THE DANGERS OF VEGETABLE & SEED OILS - And the Devastating Effects on your Health

Jan 8

In conversations with countless individuals struggling with chronic disease or those just having a desire to be healthier and wanting to make better choices, the one thing they all have in common, is none of them feel like they have the time or the energy to research and feel like it’s all just so complicated and requires too much time to investigate. By default they never question what they’re pulling off the grocery store shelf and resign themselves to eating processed food-like products, because they’re quick and convenient, thinking these dietary choices will never have a consequence to them, or at not in the near future. After all, who has time to worry about the impact on our health?

The reality is, building a healthy human body doesn’t need to be difficult. I can help and certainly offer hope. When we know better, we do better.

You can adopt small changes that create profound gains in your health. It’s all about informing ourselves so we can make better choices. I’ll share the dangers, not only with respect to seed oils, but processed foods that quickly deteriorate your health.

This article will provide you the research most of my readers don’t have the time to seek out for themselves and I believe will be a wake up call for many. Let’s dive in . . .

The Muddied Fat Debate

We’re told we shouldn’t eat saturated fats. That admonition is usually followed with the familiar dire sounding monikers of how saturated fats create high cholesterol, high blood pressure, heart disease, and strokes and therefore should be avoided. NONE OF THIS SCIENTIFICALLY BASED, nor is it even remotely true.

This absurd notion promulgated and endlessly propagandized, is the result of food industry and medical industry lobbyists who saw lots of money to be made by pushing this narrative based on one study in the 1950s by Ansel Keys that compared heart disease and fat consumption in a half dozen countries. What he claimed he found was a strong correlation between increased fat consumption and heart disease . . . only he didn’t. The problem with this study is that Keys conveniently omitted from his research findings all the countries that consume high quantities of fat, but have little to no heart disease like Holland and Norway. He also left out countries where people don't eat much fat, but do have a lot of heart disease like Chile. In fact, he had reliable data from 22 countries and when all the results were later analyzed there appeared to be no correlation whatsoever. But you cannot become a famous scientist if you can't prove a correlation of cause and effect in what it is you’re studying.

So, capitalizing on this scare tactic Americans have been encouraged for decades to consume unsaturated fats or Omega-6, Linoleic Acid rich vegetable oils. Why? Because they’re promoted as “heart healthy.” So much so, that the most prestigious academic institutions in the world like the Harvard School of Health, the Mayo Clinic, the Cleveland Clinic, the American Heart Association and others all tell us, vegetable and seed oils are all heart healthy. This propaganda campaign is bolstered by one clinical outcome. They lower cholesterol.

That one highlighted outcome promoted on the label as ‘heart healthy’ is very deceiving, hiding countless negative health effects not openly shared with the public, that wreak havoc on one’s health and create chronic disease. I’ve provided ample evidence later in this article that will be startling to many.

Unless one investigates and evaluates what they choose to stick in their body, they blindly cook with and consume these oils found in virtually all processed foods, with no understanding of how they are stacking the deck with respect to developing enfeebling chronic disease at some point in life.

The public Perception and touted benefits of Seed Oils:

Vegetable and seed oils have become ubiquitous in our modern diets. They are considered essential in many culinary preparations and processed foods for several reasons:

Versatility: Vegetable and seed oils are highly versatile and can be used for a wide range of cooking methods, including frying, sautéing, baking, roasting, and salad dressings. Their neutral flavors allow them to complement various dishes without overpowering the taste.
High Smoke Point: Some vegetable and seed oils have high smoke points, which means they can withstand high temperatures without breaking down and producing harmful compounds. This makes them suitable for deep frying and high-heat cooking methods.
Flavor Carrier: Oils can act as carriers of flavors, helping to distribute and enhance the taste of herbs, spices, and other ingredients in recipes.
Cost-Effectiveness and Availability: In short, they’re cheap and very inexpensive to produce compared to other fats and oils, making them cost-effective for food manufacturers. This affordability contributes to the widespread use of these oils in processed foods and is why virtually every type of food ranging from fast food to 5-Star restaurants cook with vegetable and seed oils.
Health Considerations: While there are considerable concerns about the health implications of consuming excessive amounts of certain vegetable oils (e.g., those high in omega-6 fatty linoleic acids and trans fats), they are often chosen for their perceived health benefits, such as being lower in saturated fats compared to animal fats like butter and lard.

Despite these touted benefits, many researchers and nutritionists have every reason to question this supposition, arguing vegetable and seed oils are the most dangerous products in grocery stores and in our diet. Why?

Let’s Begin With The Procurement of Vegetable and Seed Oils

The procurement, processing, and consumption of these oils has been a subject of debate due to the health risks associated with both their production and consumption. These oils need to be refined to remove various toxins and natural impurities which can have adverse effect on human health, and affect the taste and the stability of the oil.

Chemical solvents are commonly used in the extraction of oils from vegetables and seeds to separate the oil from the solid plant material.

The most commonly used chemical solvent for this purpose, hexane, is a highly volatile organic compound and non-polar solvent derived from petroleum. It is also a well-known neurotoxin.

To give this more context, in addition to extracting vegetable and seed oils from plants and seeds, hexane is used as a cleaning and degreasing agent, found in glues and adhesives in the shoe industry, and used in paint thinner as a chemical reaction medium.

After the high pressure extraction process, the compressed oil is gummy and therefore requires additional steps to refine it, including heating the oil to 400+ degrees, making it rancid, and subsequently foul smelling. From here, detergents are added to remove the hexane and to deodorize it by adding sodium hydroxide, a well documented, massive carcinogen. Next, bleach is added to the oil to make it clear. Following all this the oil undergoes vacuum distillation with the hopes of removing any residual hexane from the end product and is put in plastic bottles which I could write an entire exposé on, as to why that’s bad.

The main concerns surrounding the use and consumption of seed oil is regarding residual chemicals, used in processing, that remain in the final product of vegetable or seed oil. Though there have been regulations and guidelines put in place to ensure that the hexane, sodium hydroxide, and bleach levels left in edible oils are within safe limits, many experts argue over what can be considered a ‘safe level.’

In response to concerns about the use of the processing chemicals and their potential health and environmental impacts, some manufacturers and consumers have sought alternatives to hexane extraction, such as cold-pressing or expeller-pressing methods, which do not involve the use of chemical solvents and additional chemicals to refine the oil. These methods typically produce oils that are considered more natural and considerably less processed, though they have much shorter shelf lives compared to conventionally extracted oils and oxidize quickly compared to other commercially prepared oils, so they are not considered ideal.

Concerns with the processing of these oils:

Vegetable and seed oils are derived from various plants, such as soybeans, corn, cottonseed, canola, safflower, sunflower, grape seeds, and palm.
These crops are cultivated on a massive scale, often requiring the heavy use of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, which can result in chemical residues in the final product
As mentioned above, chemical solvent extraction with hexane, can leave residues in the oil and is a cause for concern.
When vegetable oils are processed and heated to extremely high temperatures under extreme pressure during manufacturing, it starts a process called lipid peroxidation. This is where the fats in the oils react with oxygen. This creates several byproducts, one in particular called 4-HNE.

4-hydroxy 2-nonenal (HNE), a highly toxic and most abundant stable end product of lipid peroxidation, has been implicated in the tissue damage, dysfunction, injury associated with aging and other pathological states such as cancer, Alzheimer, diabetes, cardiovascular and inflammatory complications. 4-HNE is a highly reactive compound having very negative interactions with different parts of our cells, like proteins, DNA, and other fats causing tremendous damage predisposing us to and contributing to various diseases in addition to the ones just mentioned. This is why industry experts highly encourage consumers to avoid vegetable oils at all cost.
Virtually all vegetable oils, unlike coconut, olive, and avocado oils, have been found to be completely devoid of any essential nutrients and vitamins A, D, and K2.

Some oils, like partially hydrogenated oils, undergo hydrogenation to increase their shelf life and stability creating trans fats, which are widely recognized the world over as extremely harmful to human health. More on this below.

Documented Dangers of Consuming Vegetable and Seed Oils

High Omega-6 Fatty Acid Content:

Vegetable and seed oils are typically high in omega-6 fatty acids, which are essential but must be balanced with omega-3 fatty acids. An imbalanced ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 contributes to inflammation and various chronic diseases.

Trans Fats, Disease & Metabolic Disorders:

Partial hydrogenation of oils produces trans fats, which have been linked to heart disease, stroke, cancer, obesity, Type II Diabetes, Metabolic Disorders, and other health problems. They’ve been shown to contribute to chronic inflammation and an imbalance in cytokine production crucial in the body’s immune response and healing processes. Subsequently, many countries have banned or restricted the use of trans fats in food products. (See statistics below)

Oxidation:

Vegetable and seed oils are prone to oxidation when exposed to heat, light, and air. Oxidized oils can produce harmful compounds that are detrimental to health and may contribute to oxidative stress.

Allergies:

Individuals with allergies may react to certain vegetable oils, causing allergic reactions.

In addition, the problem with vegetable oils is that they accumulate in our bodies over time. In doing so, they become pro-oxidative (free-radical loaded products that disrupt physiological processes, kill cells, and collapse organ function in the body), toxic through advanced lipid oxidation end products, pro-inflammatory, and as already mentioned completely nutrient deficient.

Looking At The Evidence . . .

When we look at processed foods, which, just to be clear, are not food in any fashion, but food-like products, there are only four ingredients that they’re all made of. Added sugars, seed oils, refined, completely nutrient deficient flour, and trans fats.

Since 1911, where these four ingredients were combined to create processed foods, chronic diseases have skyrocketed in every country they have been introduced. Sadly, a naïve and very malleable public has been heavily marketed to under the guise these products are generally recognized as safe for consumption. The fact is, their consumption is nothing short of ingesting a well-documented bio-hazardous toxin, which over decades of ingestion wreaks havoc on our immune system, genetics, and overall health, leading to the development of 8 sub-cellular chronic diseases.

Some very disturbing facts regarding consumption of these oils:

As of 2010 1 in 3 Americans died of coronary heart disease which continues to be the leading cause of death worldwide today.
Also in 2010, Cancer was responsible for 1 in 3 deaths in the U.S, which represents a 62-fold increase in cancer deaths since 1811 when all fats consumed came from animal fats and lard.
Which brings us to Type II Diabetes. In 1890 Type II diabetes affected 0.0028% of the population. As of 2016, we see a prevalence of 13% of the population diagnosed with Type II Diabetes. That represents a 4,643-fold increase in just 126 years.
Other disturbing trends include macular degeneration, which is a disease state, that in 1851 was virtually unheard of, and had only 50 recorded cases worldwide. In 2020, 196,000,000 cases have been reported worldwide.
In looking at Alzheimer’s Disease, the 1st recorded case in history was discovered by Dr. Alzheimer himself in 1908. In 1948 there were 150 known cases worldwide. Since the replacement of animal fats with vegetable and seed oils, as of 2023 there are 55 million cases of Alzheimer’s Disease. There are 10,000,000 new cases reported every year, which is equivalent to one new case every 3 seconds.
In the 19th Century, 1.2% men aged 18 – 80 were obese. By 1960, that number rose to 13%, by 2005, 34.5%, and in 2018, 42.5%. This represents a 35-Fold increase in obesity.
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[1] Statistical Data provided by Dr. Chris Knobbe  - Reference below
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Let me be abundantly clear. Processed foods are only made of 4 ingredients, all of which are pro-oxidative - through advanced lipid oxidation end products, pro-inflammatory (leading to chronic disease), and completely devoid of nutrition (completely empty calories). And yet, the standard American’s diet consists of 63% processed foods.

Connecting the Dots - Commercially Manufactured Disease:

In 1865 we had no vegetable oil in our food supply. As of 2010, the average American consumes 80g of vegetable oils a day, or 720 calories per day, which is 32% of their caloric intake. [2]

To give this context, in 1900, 99% of added fats in our diet came from animal fats. By 2005, 86% of added fats in our diet come from Vegetable Oils. And therein, lies the problem. In 1980, fats became demonized by every government food cohort and agency as the cause of chronic disease. The new dietary guidelines told us to avoid fats, advocating a low-fat diet, which a lot of Americans did, and yet our vegetable oil consumption increased dramatically, as animals fats were replaced by vegetable and seed oils.

The reason this is so disconcerting, is vegetable oils are loaded in Omega-6, linoleic acid. This is what makes Vegetable Oils pro-oxidative, pro-inflammatory, and so toxic via advanced liquid oxidation end products in the Vegetable Oils. These end products ultimately create Metabolic Disease, excess Reactive Oxygen Species (known as “Free Radicals”), that create oxidative stress and oxidative damage. This damage manifests in the form of DNA damage, mutations, and improper coding, protein synthesis malfunction, and excessive lipid damage in the cell membrane and organelles, causing premature accelerated aging and physical decline.

All of this only exacerbates the underlying problem of aging itself. As we age the production of amino acids Glutamate, Cysteine, Glycine, that are all precursors in the making of Glutathione (the Master Antioxidant). As these go into decline a depletion of Glutathione occurs. With our Master Antioxidant, responsible for scavenging up free radicals and removing their threat occurs, oxidation increasing via an increase in free radicals. Too little Glutathione and too many free radicals equals aging.

For a very deep dive into the impact on human health, I strongly encourage reading METABOLICAL by Dr. Robert Lustig, arguably the most eye-opening book I’ve ever read with respect to the link between the American Diet and chronic disease. Spoiler alert!!! Chronic diseases are not the mystery, we’re told they are. We are well aware of the cause and how to avoid them.

The healthiest populations of people on Earth all have one thing in common. None of their diets include:

Refined Sugars
Refined Wheat
Processed Food (Food-like products)
Vegetable Oils - Omega-6 Linoleic Acid is virtually non-existent, ranging approximately 0.6 – 1.7%

By contrast the typical American’s diet is somewhere between 7 – 12% Omega-6 Linoleic Acid. Nutritional studies in Japan, China, and in the United States have demonstrated that EVERYWHERE vegetable oils increase in a given population’s diet, obesity, metabolic disease, and chronic disease increase dramatically, despite caloric intake, carbohydrates, and sugar all declining in that population’s diet.

Conclusions:

Industrial seed oils are the primary drivers of obesity, diabetes, and most chronic diseases
Non-processed, organic carbohydrates have no direct role in obesity, diabetes, or most chronic diseases
Refined sugars and flour should be minimized if not omitted from one’s diet
An ‘Ancestral Diet’ – eating REAL, organic food is best and has been found to prevent just about all chronic disease.

While vegetable and seed oils play a significant role in our modern diets, their procurement, processing, and consumption pose considerable health risks. The high omega-6 content, trans fats, oxidation, and potential chemical residues are concerns that should not be ignored.

It is crucial to make informed choices about the types of oils we use and to strive for a balanced diet that includes a variety of fats from natural sources like olive oil, avocado oil, coconut oil, and nuts. Additionally, limiting, if not avoiding entirely, the intake of processed foods that contain vegetable and seed oils, added sugars, refined flours, and trans fats can help dramatically reduce the risk of chronic disease. Ultimately, maintaining a healthy and balanced diet of real (preferably organic) food is essential for one’s overall well-being, longevity, and health.

I would love to hear your thoughts and any questions you may have. Since the publishing of this article several readers like yourself have shared their own story with me, via social media and email, about giving up these oils and what a difference it’s made in their lives. If you’d like to share your thoughts or story, comment below or email me. I look forward to hearing from you.

Resources:

Dr. Chris Knobbe - ‘Are Vegetable Oils the Primary Driver of Obesity, Diabetes, and Chronic Disease?’ - Low Carb Down Under Talk - Dec. 16 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvZk-jNqzgE

Disclaimer:

I am not a medical doctor or a medical practitioner. I am not legally permitted to treat, cure, or heal disease. I can, however, provide educational content with respect to building and maintaining good health through nutrition, diet, and exercise.

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This website summarizes information on the role of nutrition, diet, and exercise in health, disease and wellness. Readers should be aware that knowledge of nutrition and medicine is constantly evolving. They are encouraged to frequently check the most current information available on preventive and therapeutic measures. It is your designated clinician’s responsibility, relying on their experience and knowledge of the patient, to determine the best course of action in providing care.

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David Gieske https://www.shiftethos.com