Seed and vegetable oils

[Martin.A]

Praise

At the start of the course they did say that they were going to be challenging current NHS thinking on the management of T2 and one of the things they took aim at was the High Carb/Low Fat model for diet, hence the 'Dietary Fat Is Not The Enemy' title of one of the sessions.

 

[stephenS50]

When it comes to cooking oils I always use Olive oil. I think it's much healthier than seed oils...if I don't have any Olive oil to hand I use Vegetable oil instead.

 

[nonethewiser]

We buy veg oil every week, we did buy extra virgin olive oil but price of it is riddiculous at moment.

Don't buy into this seed oils are harmful rubbish, used moderately its perfectly safe
IMHO.

 

[Satan’s little helper]

I am a member of a car owners forum. This particular vehicle you could add (& members did.) mix with derv seed oil to the tank & run it? Make of that what you will.

 

[PerSpinasAdAstra]

The advice about seed oils is suspect as they're not all the same. The supposed reason why they're unhealthy is about the amount of omega 3 vs omega 6 oils in them. However, if you look into that - rapeseed oil (AKA Canola oil) has a whole lot more omega 3 in it than say sunflower oil. Rapeseed oil actually has a better omega 6 to omega 3 ratio than eggs. Hens are usually fed seeds and grains, and are like little seed oil refineries. 'Extra virgin' rapeseed oil, which is not highly processed, is a very healthy cooking oil indeed, as far as I can tell (though it does have a slightly 'earthy' taste).

There is good reason to suspect that eating way too much omega 6 oils might be bad for you though. The 'seed oils bad' advice is not without merit, though it should be more like 'some seed oils bad, and eggs too'. I choose to hedge my bets, and eat a little of everything in moderation. If I fry, I use rapeseed oil, I put real butter on the few small potatoes I eat, I use a mostly olive oil-based spread on my toast, olive oil on other things, and I eat fish regularly to increase my omega 3 intake (just in case). That pretty much covers all the bases - though I do eat quite a lot of eggs 😉

 

[Mark72]

Firstly thanks, this is really interesting. I've been using a vegetable oil spray which is apparently pure rapeseed but will look out for an equivalent olive oil one as well. I think it's helping with the amounts I use rather than pouring.

Is there a collective view on the best butter/spread at all? That's been my biggest problem since being diagnosed. I looked on Sainsbury's website (clear and consistent nutrient and ingredient info) and initially tried Yeo Valley Organic Spreadable butter as it came in as low as most "spreads" but without the palm oil probably due to being largely water and followed up with a palm oil free version of flora plant butter spreadable which is pleasant. My big aim at the moment is reducing cholesterol which apparently was through the roof (already on a 3-month trial of statins since 2 weeks ago).

 

[s'nic]

@Mark72 you may want to consider buying the cold pressed rapeseed oil to avoid the high amount of processing on the oil. I bought an oil spray bottle to use (the shop bought oil spray was un-fillable, and was sold filled with refined oil)

 

[rebrascora]

and used the refined oil)

I am guessing you meant the "less refined oil" ie cold pressed.
Personally I use the fat from any meat I buy and cook, butter, coconut oil and olive oil and very occasionally a bit of lard, however I have no doubt that I do ingest refined seed oils in coleslaw and mayonnaise and the pots of feta stuffed peppadew peppers I love, so whilst I don't buy seed oils deliberately and I accept cold pressed is fine, I am happier with traditional oils and fats from meat and dairy and olives.
I don't think that these spreads, be they butter or seed/fruit based (olive/avocado etc) which contain emulsifiers and water and preservatives are better for us than good old fashioned butter and my cholesterol has decreased since eating more natural fats (cream, cheese, fatty meat and eggs etc) and less carbs, so my n=1 experiment suggests that dietary fat is not an issue for my cholesterol levels.

 

[s'nic]

I typed 'the shop bought oil spray was un-fillable, and used the refined oil'

to clarify - the unfillable oil spray was sold filled with refined rapeseed oil 🙂
I've done a small edit to clarify

 

[s'nic]

I'm 100% trying to buy less processed foods. I'm not convinced that they should contain all the preservatives, emulsifiers, stabilisers et etc that they do. I fully believe it's best to minimise such ingredients.
If the ingredients list reads like a chemistry experiment I put it back on the shelf!

 

[beating_my_betes]

The advice about seed oils is suspect as they're not all the same. The supposed reason why they're unhealthy is about the amount of omega 3 vs omega 6 oils in them. However, if you look into that - rapeseed oil (AKA Canola oil) has a whole lot more omega 3 in it than say sunflower oil. Rapeseed oil actually has a better omega 6 to omega 3 ratio than eggs. Hens are usually fed seeds and grains, and are like little seed oil refineries. 'Extra virgin' rapeseed oil, which is not highly processed, is a very healthy cooking oil indeed, as far as I can tell (though it does have a slightly 'earthy' taste).

There is good reason to suspect that eating way too much omega 6 oils might be bad for you though. The 'seed oils bad' advice is not without merit, though it should be more like 'some seed oils bad, and eggs too'. I choose to hedge my bets, and eat a little of everything in moderation. If I fry, I use rapeseed oil, I put real butter on the few small potatoes I eat, I use a mostly olive oil-based spread on my toast, olive oil on other things, and I eat fish regularly to increase my omega 3 intake (just in case). That pretty much covers all the bases - though I do eat quite a lot of eggs 😉

This seems to be a pretty balanced take, all-in-all, which is not all that common amidst the current hysteria. Seed-oils are the new carbs, and the way the subject is being dealt with is a sad indictment against the current nutritional and health space,

Moderation is key.

 

[PerSpinasAdAstra]

Firstly thanks, this is really interesting. I've been using a vegetable oil spray which is apparently pure rapeseed but will look out for an equivalent olive oil one as well. I think it's helping with the amounts I use rather than pouring.

Is there a collective view on the best butter/spread at all? That's been my biggest problem since being diagnosed. I looked on Sainsbury's website (clear and consistent nutrient and ingredient info) and initially tried Yeo Valley Organic Spreadable butter as it came in as low as most "spreads" but without the palm oil probably due to being largely water and followed up with a palm oil free version of flora plant butter spreadable which is pleasant. My big aim at the moment is reducing cholesterol which apparently was through the roof (already on a 3-month trial of statins since 2 weeks ago).

I eat either the Bertolli or Golden Olive spreads as I find them a reasonable and affordable balance between the various types oils and fats. The Flora Proactive spreads are better but are a waste of money as you're paying for the plant sterols, which are not shown to be effective unless you eat a lot of them, and even then the effect is small.

When it comes to saturated fat, I don't avoid it but I avoid eating huge amounts of it. For most people (but perhaps not all) it will raise cholesterol levels. How much of an effect it has depends, as far as I know, on your genetics. There is also some question about whether all types of saturated fats are equally bad. Both the link and the mechanism between saturated fat as a category and cholesterol has been extremely well proven, but some recent studies show oddities with some specific foods which contain high levels of saturated fats but which are not associated with heart disease risk - Link The types of saturated fats found in red meat vs. cheese for example are different, and there's a possibility that some types are much worse than others, or that some foods have other properties which counteract the effect, which has yet to be investigated thoroughly.

I've found that my current diet which includes full-fat Greek yogurt (with berries and crushed nuts for breakfast), a little real butter, strong (85%) dark chocolate, and some red meat, does not result in high cholesterol levels for me in the context of having lost a lot of weight and currently being on 10mg Atorvastatin. My cholesterol levels are actually very good. In my case at least it would seem that the statin more than counteracts the effect of a moderate amount of saturated fat. That's great, because that Greek yogurt breakfast is an excellent one when it comes to managing blood glucose levels. I would suggest not ignoring the advice about saturated fat, but also perhaps not being afraid to experiment a little, in the context of being on a statin and especially if you plan to lose weight.