What is Vegetable Oil
The term “vegetable oil” is so misleading that most of us never even think twice what this food actually is. Most vegetable oils are unstable and easily oxidise and therefore are inflammatory. These oils are poly saturated. They oxidise during the chemical process of extraction using the poisonous solvent called hexane. Vegetable oils like Sunflower oil, Corn oil, Soybean oil, Canola oil, Peanut oil, Cottonseed oil to name but just a few are mostly GMO, therefore contain fewer nutrients. The science is still out whether or not there is a connection between GMOs and many healthy issues. but as long as they have not been proven safe I would be staying as away as possible from them.
On the other hand we have stable fats that are saturated with nutrients and are naturally good for us. They are anti inflammatory, lowers cholesterol protects your arteries from clogging. Oils such as Olive oil, Coconut oils peanut oil as long as they are cold pressed are good for you. Most vegetable oils are loaded with trans fats that re highly toxic and are associated with many diseases. Trans fats are not only found in vegetable oils they are also found in packaged foods such as cookies, muffins, most restaurants and takeaways places use this oils for cooking. When these oils are used in packaged foods they are usually stabilised in order to sit on the shelf for a long time by a process called hydrogenation. This process which turn already unhealthy oils into harmful synthetic oils trans fats has been linked to many healthy problems.
Omega-6 Fatty Acid
If you are eating from restaurants and packaged foods, you are getting huge amounts of an anti inflammatory acid called linoleic acid. Linoleic acid is incorporated into your cell membranes and are even stored as body fat. Since these oils are unstable, they oxidize in your body (not to mention when you cook them). Oxidised omega-6 oils do more damage to your DNA, inflame your heart tissues and raise your risk of several types of cancer. but perhaps most of all your brain pays the price – oxidised omega-6 fats don’t support optimal brain metabolism. Anything that increases inflammation in the body isn’t going to help your brain perform better and excess omega-6 fats are no exception.
Bottom Line
Eat healthy fats from grass fed animal fat and butter, and avoiding foods that contain these damaging oils such as margarine. Margarine is not good for you as it is full of poly saturated fats as discussed earlier. There should be a balance of consuming omega-3 fats and omega-6 fats as more is obviously harmful to your body. I say this as sometimes it is almost impossible to avoid omega-6 fats as they are found in most foods. but awareness is a great instrument to begin with. There are other chemicals/artificial antioxidants used to keep the food from spoiling too quickly, and have bee also been associated with lots of health problems with talked about in this article.
Healthy Oils
- Coconut Oil (Use expeller-pressed to avoid a coconut flavour)
- Tallow
- Lard
- Butter Organic
- Palm Oil (organic, sustainably sourced)
- Extra-Virgin Olive Oil (Great for non-heat dishes like salad dressings, humus, mayo, etc. Can be used in cooking at lower temperatures or when combined with another saturated fat like butter or coconut oil.)
- Avocado Oil (Great for non-heat dishes)
- Other fats (not necessarily for cooking, but essential to good health) include meats, eggs, dairy, and fish (nuts are also good in moderation as they have a high level of polyunsaturated fats)
Oils to be used sparingly
The following oils are good in moderation. Most of them contain high levels of Omega-6 fatty acids, so they shouldn’t be consumed freely. But they are considered natural fats, and do have health benefits. They are not great for high heat cooking, but acceptable in dressings, mayo, and other non-heat foods.
- Walnut Oil
- Flaxseed Oil
- Macadamia Nut Oil
Oils to avoid
- Canola Oil
- Corn Oil
- Soybean Oil
- “Vegetable” oil
- Peanut Oil
- Sunflower Oil
- Safflower Oil
- Cottonseed Oil
- Grape seed Oil
- Margarine
- Shortening
Hope you enjoyed reading my article.
Angee
I love this article and the wealth of information in it.
The topic of oil and health is something that we know and hear about a lot yet there are too many contradicting research when it comes which is healthier and which we can use etc…
In my country (Lebanon) olive oil was the thing from back in the days before any vegetable oil was even available in the market, and all was good, no health issues, after a while Vegetable oil came into the market and here comes ads and marketing campaigns that undermined olive oil and even painted it as unhealthy.
I do strongly believe that Olive oil is the one of the best oils, even when used to fry something, on correct temperatures of course, and at the end the rule of thumb here is to consume in moderation, any excessive consumption is always deemed unhealthy even for olive oil.
One thing you mentioned above is that palm oil is considered healthy, yet I’ve heard a lot otherwise, specially when they talk about Nutella for instance since it contains palm oil. What do you think about that?
Very well said Salim. I love olive oil my husband even drinks it ha! But like you said it is the best oil ever. About Palm oil I think there is research still going on about state of the oil and soforth. If it s organic and is not processed it is a good oil that is what I have read a lot of papers here is one of them on this link PALM OIL
Hi Angee! I can completely vouch for everything you’ve written. I am on a low FODMAP diet so what I’m eating is super important, oils included. I typically only cook with extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil. I drizzle some of my rice bowls with sesame oil and haven’t looked into that one though. Have you done any research on it? Thanks!
Hi Haley
I am glad you loved my article. I do use sesame oil in my meals I have read it is a good oil but I think it is worthy researching more for sure. Thank you for your comment