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Tribune News Service

“The Hateful Eight” may sound like an old-time Western movie, but this showdown does not involve cowboys, horses, or even guns.
It is is being fought on social media.
To listen to some people on TikTok, YouTube or certain podcasts, the oil extracted from these plants is poisoning us. But is it really?
“It’s so odd that the internet has gone wild demonising these things,” says Dr Christopher Gardner, a professor of medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine, in California, and a nutrition scientist at the Stanford Prevention Research Centre. “They are not to be feared.”

The thinking is that seed oils are high in omega-6 fatty acids that break down into toxins when used for cooking, and thereby causing inflammation, weakening the immune system and contributing to chronic illnesses.
This argument is flawed in numerous ways, Gardner says.
Seed oils do contain high levels of omega-6 fatty acids, but that is not a bad thing. Omega-6 is a polyunsaturated fat the body needs but cannot produce itself, and so must get from foods.
Polyunsaturated fats help the body reduce bad cholesterol, lowering the risk of heart disease and strokes. The American Heart Association supports the consumption of omega-6 fatty acids as part of a healthy diet.

Omega-6 gets demonised because it appears to play a smaller role in reducing cardiovascular risk than omega-3, another polyunsaturated fat also found in some plant oils, as well as fish, Gardner says.
The Western diet typically includes much higher amounts of omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3s, but research on the optimal balance between the two remains unclear.
That does not mean omega-6 is bad for you, Gardner says; “it’s just that omega-3s are better.”
And while omega-6 is pro-inflammatory, the amount of inflammation it is associated with has not been shown to be harmful, he adds.
Critics say people often do not realise they are eating seed oils, as many processed foods contain them.
Gardner says the real concern should be overeating ultra-processed foods, which may contain harmful ingredients such as high-fructose corn syrup, added sugar and sodium.

Seed oils are not the problem in ultra-processed foods, he says. “It’s hard to cast the blame on the seed oils when these foods contain so many other things,” he adds.
Negative buzz also surrounds the way seed oils are produced. Rather than simply pressing the seeds to extract the oil – the way olives are pressed to produce olive oil – seeds typically go through processing to extract their oils.
However, if people use seed oils to cook, or to complement ingredients in otherwise healthy meals – such as stir-frying vegetables with sesame oil or lightly dressing a salad with sunflower oil – the benefits far outweigh any health risks, Gardner says.
“People are cooking with these oils, not drinking them,” he says. “In a situation where you need some kind of fat for cooking or food preparation, you can use plant oils or you can use butter or lard.
“Very consistently, all the data says butter and lard are bad for our hearts. And studies show swapping out saturated fats and replacing them with unsaturated fats lowers the risk for heart disease.”

While it may be preferable to cook with olive oil – a key component of the Mediterranean diet, which studies have consistently associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease – that is not going to add the right flavour to every type of food, Gardner says. When making a vegetable stir-fry, for example, he says he would use toasted sesame oil.
“And if it means that because you did that, that you’re going to have the veggie stir-fry and the salad and you’re going to eat more of it because of the flavour? Fantastic,” he says. “The seed oils are not killing you. They are helping you enjoy more healthy foods.”
Like what you read? Follow SCMP Lifestyle on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. You can also sign up for our eNewsletter here.


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Canola oil, a common seed oil used for cooking. Photo: Shutterstock

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Christopher Gardner, a professor of medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine and a nutrition scientist, says seed oils “are not to be feared”. Photo: Stanford University 

Canola oil, along with other seed oils, “are not killing you. They are helping you enjoy more healthy foods”, according to Gardner. Photo: Shutterstock

The alternative to using seed oils in cooking and food preparation is butter or lard – both of which have been consistently shown to be worse for us, says Gardner. Photo: Shutterstock

Gardner says if people use seed oils to cook or complement ingredients in otherwise healthy meals, the benefits far outweigh any health risks. Photo: Shutterstock

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Photo: Shutterstock

Olive oil needs to have been cold-pressed from the fruit to be “certified” extra virgin. Photo: Shutterstock

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Lifestyle

Health & Wellness

Health

Food & Drink

A Stanford professor who disputes TikTok, YouTube claims that cooking with seed oils is risky shares health benefits, and why butter is worse


A Stanford professor who disputes TikTok, YouTube claims that cooking with seed oils is risky shares health benefits, and why butter is worse.


Healthy eating

How to age well

Veganism and vegetarianism

Social media