From Ronald Hoffman, MD
We’ve long been propagandized about the imperative to switch from saturated fat to plant-derived oils. I’ve pushed back on that shaky proposition in an article entitled “The Weak Case Against Saturated Fats”.
But just as the old shibboleth about animal fat is being debunked, a new dogma is emerging: That vegetable oils are the most pernicious feature of Western diets, and that they are chiefly responsible for the wave of degenerative diseases that afflict industrialized countries—and, therefore, they should be expunged from our diets.
Hyperbolic headlines like these abound:
“Dr. Mark Hyman: Why Vegetable Oils Should Not Be Part of Your Diet”
“The Ugly Truth About Vegetable Oils (and why they should be avoided)”
There are so many of these articles and social media posts, that it’s become kind of a cliché—a litmus test of nutritional virtue.
On the other hand, posts like this are now appearing: “Scientists debunk claims of seed oil health risks”
Harvard researchers report: “While the internet may be full of posts stating that seed oils such as canola and soy are ‘toxic,’ scientific evidence does not support these claims.”
I’m an equal-opportunity debunker, so, in the spirit of Intelligent Medicine, I decided to take a closer look at this controversy. And what I found doesn’t hew as closely to the “party line” of many diet gurus.
