Seed Oil Research, Studies, And Personal Analysis

There are plenty of food items these days that get a bad rap and are demonized.  Some due to a lack of knowledge, others due to money/influence/possible nefarious reasons. Seed oils increasingly are getting hit….

…this could be for a good reason. 

As I stated elsewhere I went through a period where I realized that most of the things I had grown up believing didn’t make sense. How I realized this was by continued reading/research  as well as through “Anomalies.”  “Anaomlies are where your world view tells you things are one way but what you experience is the opposite.” When I had come back to the states from overseas military life I was determined to get into teaching. One of the steps I decided on was substitute teaching for a bit to see how schools operate as well as to build rapport with the various schools in my area. 

But then the happenings of 2020 occurred and as a substitute teacher, there was nothing for us to do. So I began to adjust my plan and during this time I got into more reading/looking into things during my time off. During this phase, my mind began to open to all things carnivore diet, keto, vegan, etc. I also began to notice patterns. 

• What have humans eaten for most of history

• Which approach to food do we most receive benefits from 

• Which approach to food is backed by large wads of cash 

• Which approach to food appears to be of greater harm and is backed by large wads of cash

During this time, I stumbled on, “Seed oils” and this move away from animal fats to, “Healthier” options. It’s that thing that's in almost every package in the grocery store from crackers, refried beans, ice cream, frozen meat products, and more. Due to its overabundance in almost everything, I felt it important to look at some research. 

HISTORY OF HUMAN CONSUMPTION

What we’ve eaten since the dawn of time hasn’t changed much until recently. Whatever it was it was straight from the field to our plate with a little bit of preparation here and there. Vegetables, fruits, dairy, and meat. Recently humanity started eating food that was prepared in large industrial buildings. Mixing chemicals together with some actual food items, varying the levels of heat that these elements will be exposed to, and then packaging it in a box for our consumption. If something has been done for most of human history and there’s a significant change, the effects of this change should be noted. 

If you change up your workout program, wouldn’t it be important to be aware of any changes in your muscle, fat, or energy?

TRENDS IN DISEASES

You’ve probably heard the, “The average life span was 40 until now bro”

Although there is some truth to this figure the reason for this is that infant mortality was high back in the day. Take these away things are still bad but not as bad. Once you got past a certain adolescent age you were pretty much on your way till you got conscripted for some war.

Life was unbelievably harsh. The nearness of death was a constant reality.  But there we still plenty of 50, 60, and 70 years olds. The difference is a life of difficulty and one of comfort. 

There are also definitions of life expectancy and life span. The first is about your odds while the latter is about how long you actually lived. The definition of the former allows one to paint a picture of the forward progress of humanity. I encountered, “Anomalies” with the, ”Died at 40” narrative when I started getting into Christian history and noticed patterns of those who were or came close to being centenarians. 

I believe the, “Died ar 40” narrative exists for several reasons. 

1 - This comes from the, “Humans are on an upward trend of progress” worldview. We came from cavemen and dying of the sniffles to better technology, world peace, and traveling the stars 

Which would be nice and maybe we should pat ourselves on the back but we have other realities in store for our future.

2 - As a tactic to get you to buy supplements which not all of them are bad.

Take away infant mortality and throw in some sanitation practices we should be good. However, Chronic disease is on the rise and now we have children getting screened for cancer. We’re not out here mutating like X-men. Surely there must be a root cause to this all. 

But strangely enough, the only time a root cause is addressed by mainstream news is to demonize things humans have consumed since the dawn of time. Yeah, that thing your grand parents and great-grandparents ate all the way back… That’s causing cancer now.

This trend in diseases of humans seems to correlate with the rise in seed oils. I understand correlation is not causation so I have some more information in store. 

EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDIES

These studies are based on questionnaires, surveys, and large-scale observations.

One of the studies that struck me was one in 1960s India where they were showing two groups. One in the north with large amounts of animal fats in their diet and one in the south with largely seed oils in their diet. You’d be surprised to find out which one was getting heart attacks on the regular.

But here are some others…

• Changes in consumption of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids in the United States during the 20th century

• Omega 6/Omega 3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid and Cancer Ratio

CONTROLLED STUDIES WITH BOTH ANIMALS AND HUMANS 

These studies are where two groups or more are observed and tests are run on them. One group performs an action while the other group does nothing or follows a different action. There are several of these studies showing how these oils affect our health and rats. 

• Corn Oil in Treatment of Ischaemic Heart Disease 

• Re-evaluation of the traditional diet-heart hypothesis: analysis of recovered data from Minnesota Coronary Experiment (1968-73)

• Dietary linoleic acid elevates endogenous 2-AG and anandamide and induces obesity

• Effect of canola oil consumption on memory, synapse and neuropathology in the triple transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease

• Effects of high-fat diets rich in either omega-3 or omega-6 fatty acids on UVB-induced skin carcinogenesis in SKH-1 mice

META-ANALYSIS 

Studies comparing and looking at trends in several research studies. A mixture of the above two in some cases. 

• Role of diets rich in omega-3 and omega-6 in the development of cancer

 MAKING SENSE OF IT ALL

These are just a few studies I have listed(and there are more). Each one shows both a short-term and long-term adverse effect on our health. But this doesn’t affect the approach to health at least for the big institutions. Even in my textbook for becoming a personal trainer, they talked about seed oils as being good for us. You eventually get to the point of seeing some weird anomalies in our institutions. When Crisco first came on the scene it was only after some “influence” with the American Heart Association(AMA) that they were touted as the better/more sophisticated cooking tool. If money is involved how can we know that every decision being made is for our benefit and not for those in power?  

THE APPROACH 

I for one try to avoid these oils as best I can. But trying to avoid all seed oils for the rest of our lives I believe is an impossibility as well as a little too obsessive. 

Therefore, I try to follow some good practices. 

• Stay mostly to the outside isles of the grocery store as most of the stuff on the inside contains these oils.

• Looking at all food labels with the focus of a detective.

• If there is an alternative with avocado or coconut oil I get it

• Avoid too much restaurant eating 

I still go to restaurants with friends and family once in a while. But I’ll try to control myself and be weary of how much I eat (Most of the time I fail). Because not only are there long-term negative effects from these oils there are also short-term. From my experience, one of them is an increased likelihood of sickness. Seeing the world through a terrain theory lens I try to avoid things that will damage my terrain, especially during the transition times in between seasons.  

Thank you for making it to the end and if you have any questions feel free to ask.

Until Next Time