Why You Should Avoid Vegetable Oils

Summary

This Doctors Pharmacy podcast episode delves into the historical misconception that vegetable oils are healthier than saturated fats. It traces the rise of vegetable oils, like Crisco, which were initially used industrially but were later marketed as food. The script discusses the link between the consumption of hydrogenated oils, which produce trans fats, and the rise in heart disease. It also addresses the instability of liquid vegetable oils, which can lead to oxidation and inflammation, contributing to chronic diseases. The episode concludes with recommendations to avoid vegetable oils and opt for healthier alternatives like avocado oil, grass-fed butter, and organic extra virgin olive oil.

Takeaways

• 📚 In the 1960s, it was advised to replace saturated fats with vegetable oils for health reasons.
• 🧊 The belief that unsaturated fats from vegetable oils are healthier than saturated fats like butter and lard is a societal conditioning.
• 🌿 The vegetable oil industry began in the early 1900s, with Crisco being one of the first products.
• 🔧 Vegetable oils were initially used for industrial purposes, not food, and their processing involves multiple steps including hydrogenation, which produces trans fats.
• 📈 Heart disease rates increased around the time trans fats were introduced into the American diet.
• 💡 Procter & Gamble, a soap maker, repurposed vegetable oils for food and influenced nutrition science through funding the American Heart Association.
• 💸 Procter & Gamble's financial support of the American Heart Association led to the promotion of vegetable oils as heart-healthy.
• 🚫 Despite the promotion, trans fats in hardened vegetable oils are harmful and have been linked to increased mortality.
• 🔥 Liquid vegetable oils are also dangerous due to their instability, leading to oxidation and inflammation when heated or exposed to light.
• 🍽️ Dr. Hyman recommends avoiding vegetable oils and using alternatives like avocado oil, grass-fed butter, and organic extra virgin olive oil for cooking.
• 🍲 When eating out, inquire about the type of oils used in the kitchen and request healthier options if necessary.

Q & A

What was the initial idea behind replacing saturated fats with vegetable oils?

The initial idea was that replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats from vegetable and seed oils would be healthier and help prevent cardiovascular disease.

When did the misconception about fats and oils start?

The misconception started in the 1960s, but the roots can be traced back to the early 1900s with the birth of the vegetable oil industry.

What was the first vegetable oil product introduced?

The first vegetable oil product was Crisco, introduced in the early 1900s.

How did the vegetable oil industry influence the perception of fats and oils?

The vegetable oil industry, particularly Procter & Gamble with their product Crisco, influenced perceptions by marketing their products as modern and healthier alternatives to traditional saturated fats like lard.

What process is used to harden vegetable oils and what is the resulting product?

The process used to harden vegetable oils is called hydrogenation, which produces trans fats.

What health issues have been associated with the consumption of hardened vegetable oils?

Consumption of hardened vegetable oils, which contain trans fats, has been linked to increased rates of heart disease.

How did Procter & Gamble help the American Heart Association grow in the 1940s?

Procter & Gamble helped the American Heart Association by sponsoring a radio show, which led to a significant influx of funds and the establishment of the AHA as a major non-profit organization.

What was the recommendation from the American Heart Association regarding vegetable oils?

The American Heart Association started recommending the consumption of vegetable oils to prevent heart attacks, which later turned out to be misguided due to the harmful effects of trans fats.

What are the issues with consuming vegetable oils in their liquid form?

Liquid vegetable oils are highly unstable and prone to oxidation, which can lead to inflammation and chronic diseases when consumed.

What are the health implications of the widespread use of vegetable oils in processed foods?

The widespread use of vegetable oils in processed foods has led to increased consumption of unhealthy fats that contribute to inflammation and chronic diseases.

What alternatives to vegetable oils does Dr. Hyman recommend for cooking?

Dr. Hyman recommends using avocado oil, grass-fed butter, organic extra virgin olive oil, and other organic extra virgin cold-pressed oils like flaxseed oil, walnut oil, and hemp seed oil for cooking.

What is the concern with using vegetable oils for frying or in salad dressings?

The concern is that vegetable oils can degrade and oxidize when heated or exposed to light, creating oxidation products that are harmful to health.

Outlines

00:00

🧀 The Misguided Embrace of Vegetable Oils

This paragraph discusses the historical shift in dietary advice from the 1960s, which recommended replacing saturated fats with vegetable oils. It introduces the 'doctors pharmacy podcast' and its producer who challenges the conventional wisdom that fats are harmful, emphasizing that the type of fat is crucial. The narrative reveals how society was conditioned to view unsaturated fats as superior and saturated fats as detrimental, a belief that is contested. The discussion includes the role of the food industry, particularly the vegetable oil industry, which began in the early 1900s with products like Crisco. It explains how these oils, initially used for industrial purposes, were repurposed for food consumption after processing like hydrogenation, which creates trans fats. The paragraph highlights the correlation between the introduction of these oils and the rise in heart disease, suggesting a link between vegetable oils and health issues. It also touches on the influence of companies like Procter & Gamble on nutrition science and the American Heart Association's recommendations, which were heavily funded by these corporations, leading to the widespread adoption of what turned out to be unhealthy oils.

05:03

🚫 The Downfall of Vegetable Oils and Their Impact on Health

Paragraph 2 delves into the unintended consequences of the widespread use of vegetable oils, particularly the increased risk of cancer associated with their consumption. It recounts high-level meetings at the NIH in the 1980s that aimed to understand this link but concluded with a decision to prioritize the perceived heart disease benefits over the cancer risks, despite the lack of clarity in the data. The paragraph details the industrial process of creating vegetable oils, from the extraction using solvents like hexane to the multiple steps of refinement, which result in a product far removed from its natural state. It contrasts this with the simplicity of butter production, questioning the logic of replacing natural fats with highly processed alternatives. The paragraph concludes with recommendations from Dr. Hyman to avoid vegetable oils due to their propensity to oxidize and degrade when heated or exposed to light, producing harmful oxidation products. Instead, he suggests using healthier alternatives like avocado oil, grass-fed butter, and organic extra virgin olive oil for cooking, and advises consumers to inquire about the types of oils used in restaurants and request healthier options.

Keywords

💡Saturated fats

Saturated fats are a type of fat found in some foods, like butter, lard, and ghee, which have been historically considered unhealthy due to their association with heart disease. In the video, it is suggested that this belief is a misunderstanding and that saturated fats are not as harmful as once thought, contrasting with the narrative that vegetable oils are healthier alternatives.

💡Vegetable oils

Vegetable oils are plant-based oils derived from sources like soybeans, canola, and corn. The video discusses how these oils were promoted as a healthier alternative to saturated fats in the 1960s but are now recognized as potentially harmful due to their high levels of unstable fats that can lead to inflammation and chronic diseases.

💡Unsaturated fats

Unsaturated fats are fats that are liquid at room temperature and are found in foods like avocados and olives. The video suggests that unsaturated fats are healthier than saturated fats and are less likely to contribute to heart disease.

💡Hydrogenation

Hydrogenation is a process used to turn liquid vegetable oils into solid fats, like shortening and margarine. The video explains that this process creates trans fats, which are harmful to health and have been linked to increased risk of heart disease.

💡Trans fats

Trans fats are a type of unsaturated fat that become solid through hydrogenation. The video states that trans fats are dangerous to health because they can lead to heart disease and are now recognized as harmful, leading to the FDA's decision to ban them after decades of pressure.

💡Oxidation

Oxidation refers to the process where oils break down and become rancid, often due to exposure to heat or light. The video emphasizes that vegetable oils are highly unstable and prone to oxidation, which can lead to inflammation and contribute to chronic diseases like heart disease.

💡Inflammation

Inflammation is the body's response to harmful stimuli and can lead to chronic diseases if not managed properly. The video connects the oxidation of vegetable oils to inflammation, suggesting that the consumption of these oils can lead to health problems like heart disease.

💡Crisco

Crisco is a brand of vegetable shortening that was heavily marketed as a healthier alternative to lard in the early 1900s. The video discusses how Crisco's marketing campaign influenced dietary guidelines and contributed to the widespread consumption of unhealthy trans fats.

💡American Heart Association

The American Heart Association is a prominent health organization that, according to the video, was heavily influenced by Procter & Gamble's funding. This influence led to recommendations that promoted the consumption of vegetable oils, which the video suggests was misguided and harmful.

💡Procter & Gamble

Procter & Gamble is a multinational consumer goods corporation that, as discussed in the video, played a significant role in promoting vegetable oils as a healthier alternative to saturated fats. Their marketing strategies and influence on health organizations are highlighted as factors that contributed to the widespread adoption of these oils.

💡Extra virgin olive oil

Extra virgin olive oil is a type of oil that is cold-pressed and unrefined, retaining its natural antioxidants and health benefits. The video recommends using extra virgin olive oil as a healthier alternative to vegetable oils for cooking and topping dishes.

Highlights

Avoiding saturated fats and replacing them with vegetable oils was a common belief dating back to the 1960s.

Fats and oils are not inherently damaging to health; it's the type of fat that matters.

Unsaturated fats from vegetable and seed oils were considered healthier than saturated fats like butter, lard, and ghee.

The vegetable oil industry began in the early 1900s with products like Crisco.

Vegetable oils were originally used for industrial purposes and then repurposed for food.

Procter & Gamble played a significant role in the marketing and sale of Crisco as a food product.

Heart disease rates began to increase around the time vegetable oils were introduced to the market.

Trans fats, produced through the hydrogenation process of vegetable oils, are harmful to health.

Procter & Gamble's influence on the American Heart Association led to the promotion of vegetable oils for heart health.

Vegetable oils, even without trans fats, are unstable and can oxidize, leading to inflammation and chronic diseases.

Studies have shown that people on vegetable oil diets have higher rates of cancer and heart disease.

The FDA eventually recognized the dangers of trans fats after decades of pressure and a lawsuit.

Vegetable oils are now known to be dangerous when heated or exposed to light, leading to the creation of oxidation products.

Dr. Hyman recommends avoiding vegetable oils and instead using healthier alternatives like avocado oil and grass-fed butter.

Organic extra virgin olive oil and other cold-pressed oils are recommended for topping dishes and low-heat cooking.

When eating out, it's important to inquire about the types of oils used in the kitchen and request healthier alternatives.

The production process of vegetable oils involves multiple steps and chemical extraction, questioning their health benefits.

Transcripts

when they said avoid saturated fats you

were supposed to replace them with

vegetable oils right that was the idea

going back to the 1960s

hi I'm one of the producers of the

doctors pharmacy podcast we haven't

fortunately been taught to think that

fats and oils are damaging for our

health and lead to things like

cardiovascular disease but this is not

necessarily true when it comes to fats

the type of fat we eat matters as a

society we've been conditioned to

believe that unsaturated fats from

vegetable and seed oils are best and

that butter lard ghee and other

saturated fats are toxic in fact the

reverse is true dr. Hyman discussed some

of the history behind this

misunderstanding with leading science

journalist Nina Michaels well this is

where the food industry does come in a

little bit just to start off this story

so the the the vegetable oil industry

was kind of born in the early 1900's

right the first vegetable oil product

was Crisco oh yeah right so used to be

that those oils were used for the

industrial revolution they were loos to

lubricate machinery and then they

figured out how to harden them to make

them and they learned how to bleach them

and make them look white and then they

thought and it was actually Procter &

Gamble that figure out how to do that

they were gonna make it into a soap you

know soap is made from oil instead they

like that looks an awful lot like lard

let's try to sell it as a food so they

started to sell it as a food and yeah so

it turns out that they contained you

know that it's what they hardening

vegetable oils is done through a process

called hydrogenation and that produces

trans fats but so these these trans

fatty hardened oils were started to be

sold to Americans in 1911 so

coincidentally heart disease starts to

take off right right around you maybe

like ten years later we started seeing

increases in death from heart disease so

so then Procter & Gamble figures out how

to just sell oil is oil so one of the

things I understand about these oils is

they're Procter & Gamble produce like

shampoo they were a soap maker so that's

why they came up with this so but

they're like but Crisco was like a

best-selling thing they convinced you

know in America so all these immigrants

and they want to become American right

and so Procter & Gamble had this

brilliant advertising campaign basically

saying you know give up Lara those are

the throat the bygone days of your

grandmother's like the spinning wheel of

the olden days and you know have Crisco

instead and this is the newfangled thing

made in you know shiny scientist

kitchens so so Procter and Gamble

figured out how to then make vegetable

oils that were fluid in bottles I kind

of tinkered with the fatty acids to make

them stable and then so here's the where

they they started to influence nutrition

science in 1948 the American Heart

Association which is really just an

association of cardiologists right

remember heart disease is knew tiny

little Association know barely had an

office they were just like they barely

had any funds Procter & Gamble comes in

and says we're gonna make you the

designee of this radio show for the week

and over it was this huge deal

overnight literally according to the

official history of the American Heart

Association they said millions of

dollars flowed into our coffers we

became overnight the powerhouse opening

offices all across the country that we

are today they're still the number one

largest non-for-profit in the in the

country all thanks to Procter & Gamble

and pretty soon thereafter they started

to recommend that you start eating

vegetable oils to prevent a heart attack

which was the worst idea because turns

out that trans fats everybody agrees in

this killed hundreds of thousand

millions of people over the decades

Trant with the SATs yeah the trans fats

in the heart and vegetable oils and

Crisco are bad for health clearly bad

for health but in the liquid form and

now their world is not safe to eat by

the fda after 50 years of pressure to

change that right I finally took a

lawsuit from a 97 year old scientist who

first discovered this 50 years ago to

get them to change so vegetable oils so

it turns out that it they when they're

in the oil form they're also dangerous

so they don't contain trans fats right

but in the oil form the oils are highly

unstable that means that they oxidize

either acid they go rancid oxidation is

remember that's why we take antioxidants

be

as oxidation causes inflammation in your

body like yes that's actually to the

inside and heart because heart disease

on the inside oxidized LDL is what's

thought to provoke that unstable plaque

that causes heart blockage yeah so this

is what

and in those clinic in that on all those

studies remember we talked about the

Minnesota coronary survey where they had

people some people on on vegetable oil

diets in all of those studies again and

again and again the people in the

vegetable oil diets died at much higher

rates from cancer this was considered a

side effect of this heart-healthy diet

and they actually had a series of very

high-level meetings at the NIH in the

early 1980s to figure out what was going

on with this side effect of cancer and

nobody could figure it out and they

basically just said look we believe that

vegetable oils will help people prevent

heart disease so we're gonna ignore the

cancer effect these were sort of

invented 120 plus years ago and we now

have increased our consumption of

soybean oil for example a thousandfold

and it's 10% of our calories and it's in

everything it's stuff that you wouldn't

imagine is in so any processed food that

you buy it's made in a factory probably

has this oil in it or some variety of it

and I think you know when you look at

the data it is confusing there's a lot

of people who who are looking at large

observational processes that show that

there's a risk for you know saturated

fat and a benefit for omega-3 omega-6

oils and there's other data that show

there's some actually randomized trials

that show the opposite when you just

have people eat only in the vegetable

oil they do worse right and let's just

remember that latter data from trials is

is the rigorous cause-and-effect data

right so yeah I mean so what do you

recommend no vegetable oils well I was

just gonna tell briefly about my visit

to a vegetable oil factory to explain

what a Bunge Factory what a brutal

process it is to get oil out of a bean

or a seed right they they have to go

through this you know process of

extracting the oil when it's not even

really oil when it comes out as gray

rancid disgusting fluid it's chemically

extracted with

in another nasty camera right if you use

hexane as a solvent to extract it and

then they and then they have and then

it's this bad smelling gray liquid it

has to be deodorized winterized you know

twitch and all this so it goes through

like 17 steps in this giant industrial

plant and you know and then it's Crisco

so you know compared to and this is what

we're told to eat instead of of churning

butter right so like you just milk the

cow and then you turn the butter so I

think that you know it's it's sort of it

speaks to our to me like speaks to its

kind of the craziness about food that we

live in which is so you know so divorced

from our history like can you really

believe that's something that goes

through this you know 17 step process in

a in a factory is what you should be

eating to restore your health how many

steps did it take from the field your

fork you know yeah more than one or two

it's probably not a good idea so the

huge worry about vegetable oils to my

mind is that when they are heated and

even if they're left out in an in a

bottle whether it's exposed to light

they will degrade that's right they

oxidize they degree that means they

break down into these oxidation products

when you put them under heat that in

like any chemical reaction that speeds

up and it creates literally hundreds of

degraded oxidation products some of

which are known toxins Americans are

eating frightening amounts of refined

vegetable oils seed oils and omega-6

fats all of which contribute to

inflammation and chronic diseases dr.

Hyman recommends avoiding these oils

altogether so what should you use

instead

avocado oil and grass-fed gr your best

bets for cooking due to their higher

smoke points organic extra virgin olive

oil and other organic extra virgin

cold-pressed oils like flaxseed oil

walnut oil and hemp seed oil are great

for topping a wide variety of dishes

organic extra virgin olive oil is also

great for cooking at very low heat

vegetable and seed oils are the types of

oils used in most restaurants especially

for frying they can even be in seemingly

healthy salad dressings when eating out

don't be afraid to ask what kinds of

oils a kitchen uses and request a

healthier alternative

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