Seed oils you can let slide 🛝

I receive a lot of question about niche seed oils, here are some rules of thumb to keep in mind if making exceptions (which I personally do very rarely if ever):

Rationale:

Seed oils are bad for two compounding reasons:

• High PUFA content: PUFA is unnatural to consume in large quantities and does not tolerate heat well

• They are almost always chemically refined meaning they lack the stabilizing antioxidants found in the seeds they came in, meant to prevent the PUFA from breaking down

Therefore, consuming unrefined seed oils not brought to extreme heat occasionally is OK, provided your overall dietary ratio of PUFA is still in the 0-8% range.

If we are going to consume a seed oil, we definitely want it unrefined, and we would like it to be low in PUFA.

NOTE ⚠️: Expeller pressed does not necessarily mean unrefined
“Expeller pressed” refers to the first step in the seed oil production process, typically completed with pressurized hexane. Expeller pressed canola, used in the Whole Foods hot bar, is still chemically refined after it comes out of the expeller.

Unrefined oils generally have strong colors and flavors, and are used for taste. Any cooking oil or vegetable oil is refined, generally.

The exceptions:

Sesame oil:

Unrefined, high quality sesame oil can be used as an occasional dressing for flavor in asian dishes. Deep Nutrition takes this point of view, with the rationale that the stabilizing antioxidant molecules are still present in the flavorful oil.

Sesame oil is still very high in PUFA though, at around 40%, so I would not consume it daily. Once a week, and not as a primary cooking oil is fine though.

Macadamia & Hazelnut oils:

Macadamia and Hazelnuts are very low in PUFA, if you can find these oils unrefined, they are a solid option, on par with an EVOO or avocado oil.

Cacao butter:

Chocolate and cacao butter are made from cacao beans which are technically seeds. This fat is extremely saturated and very high in stearic acid, which is thought to be the healthiest of saturated fats.

Palm Kernel oil:

This is generally refined, so you should still avoid it, however it is extremely low in PUFA at around 2-3%, so if you see it on an ingredients list note it’s not quite as bad as a traditional seed oil which may be north of 40%

Niche medicinal oils:

People constantly ask me about consuming black seed oil for its health benefits. I say go ahead as long as you are not eating so much that it is affecting your overall fatty acid ratios, and it you are not bringing it to extreme heat.