seed oils: omega overload
why balance matters more than buzzwords
Last week, I wrote about how seed oils are produced and concerns around them compared to other oils have grown to a peak in 2024. Despite the scrutiny of the sunflower and the refining process, we collectively have given a pass to refining our favs like olive oil and avocado oil. It’s right to question anything, but I’m concerned about pointing fingers and castigating one without castigating all.
Aside from the refining process, there is no dearth of other reasons to dislike seed oils ranging from diet dogmatism to scientifically-designed deduction. Wading into the waters of the former isn’t enticing for me because it is incredibly personal and driven by belief more than data. Feel free to send me an email if you want to hop down those rapids with me offline, but we’re focusing more on the science, andddddd…
…that omega-6’s could be an issue. We’ve all heard whispers of omega-3’s, but let’s look at how they compare.
A rose by any other name…
First things first: fats, oils, and lipids all refer to this organic solvent soluble substance that can come from animals and vegetables. Remember last week how the solvent extraction process uses hexane? Hexane can dissolve fats, where water repels it. The why isn’t important here, but these three words are equivalent.
Now, all fats have a similar structure with a glycerol backbone and up to three fatty acid chains that attach. Think of this backbone like your surge protector with three sockets: you can plug in your phone, computer, and wireless headphones, or any combination of those three. You could also be working at a coffee shop and three people need to plug three computers in, or you’re staying at a friend’s house and you all need to charge your phones.
To extend this metaphor further, each type of charger cord is a different length, and your iPhone comes with a USB-C charging block, your MacBook comes with a larger charging block, and your headphone charger is an older USB that can plug directly into the surge protector. The headphone charger is the most simple, akin to a saturated fatty acid or SFA that is only made of single bonds. Phone charging requires a smaller charging block, but it still breaks up the direct connection, like a single double bond in a monounsaturated fatty acid, or MUFA. And the big boy charging block for the computer you’re borrowing from a British friend and need a US plug converter. This is even more disruptive in the clear line to the surge protector, and is equivalent to two double bonds like in a polyunsaturated fatty acid, or PUFA.
Each one of these classes of fatty acids have different properties and uses, just like each one of your electronic devices. We’re going to hone in on your computer, er, PUFAs, which is the class where omega-3’s, omega-6’s, and omega-9’s reside. The number in each of them refer to where the first double bond is in that fatty acid, starting on the side furthest from the glycerol backbone.
the health implications of PUFAs
Woof, I’m glad we got here and I hope you’re still here after setting the table. The three most commonly consumed types of omega-3’s are ALA, EPA, and DHA. ALA comes from plant sources, while EPA and DHA mainly come from seafood. Most health agencies recommend consuming omega-3’s to reduce inflammation and risk of chronic diseases, like cardiovascular diseases. Unfortunately, we breakdown this marching order into “eat omega-3’s”, when the type is at least as important as quantity. ALA is the most commonly eaten in the USA, while EPA and DHA have the most positive impacts on health. ALA converts to these other forms, but not efficiently and omega-6’s presence can depress conversion even more so! This ratio we’ll talk about shortly, but one aspect of omega-3’s is that they can have a detrimental side.
When we learn about how good a supplement or product is, we slide from “some is good” to “more is better” very quickly in the USA, and omega-3’s are no different. Regardless of how it’s described online, inflammation is necessary in your body’s ability to fight off certain infections. By not alerting your immune system to an injury or disease with inflammation factors, you can actually limit your ability to recover from it. Omega-3’s multiple double bonds are prone to a process called oxidation, which can be a problem if you’re not also eating enough antioxidants. During this oxidation process, you can create radical oxygen species (ROS) that can damage cells and tissues. So again, dose makes the medicine and the poison.
When it comes to seed oils though, omega-6’s garner much of the ire of haters. And before we get too deep into that, I want to note that omega-6’s help lower bad cholesterol (LDL), increase good cholesterol (HDL), and aid blood sugar response by improving the body’s sensitivity to insulin. Given our rising incidence of metabolic diseases, these types of fats are beneficial.
But we also can’t overlook the bad here. Omega-6’s also can break down into harmful compounds in our bodies, much like omega-3’s. We’ll look at these more in depth in our final part of this series, but overconsumption of seed oils without properly consuming the right ratio of omega-3’s to match can create chronic inflammation and oxidative stress from ROS as well.
3:6(...9?), damn you’re fine
Quantity of each and the ratio of omega-6:omega-3 can drive and amplify many of the deleterious effects of both. Seed oils are generally overconsumed, EPA and DHA are very underconsumed and this may create an imbalance in our diets. Before the dawn of Crisco in Western diets, the ratio of omega-6:omega-3 was 4:1 or less.
It is now closer to 20:1, but it is recommended that 10:1 should be maximum for any benefit with 5:1 being the best.
Now, what the quantity of either omega-3 or omega-6 is “supposed to be” has been quite difficult for me to find. The best I could find is that women need 1.1g combined of EPA and DHA, while men need about 1.6g, respectively. To add the confusion, I’ve read that 12g and 17g of omega-6’s for women and men, respectively. Combining these two studies, it would then appear that a ~10:1 is recommended, so this somewhat holds up.
What’s still unclear to me at this point is multi-layered about what traditional numbers are compared to what health agencies recommend today. Did Western diets have depressed amounts of both omega-6 and omega-3 because more butter and lard was consumed? Would we just have different problems if the ratio was reversed and was 1:20?
The more I read about seed oils, the more I think the overwhelming conclusion is simply that we eat too much oil, period. I’ll be the first to say that I don’t look at my fat intake meaningfully and I don’t believe there is another silver bullet other than tracking it and seeing how it makes you feel. Brian Johnson and his team from Blueprint fame don’t see any correlation with seed oils, if you care about that at all. But again, I’ll take this all with a grain of salt.
Next week, we’ll wrap up this series looking at specific omega-6’s and trans fats so we can get back to the Hierarchy of Needs for Food System Change.