Seed oils have been all over social media lately, and not in a good way. They\u2019ve been blamed for everything from chronic inflammation to the nation\u2019s obesity epidemic, and some restaurants have even stopped using them in their foods.\ufeff<\/p>\n
So what exactly are seed oils \u2014 and are they truly harmful to your health? \ufeff<\/p>\n
These edible oils, extracted from the seeds of plants, include canola oil, corn oil, cottonseed oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, safflower oil, grape-seed oil and rice bran oil (dubbed by their detractors as the \u201chateful eight\u201d).\ufeff<\/p>\n
They\u2019re a staple of the American diet, used in everything from homemade muffins, salad dressings and stir-fries to ultra-processed foods. But the reality behind their recent demonization is a lot more nuanced than a TikTok user might realize.\ufeff<\/p>\n
\u201cThe public has gone wackadoodle over seed oils,\u201d says Christopher Gardner, a nutrition scientist and professor of medicine at Stanford University. \u201cBut there are few topics for which we have this much data that they\u2019re good for you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Going back to the 1950s, he says, \u201cvery consistently, the people who eat more unsaturated fat, including seed oils, do better than those who have saturated fat.\u201d\u200b<\/p>\n
Potential health benefits of seed oils<\/p>\n
The American Heart Association says there is no evidence suggesting we should avoid seed oils \u2014 and plenty of evidence that they are beneficial to our health. And the 2020\u20132025 edition of the U.S. Agriculture Department\u2019s\u00a0Dietary Guidelines for Americans<\/a> actually recommends replacing saturated fats (often called \u201csolid fats,\u201d found in fatty meats, butter, lard, beef tallow and palm and coconut oils) with unsaturated fats, found in seafood, nuts and seeds, avocados, and, yes, canola, sunflower, safflower, corn, soybean and vegetable oils. \ufeff<\/p>\n Nevertheless, the accusations persist, including one faulting seed oils for their high levels of omega-6 essential fatty acids, which are blamed for everything from inflammation to chronic illnesses. But those omega-6s (\u201cessential\u201d because our bodies don\u2019t produce them but must get them through foods) are actually good for you, nutrition experts say.\ufeff<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the greatest benefits of seed oils is that they are rich in polyunsaturated fats, specifically linoleic acid, which is an omega-6,\u201d says Matti Marklund, an assistant professor at the Center for Human Nutrition at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University, whose research has specifically focused on seed oils. \ufeff<\/p>\n