Vegetable oil is a generic term that encompasses oil expelled from soybean, corn, cottonseed, and rapeseed (canola). These highly liquid oils are a relatively new innovation. They emerged on the scene in the 1920s and their level of consumption has since skyrocketed.
This is where things begin to get interesting. Before the advent of vegetable oil, chronic diseases like heart disease and cancer were virtually non-existent. Of course, correlation is not necessarily causation. And one readily admits that chronic disease is caused by a number of factors. However, there is something uniquely toxic about vegetable oil. Consider the observation of Dr. Dudley White, a respected American physician from that era: “See here, I began my practice as a cardiologist in 1921 and I never saw a heart attack patient until 1928. Back in the heart attack free days before 1920, the fats were butter and lard and I think that we would all benefit from the kind of diet that we had at a time when no one had ever heard the word corn oil.”
The problem with vegetable oil
Corn and soybean have been consumed by man for millennia. Then, how is it that oil extracted from these wholesome foods is suddenly toxic? Well, the problem is not the oil per se, but how that oil is modified to extend shelf life.
You see, highly liquid vegetable oils, also called polyunsatured fats, very quickly become rancid when exposed to air. When you extract these fats from the protective context of a whole food, they break down quite rapidly. That is, polyunsaturated fats are only stable when encased by and associated with proteins, carbohydrates, antioxidants, and other substances found in whole foods. In fact, unmodified vegetable oil becomes rancid in a matter of hours when exposed to air.
This begs a question. How then does commercial vegetable oil have an average shelf life of two years? Vegetable oil is preserved by a process called partial hydrogenation. In which, a fraction of the unstable polyunsaturated fats are converted to much more stable trans fats. And it is these trans fats that give commercial vegetable oil their unnatural shelf life.
The producers of vegetable oil then have the audacity to paste boldly on their labels: CONTAINS NO TRANS FATS. This is a big fat lie. Sadly, this is but one instance of the vicious logic of the processed food industry, whose motto is profit over people.
The negative health effects of hydrogenated oils
Another term for partial hydrogenation is plastic-ization. That is, natural oil is converted into a synthetic plastic-like substance. Of a truth, commercial vegetable oil has more in common with petrochemicals than say naturally stable palm oil or coconut oil. What do I mean? Well, both petrochemicals and hydrogenated oils have no place in animal physiology. They are invariably toxic whenever ingested, a true disadvantage when using vegetable oil.
No wonder that wherever petro-vegetable oil goes, an epidemic of chronic diseases is sure to follow. In sum, the best oils for cooking are those that have been used in ancestral societies; namely palm oil, coconut oil, Shea butter, and animal fats.
References:
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M Enig, Trans Fatty Acids in the Food Supply: A Comprehensive Report Covering 60 Years of Research , 2nd Edition, 1995, Enig Associates, Inc., Silver Spring, MD, pp 4-8
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F A Kummerow, “Effects of Isomeric Fats on Animal Tissue, Lipid Classes and Atherosclerosis,” Geometrical and Positional Fatty Acid Isomers, E. A. Emken and H. J. Dutton, eds, American Oil Chemists’ Society, Champaign, IL, 1979, pp151-180
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F. A. Kummerow, “Nutritional Effects of Isomeric Fats: Their Possible Influence on Cell Metabolism or Cell Structure,” Dietary Fats and Health, (E. G. Perkins and W. J. Visek, eds), Americna Oil Chemists’ Society, Champaign, IL, 1983, pp 391-402
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S Fallon and M Enig, “The Oiling of America”. The Weston A. Price Foundation. 1 January 2000. Web
Ezenwa Onwugbenu is a nutritional healer and public speaker on natural health matters. You can find out more about him and his passion for natural health and living on Creative Juices.
African Naturalistas Hair Products
My question is that now that you have exposed this evil fact, which I was previously ignorant of, what are the safe alternatives? At least, we have to eat. Thanks
Ezenwa Onwugbenu
Greetings,
There are many alternatives. Vegetable oil is a fairly new concoction. A good guide would be what our ancestors ate across the globe: palm oil, coconut oil, Shea butter, animal fats, and a few others. In Nigeria, we do not appreciate palm oil enough. It is a prince among oils.
Peju
But palm oil is not versatile enough….. it is good but you can’t use it for everything… in asthmatic and I can’t use it for everything because of its high smoking point… it chokes me up a lot… I bake and I cannot use palm oil in Baking…. you’ve stated the problem alternatives and substitute oils will be nice… thanks
chioma
palm Oil?? My lecturer said it is saturated hence it should be consumed in minute quantity as it contains LDL i.e the bad cholesterol. Pls can u expound further on what you mean by “prince among oils”
Ezenwa Onwugbenu
Hey Chioma, the sad truth is that your lecturer is operating on outdated information. His position on saturated fats is based on the lipid hypothesis. It links dietary saturated fats and cholesterol to increased incidence of heart disease. The hard evidence for this causal link was the Seven Countries Study conducted by Ancel Keys. It turns out that that study was manipulated to suit the agenda of certain industries. In short, saturated fat is health promoting. I am even more shocked that your lecturer thinks palm oil contains cholesterol. That is nonsensical!! Cholesterol is only found in animal products like meat, milk, or eggs. Also, LDL is not bad cholesterol. LDL (low density lipoprotein) is a transport molecule for lipids like fat, cholesterol, and fat-soluble vitamins. The only bad cholesterol is oxidized cholesterol. And specifically oxidized small-dense LDL particles.
jen
As Chioma said, I always believed that palm oil had the worst kind of fat/cholesterol. And eating shea butter is just out of it for me. Coconut oil will make all ur food taste like it. Animal fat isn’t so easy to get enough of
Ezenwa Onwugbenu
Hey Jen, no plant oil contains cholesterol. That is simply impossible. Cholesterol is only found in animal products. Plus, saturated fat is not bad for you. Many things go wrong when you are deficient in saturated fats. So much of what people are told are simply not true.
Toyin
Apart from Palm Oil and Coconut oil, can u recommend any other plant oil, cos I don’t see the feasibility of consuming Shea Butter for me.
Benedicta
For people asking for other alternative cooking oil, extra virgin olive oil is also very good. Though you won’t bleach it like other cooking oil, all you need is just 3table spoonfuls that you will add when you are done cooking your soup or meal, its very medicinal but expensive. It also burns fat quick.
Also I heard of sunflower oil, though I haven’t tried it out. Just extra virgin olive oil I have used and still using.
Natural Nigerian
Hi Benedicta, have you read my post on Olive Oil? Please do.
Rahma
Wow, this is an eye openin article, thank you. I do cook with coconut oil and so. But like another person said, what are other alternatives? I can’t imaging frying meat or anything in coconut oil or Shea. . How about ground nut oil?
Gigi
What about if you make the groundnut oil yourself?Or better still buy it from the villages in the north where they are made locally in little quantity
Is that ok?
Peju
Also let’s not forget that some oils have a very distinct taste that interfere with the natural taste of food…. I watch foreign health shows where they swap ” unhealthy options with suitable healthy ones… my daughter is allergic to nuts and so am I…. olive oil is expensive….coconut oil is expensive and very labor intensive I’m extremely busy and have no time…. palm oil is almost a no no to use solely because like I said earlier I have asthma and it is a high smoking point
anders
i like to put vegetable on my popcorn. it makes a good substitute for butter. the more you know.
Lky
Please, nobody has talked about Groundnut/Peanut oil here or is it same with Vegetable oil.