegetable and seed oils are and whether or not they could potentially harm your body. I'll dive into how to sift through all this information on the internet. This is one thing that holds people back from actually making healthy lifestyle changes because it can feel overwhelming to constantly be reading “this is good for you, but that isn't good for you” not knowing what the truth is. There’s all sorts of debates in the health and wellness space. So, I am here to help you sift through all this information that's being thrown at us on a daily basis with every news cycle. Alright, let's dive right in.
First of all, what are vegetable and seed oils? Well, they’re oils that come from seeds and vegetables. One of the main differences between vegetable seed oils other ones like olive oil, tallow, avocado oil, lard, and ghee is the way they're processed. Vegetable and seed oils like canola and sunflower are processed at super high heat. You may be wondering why this matters. This actually damages the molecules in the fat cells. When they're damaged and you consume them, it can cause oxidative damage in the body.
It's generally agreed upon between the plant-based, paleo, and carnivore folks that olive and avocado oils are both healthy for you. However, there is one caveat. There are some avocado oils and olive oils that are not processed in a healthy way. Meaning they could be processed at high heat as well. Cold-pressed is definitely the way to go. Most companies will tell you on the bottle how it’s processed.
One great benefit of avocado oil (I’m still not clear on this with olive oil) is that the fat molecules can sustain a very high heat without being damaged. When you're cooking on medium or high heat, you want to make sure the molecules in the oils that you're using aren't being damaged and you’re not consuming oxidized oils. This is one reason why the coconut oil, lard, and tallow are more heat stable and better oils to cook with.
Even when you’re not cooking with the canola oil at high heat and eating it in a salad dressing, you still run the risk of these oils causing damage within your body because of the way they're processed. So even if you don't use them for cooking and you personally are not heating them to a high temperature, then they could already be damaged when they're in your salad dressing bottle.
Let's talk a little bit more about how they could be healthy and unhealthy for you now that we know what they are and what’s causing the drama is around them.
There are two omega fatty acids that we consume frequently: omega-3 and omega-6. The best whole food source of omega-3 fatty acids is oily fish such as sardines. Pasture-raised eggs are another great source of omega-3s. Omega-6 fatty acids are found in vegetable oils, nuts, and seeds. The difference between omega-6 and omega-3 is omega-3 fatty acids are anti-inflammatory which means they help reduce inflammation. This is why many health professionals (doctors included) recommend taking fish oil supplements or eating sardines regularly if you have joint pain caused by inflammation.
On the other hand, omega-6 fatty acids also have anti-inflammatory benefits yet they can also be inflammatory. So this is where the whole debate comes in. Because here's the thing, if you are eating food with omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids, but you're eating more omega-6 fatty acids, then that ratio is going to be off. This means you're going to get more of an inflammatory response with a lot of omega-6 fatty acids than with omega-3 fatty acids.
One of the reasons why this is a huge topic in the health and fitness space is because there's a lot of seed and vegetable oils in processed foods. I feel like there's an understanding amongst health and wellness professionals like myself that eliminating as many processed foods as you can and incorporating more whole foods such as fruits, vegetables, meats, seafood, and eggs is the the best way to give your body what it wants so it can thrive.
One of the biggest problems is people are eating too much fast food and too many processed foods, especially ultra processed foods. And a lot of this might be because people are busy and have a hard time carving out time to make homemade meals. And it's hard to create new habits. It's hard to create whole food eating habits that actually work for you. And this is one of the reasons why I do what I do, because habit creation can be challenging. It's not the lack of information out there. There's so much information out there (maybe too much). It’s the lack of being able to sift through the information and implement and experiment with what works for you and what doesn't.
Let’s dive into the a super important question: how do you know if you should be eating vegetable oils and seed oils? Should you eliminate them altogether? Should you just have them occasionally? And the answer is… it depends on your body and what's happening inside of it, including your genetics. There's a lot of variables involved in this. If you have any chronic pain such as achy joints, endometriosis, PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome), or any other health challenges that affect your daily life, you may want to consider eliminating vegetable and seed oils (including soybean) for a short period of time (not forever).
Try it first for a week and then add another week. Build upon that and see how you feel. Really take note of how you feel. I'm not a big fan of tracking food in too much detail but if you’re experiencing chronic pain and you want to manage it better, definitely track your symptoms and what you eat and go from there. Then use the data, the data meaning “I felt great today” or “I can actually do pushups in the gym without my wrist throbbing” or “I was actually able to get out of bed today because my PCOS pain was not that intense” to decide whether or not eliminating these vegetable and seed oils from your diet could benefit you. It’s really just about experimenting on your own body to figure out what works best for you.
To wrap it up, it's really about what works best for your body. Some people can tolerate mostly whole foods and a little bit of processed food. Other people have to do all whole foods all the time. Other people can do a little bit more processed food and maybe a little less whole foods than their friend or brother or sister.
I hope this article clears up at least some of the confusion for you. If you ever want to chat about this in more detail, you're welcome to book a free Wellness Strategy Session with me here.