SEED OILS
Most of us know there are such things as ‘bad oils’, but do we know exactly which they are, what they are and why they’re bad? Firstly, the most frequently used ‘bad oils’, more accurately classed as ‘vegetable oils’ or ‘seed oils’ are new. They only came into production in the past 100 years and others that have been around longer have only come into popularity in the last 50 years.
The most well known vegetable seed oil is Canola oil, previously known by the name of the plant it’s derived from, the rapeseed plant.
Rapeseed oil was originally mass produced in Canada, creating an ‘edible’ version of rapeseed oil then coined as Canola short for ‘CAN’adian ‘O'il ‘L’ow ‘A’cid.
Rapeseed oil was originally grown and used as a component of engine lubricants during the war due to its ability to stick to wet metal. Canola oil is the name given to rapeseed oil after it has been through a process of removing all but a minimum of 30 Ųmol of glucosinolates and has had all but 2% of the inedible and toxic erucic acid removed.
Some countries have banned Canola oil due to the dangers associated with erucic acid. Erucic acid is a monounsaturated omega 9 fatty acid compound known to be highly cardiotoxic to humans. These crops are also covered in glyphosate and pesticides, which are hormone disruptors and highly dangerous.
The oil goes through an extreme production process before it can be used for human consumption. The seeds of a rape plant, which in their natural state are toxic to humans, are squeezed in a screw press at high temperatures and under such high pressure it forces out the oil that drains out of the machine, extracting the oil which is oxidised because of the harsh process. The oil is then washed with a solvent such as hexane a neurological toxin (also a cleaning agent used in household products, glues, paints, stain removers) for over an hour. This solvent wash removes nearly all of the oil. The remaining oil is then cooled to 5 degrees celsius to thicken and to filter out the remaining waxes to then be removed. The wax however is not wasted, it is used in the factory for mechanical purposes. The oil is then bleached to lighten the colour before it undergoes a steaming deodorisation process to remove the odour of the rancid oil. The oil is then ready to be bottled in clear plastic where they have micro plastics leaching into the oil as it oxidises in the sunlight.
Erucic acid is synthesised in the seeds of many plants from the brassicas family and also found in other brassica family plants such as kale, cabbage, broccoli, mustard seed and brussel sprouts. Oils high in erucic acid such as rapeseed and mustard seed oil are banned in some countries including Europe due to their toxic dangers.
Seed oils are high in linoleic acid, heavily genetically modified, highly inflammatory, sprayed in glyphosate and pesticides and are hidden in many products including meat alternative foods, milks, sauces, dips, breads, crackers, cookies, cakes, chips, popcorn, bars, processed meats, poorly made burgers, fried foods, restaurants, take away meals, fast food chains and shopping mall food court eating establishments. They’re a huge contributor to poor heart health, obesity, digestive issues, mental health issues, cancers, diabetes, childhood obesity and much more. Other inflammatory vegetable oils include sesame oil, peanut oil, sunflower oil, safflower, soybean oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, mustard oil, palm oil.
In the past 100 years saturated fats found naturally in meats, and fats such as butter, ghee, dripping, beef tallow, duck fat and lard were given up and there was a huge move towards vegetable oils due to their being touted as heart healthy. Subsequent to this, studies saw an epidemic in coronary artery disease and in time it was realised this is not true as plant vegetable oils are highly inflammatory, damaging to our cells, causing free radicals and completely devoid of nutritional value.
Consume oils from fruits or animals not from seeds.