In this episode we dive into the murky world of vegetable oils, aka seed oils, or “industrial seed oils”, and we show why the oils most commonly used in cooking and industrial food production, such as canola, corn, cottonseed, soybean, and sunflower, might not be “heart healthy”, and might not be healthy at all.

We talk about the crucial role that dietary fat plays in our health, especially the health of our cells and cell membranes. We cover the biochemistry of fats, and frame the discussion by noting that the national dietary guidelines in the US and UK advise us to eat a low-fat, high-carbohydrate diet.

The case against vegetable oils covers: concerns about cancers, oxidation and inflammation, toxic and volatile compounds, the impact of high omega-6 fats in the modern diet, and their poor nutritional profile.

We make the case that we should be limiting the consumption of omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), especially those found in processed foods, and we make the case that the safest oils to cook with are those that are fully saturated (and therefore cannot oxidise), i.e., goose fat, beef dripping and coconut oil.

Also in this episode, we compare our vegetarian one-day meal plans to see what challenges there are when you try to meet all of your nutrient needs on a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet.