Rethinking fat-Food For Thought

At our holiday get-together with friends and family at the farm, I was asked about why seed oils like canola should be avoided.  Since we started our whole foods journey 12 years ago, I have followed the school of thought that industrial seed oils should be avoided, but I was surprised to find I couldn't quickly explain why, so I decided to dig deeper into the reasons. Here’s what I learned.

For decades, we were told that vegetable and seed oils were the “heart-healthy” choice—and that traditional fats like lard and tallow were something to fear. As more research piles up, we are seeing a decline in our overall health during the same time we were ‘sold’ this belief that processed fats were ‘good’ and natural fats were ‘bad’, many people are beginning to ask a different question:

What fats have humans actually thrived on for generations?

A quick look at industrial seed oils

Oils such as canola, soybean, corn, cottonseed, and sunflower oils are not traditional foods. 

They’re highly industrial products, made by:

• High-heat processing
• Chemical solvents (often hexane)
• Deodorizing and bleaching to remove rancid smells

These oils are extremely high in omega-6 polyunsaturated fats, which are prone to oxidation—especially when heated. Oxidized fats are associated with increased inflammation, and inflammation plays a role in many modern health issues. 

These oils are considered RBD oils.  Meaning Refined, Bleached, and Deodorized.  

• • Refined using an acid wash to neutralize fatty acids
  • Bleached to make them look the same.  That’s why canola, corn, and soy oils look nearly identical in the bottle at the store.
  • Deodorized to remove any distinctive smell or taste.  This allows any of the seed oils to be used without changing the overall taste and smell of the final product.  

I’m sure you’ve noticed on bags of chips where it says “Vegetable oil (sunflower, corn, and/or canola).  

The RBD process allows oils from many different seeds to have no unique flavor, smell, or appearance, so food manufacturers can pick whichever has the lowest price at the time.Seed oils are now found in nearly every ultra-processed food—from crackers and salad dressings to restaurant fryers—meaning most people consume them daily, often unknowingly.  

It’s easy to avoid these oils when cooking at home and nearly impossible to avoid when eating prepared or processed foods.  I think awareness is key: know that they are not beneficial to overall health and be mindful of how much you consume, but don’t cause yourself additional stress when you can’t fully avoid them.

Traditional fats stood the test of time.

Long before industrial oils existed, cultures around the world relied on stable, naturally occurring fats:  

• Lard (rendered pork fat)– rich, satisfying, flavorful, and ideal for cooking.  Fat leftover from cooking pork belly, like bacon, is also a great cooking option.
• Tallow (most often rendered beef fat, but can be from other grazing animals) – nourishing, heat-stable, and used for generations for cooking and skin care
• Coconut oil – used for centuries in tropical cultures and now, with easy international transport, a staple of whole-foods and paleo-style eating; rich in saturated fats that remain stable at high heat
• Olive oil – a cornerstone of Mediterranean diets for thousands of years.  
• Avocado oil – naturally high in monounsaturated fats and very heat-stable.  We use this for frying and high-heat cooking, when lard is not an option (mostly when we have company that does not eat pork).  Also, my favorite oil for homemade mayonnaise (Recipe)  

These fats:

• Are more stable when heated (olive oil is an exception; high-quality Extra-virgin often has a lower smoke point, meaning it should be used for dressing and toppings, not for cooking)
• Contain and help our bodies use fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K). All those years we were told to eat our veggies in low- or no-fat ways meant we were leaving these vitamins unusable to our bodies.
• Help us feel full and satisfied.  Blood-sugar levels are better regulated when quality fats are added to meals.
• They were consumed long before chronic metabolic disease became widespread

Why fat quality matters

Fat isn’t just fuel—it’s structural. Our brains, hormones, and cell membranes rely on it. When we replace traditional fats with industrial substitutes, we change how our bodies function at a cellular level.Choosing better fats doesn’t mean needing to be perfect—it means being intentional:

• Cooking with stable fats when possible 
• Reading ingredient labels and selecting with this knowledge.  Be mindful of labeling tricks.  One I’ve seen is “Olive Oil Mayo” that’s first ingredient is soybean or canola oil.
• Returning to simple, whole foods whenever possible 

Dietary cholesterol is not the enemy of the brain—it’s a building block.Traditional fats like lard, tallow, coconut oil, olive oil, and avocado oil provide the stable fatty acids the brain evolved to use. When we replace these with highly processed, oxidized seed oils, we changed the way we were feeding our bodies and our minds

Why our brains need fat and cholesterol

Your brain is nearly 60% fat by weight. Every thought, memory, and nerve signal depends on it.Fat isn’t just fuel—it’s structure. The membranes that surround brain cells are made largely of fat, and their flexibility determines how well signals move from one cell to the next. Diets too low in healthy fats can literally affect how efficiently the brain communicates.Cholesterol, in particular, plays a critical role:

• It helps build and maintain brain cell membranes.
• It’s essential for forming synapses (the connections between neurons)
• It supports the production of neurotransmitters.
• It’s involved in hormone production that affects mood and cognition.

Our brains contain about 25% of the body’s total cholesterol, even though they make up only about 2% of body weight.Supporting brain health isn’t about avoiding fat—it’s about choosing the kind it thrives on.Nourishing the health of our body and brain looks a lot like cooking the way our ancestors did

From our farm kitchen to yours

Using lard, tallow, or coconut oil isn’t a step backward—it’s a return to what worked long before food was engineered in a lab.
Sometimes progress looks like remembering how we used to do things.

That’s this Tuesday's Food for thought,

Aila