Snake Oil: Rapeseed Oil (Canola) And Soybean Oil… Your Thoughts?

Snake Oil: Rapeseed Oil (Canola) And Soybean Oil… Your Thoughts?

The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry has recently produced a peer-reviewed article on farmed Atlantic salmon that had been raised and fed on soybean and rapeseed oil. Rapeseed oil is also known as canola oil. Even though all animal species are different (clearly, a human and a fish do not look similar), it is pretty safe to say that in the grand scheme of things all animals are relatively similar. All living things at or near Earth’s surface need food, protection, sunlight, water, etc. It would be easy to say that the digestive systems of fish and humans are different and you would more than likely be correct. I am going to approach this differently. Most studies are done on animals and not on humans, but this doesn’t mean that you cannot draw conclusions from these studies. There is the assumption that if something negatively affects the animal, then it MIGHT NOT affect a human the same way. This is where I would disagree. Based off the fact that there are 16 major chemical elements on the Earth and all animals eat foods that contain these elements, or minerals, I would say that if something negatively affects an animal in a study, then it is more than likely going to negatively affect a human.

All animals have to utilize the food source they consume and if parts of the food source are toxic, then the animal is going to pay the consequence in order to rid the toxin from its body. The consequences can range from mild to severe and will be slightly different for each individual. For humans, this could be a watery, itchy eye to a bad skin rash to anaphylactic shock or even death.

What this particular study found was that farmed raised salmon fed soybean oil and canola oil as part of their diets were then fed to mice and the mice ultimately showed signs of elevated liver inflammation. Mice and humans are pretty similar when it comes to our genetic code, so anything that negatively affects a mouse is going to have an extremely high probably of negatively affecting a human. With that in mind, let’s move forward as to a break down of the study and how it affects the human population. The study specifically revealed elevated levels of arachidonic acid in the livers of the mice and arachidonic acid is what causes inflammation in humans as well.

Arachidonic acid is part of the Omega-6 fatty acid family. Science has shown many times that when there are too many Omega-6 fatty acids in the human diet in relation to its Omega-3 counterpart, humans quickly show signs and symptoms of inflammation throughout the body, especially in the liver. Omega-6 fatty acids are known as linoleic acids and are the precursor to arachidonic acid, which promotes system wide inflammation. Because both Omega-3s and Omega-6s utilize the same energy pathways in the body, there is a constant battle as to which one “wins.” There is a necessary balance for optimal health, but when the scales tip towards the Omega-6 side, that is when we pay the consequences. Fatty acids help the nervous system and the brain operate efficiently and effectively, ONLY when they are in balance. In human nutrition, it can be difficult to consume enough Omega-3s and easy to consume an excess of Omega-6s and therefore it is critical for each of us to be careful in our consumption of the different types of oils.

Over the years throughout the Industrial Revolution, humans found it was very easy to manufacture oils in large quantities. Two of the easiest to manufacture are canola oil and soybean oil because the plants that produce these oils are abundant around the world. The US government realized how cheap it was to produce these oils and this is why you will find them in most foods on grocery store shelves and currently in probably 90% of all restaurants you visit. What I’m saying is that the US government is sneaky and ultimately going to kill us all by the mandates they put in place when it comes to human nutrition. Lobbyists and organizations that are part of the Food Industries will not tell you the truth; they will simply scoot around all the important questions to keep information “vague.” If they told us all the truth, there would be absolute chaos and many of them would lose their jobs, because the reality of healthy eating is simple. They made it out to be this complex web of lies so the American people couldn’t possibly understand what is going on and are then forced to listen to and do what the government wants. This is absurd and ridiculous if you ask me!

For those out there that seem to have mysterious illnesses that doctor after doctor cannot figure out what the cause is, my suggestion is to review what you are eating and see how much canola and soybean oil is actually in your diet. If you eat out 2-3 times per week or more, you have too much of these oils in your body, which are readily inflaming every organ as you read this. If you eat at home, do you use canola oil or soybean oil because it is cheap? If so, yet again, you have systemic inflammation going on inside your body right now. If you eat boxed ready-made meals, take a look at the ingredient list and see what type of oil is used to make that meal. If it doesn’t say, then I can almost guarantee you it is one of these two “snake oils” I have been discussing throughout this post because they are cheap to make. And I hate to break it to you, but that’s the name of the game… how can I make this cheaper so I can make a bigger profit? It is all about money people! Do yourself a favor and start buying higher quality oils such as Olive oil, Avocado oil, Walnut oil, Coconut Oil, Sunflower oil, and other nut and seed oils. Pay the extra dollar or two up front and save yourself thousands of dollars on the back end in medical bills. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, medicine in the US Healthcare system is a laughing joke and quite possibly one of the greatest scams in United States history! Don’t get me wrong, there are times when the healthcare system has its positive benefits, but for the most part it is ridiculous, absurd, full of stupidity, and without a doubt, money driven.

What are your thoughts?

Please check back soon with Nourish Wild for the next addition of… Your Thoughts?

Resources used:

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0955286315000212

http://www.naturalnews.com/034733_canola_oil_rapeseed_food_labels.html#