I have a love/hate relationship with the internet.
The things I love are that I am able to research and read journal articles online. I love being able to review medical debates within the community at the click of a button. And who doesn’t love Amazon and Instacart!
What I’m not so crazy about is the huge amount of misinformation that is spread. It always sounds so believable! People post it on social media. Suddenly, a new (and often unhealthy) trend is born.
Most recently, there has been a lot of news telling people that they don’t need to be wary of omega-6 seed oils. These reports say it’s not the oils that are unhealthy, it’s the over-processed junk food you find them in.
I have to admit, there is grain of truth in that. After all, ultra-processed foods are never going to be good for you.
But it’s certainly not the entire story.
Here’s the Down-Low on Seed Oils
I’ve always made my stance on vegetable seed oils very clear. I’m talking about canola, corn, cottonseed, safflower, rice bran, sunflower, soybean and grapeseed oils.
These refined oils have absolutely no place in the human diet.
First of all, let’s address the idea that the omega-6 fatty acids found in refined oils are good for you. I will be the first to admit that these fatty acids are vital to your health… in moderation.
But you see, most of us get far too many omega-6 fatty acids in our diet. And we don’t get nearly enough omega-3s. These two forms of fatty acids fight against each other for space in your body. So when you eat too many omega-6s it displaces the healthy omega-3 fats.
Now there’s a very big difference between these two fatty acids that most people would never suspect.
Omega-6s promote inflammation while omega-3s are anti-inflammatory.
In other words, eating too many omega-6s and not enough omega-3s places you in a constant state of low-level inflammation. This, of course, increases your risk of all sorts of chronic disease – from heart disease and cancer to arthritis and osteoporosis.
Back in the days of our ancestors this wasn’t a problem. In fact, up until as many as 100 years ago, the omega 6/3 ratio was generally around 4:1.
Today it’s a whole ‘nother story. We’re eating about 20 times more omega-6s than omega-3s when it should be 4:1 or less.
Second, these oils are not “natural” by any means.
The standard practice of refining cooking oil involves numerous processes. In a nutshell, pressing and heating draw out the initial oil. Then, the remaining ingredients go through a chemical bath. Hexane, the solvent used, is a neurotoxin. You’ll find this compound in gasoline, glues, leather and roofing materials.
After this, the oil goes through heating processes several more times. (These multiple heat baths destroy any nutritional benefit left.)
Then it’s bleached and deodorized. Along the way, a corrosive substance called sodium hydroxide is introduced. It’s a compound that removes impurities. This is something you’ll find in drain and oven cleaners, wood cleaning products, and homemade soaps.
Let’s put it on the menu and see how many people order it with their meals!
Repeated exposure to high heats causes chemical residue to remain, leaving traces behind. And look what happens when the oil is repeatedly exposed to all of those high heats.
Why You Should NEVER Re-use Your Cooking Oil
Many people reuse cooking oil time after time. And who know how often fast-food joints clear, clean and refill their vats? Well, every time oil is re-used, it oxidizes.
Unfortunately, oxidized omega-6 fatty acids are considered a driver of many of today’s most common health problems, such as heart disease, cognitive decline and metabolic disorders.
To top it off, oxidation of omega-6 seed oils produce something called 4-HNE (4-hydroxy-2-nonenal). This is a nasty by-product associated with cancer, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and inflammatory complications.
As far as I’m concerned, seed oils (and the products that contain them) have a much greater chance of damaging your health than improving it. They may even be sapping the life right out of you.
Be health-smart by sticking with natural foods to complete your dietary needs. Avoid consuming fried or processed foods. And use extra virgin olive oil – the healthiest cooking oil you can buy – liberally at every meal.
Other healthy cooking oil options include the occasional use of avocado oil for certain meals, and coconut oil when cooking Asian dishes.
SOURCES:
Mariamenatu AH, Abdu EM. Overconsumption of Omega-6 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFAs) versus Deficiency of Omega-3 PUFAs in Modern-Day Diets: The Disturbing Factor for Their “Balanced Antagonistic Metabolic Functions” in the Human Body. J Lipids. 2021 Mar 17;2021:8848161.
DiNicolantonio JJ, O’Keefe J. The Importance of Maintaining a Low Omega-6/Omega-3 Ratio for Reducing the Risk of Autoimmune Diseases, Asthma, and Allergies. Mo Med. 2021 Sep-Oct;118(5):453-459.
Aladedunye FA, Przybylski R. Degradation and Nutritional Quality Changes of Oil During Frying. J Am Oil Chem Soc. 2009 Feb;86(2):149-156
Wiege B, Fehling E, Matthäus B, Schmidt M. Changes in Physical and Chemical Properties of Thermally and Oxidatively Degraded Sunflower Oil and Palm Fat. Foods. 2020 Sep 11;9(9):1273.
DiNicolantonio JJ, O’Keefe JH. Omega-6 vegetable oils as a driver of coronary heart disease: the oxidized linoleic acid hypothesis. Open Heart. 2018 Sep 26;5(2):e000898.
Shinto L, Lahna D, Murchison CF, Dodge H, Hagen K, David J, Kaye J, Quinn JF, Wall R, Silbert LC. Oxidized Products of Omega-6 and Omega-3 Long Chain Fatty Acids Are Associated with Increased White Matter Hyperintensity and Poorer Executive Function Performance in a Cohort of Cognitively Normal Hypertensive Older Adults. J Alzheimers Dis. 2020;74(1):65-77.
