The Nutrition Revolution Podcast · Kimberly Brown and Tabitha Myers

Seed Oils

June 13, 2025·35 min·3 clips

Tabitha reveals why clients stress over seed oils while ignoring their Starbucks grande vanilla latte.

This episode of The Nutrition Revolution Podcast focuses on the controversy surrounding seed oils in modern diets. Hosts Kimberly and Tabitha, both nutrition professionals, address the widespread fear and misinformation about these common cooking fats. They aim to provide a balanced perspective to help listeners reduce food-related anxiety. The hosts define seed oils as vegetable oils pressed from plant embryos, listing examples like canola, soybean, sunflower, and corn oil. They trace the history of seed oils from their 1860s use as lamp oil to the 1911 introduction of Crisco, which contained trans fats. The conversation notes the 2018 FDA ban on trans fats in U.S. food products. A major shift occurred in the mid-1900s when nutritional science linked high saturated fat intake to heart disease, prompting a move from animal fats to liquid vegetable oils. The vilification of seed oils is partly attributed to processing methods, specifically the use of hexane in petroleum extraction and the commercial RBD (refined, bleached, and deodorized) process. This processing can remove beneficial nutrients like phenolic antioxidants and omega-3s. A key insight is that the problem often lies in the dose and sourcing, not the seed oils themselves, with the hosts warning against orthorexia, an unhealthy obsession with "clean" eating. They clarify that cold-pressed seed oils retain nutrients and can be anti-inflammatory, unlike their highly refined counterparts. The hosts reveal they personally avoid most seed oils by minimizing processed foods and instead use avocado, olive, and coconut oils at home. They emphasize that the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio in the standard American diet is an imbalanced 6:1, contributing to inflammation. A surprising moment details a Chick-fil-A fat-free honey mustard salad dressing packet containing 22 grams of added sugar. The episode highlights that human trials show linoleic acid from seed oils does not increase inflammatory cytokines, unlike excessive saturated fats. Reusing oils for deep frying creates a buildup of aldehydes, which is linked to increased cancer risk. Practical advice includes buying oils in small, dark glass bottles and storing them in cool, dark places to prevent oxidation. The tone is conversational and educational, blending personal anecdotes with historical and scientific context. The hosts adopt a reassuring, practical approach aimed at demystifying a complex topic. This episode is ideal for listeners feeling overwhelmed by anti-seed oil rhetoric on social media who seek a nuanced, less stressful approach to nutrition. Individuals looking for a deep dive into food processing history or practical pantry-swap tips would also appreciate it. Listeners seeking a definitive, alarmist condemnation of seed oils or a highly technical biochemical analysis might find this discussion too moderate.

As heard by us

A practical pushback on seed-oil panic, with enough real-life detail to be useful.

The episode pushes back on seed-oil panic by folding it into a wider point about stress, nutrition rules, and the certainty that social media can create.

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Why you'd press play

Stop letting seed-oil panic run your grocery cart.

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