Seed oils have become the latest “scapegoat” in the health/nutrition world. Everywhere you look, “experts” are warning that canola, soybean, and sunflower oil are destroying your health. But here’s the truth: as someone who has lived the Zero Carb Carnivore lifestyle for nearly two decades, I believe this fear is misplaced.
The real enemy isn’t seed oils, it’s carbohydrates and chronically high blood sugar.
What Are Seed Oils?
Seed oils are cooking oils extracted from plants like soybeans, corn, sunflower, safflower, and canola. They’re commonly used in processed foods, fast foods and baked goods.
Critics argue that seed oils cause inflammation and metabolic issues. But here’s the problem: there’s little evidence that seed oils alone are responsible for modern health problems.
The Real Problem: High Blood Sugar
Let’s cut to the chase:
- Seed oils don’t raise blood sugar.
- Carbohydrates do.
- And it’s chronically high blood sugar that leads to inflammation, obesity, and chronic disease.
So why are carbs often ignored in this conversation? Because pointing the finger at bread, pasta, cookies, and soda would threaten entire food and medical industries. Think about it. If enough people stopped eating processed foods and got healthy, that means less processed foods being sold and less doctor visits and medications. That can add up to a lot of money lost to those industries.
Déjà Vu: Red Meat Was Blamed Too
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this play out. For decades, red meat was wrongly blamed for heart disease and cancer. Meanwhile, the real culprit, over consumption of carbohydrates, was largely ignored. Seed oils are just the latest scapegoat.
A Cookie made with butter is still a cookie!
Swapping canola oil for butter in a cookie doesn’t suddenly make it a health food. It’s still packed with flour and sugar, the real drivers of blood sugar spikes, insulin resistance, and metabolic damage.
My Zero Carb Carnivore Seed Oil Experience
When I started Zero Carb 18 years ago, I ate a lot of mayonnaise—Hellman’s and Duke’s, specifically. I don’t like avocado mayo, macadamia nut mayo, or homemade “healthy” versions.
Today, I rarely eat mayo, but when I do, I stick to the brands I like. I’m healthy, I’m not worried about ¼ cup of seed oil per year killing me or having any effect, at all, on my health.
Here’s the bigger point: if you’re eating a serious zero carb carnivore diet, your food is almost entirely seed oil–free by default. So why is this even an issue? Why is the Zero Carb community even talking about seed oils?!
Are Seed Oils Actually Healthy?
For those who want “studies,” research shows that seed oils can actually support heart health and are healthy! They aren’t the poison they’re being made out to be.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00394-017-1386-2
https://journals.plos.org/plosmedicine/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pmed.1000252
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25161045/
The Bottom Line
Seed oils are not the cause of poor health. Carbohydrates are.
If you want to avoid inflammation, obesity, and chronic disease, focus less on seed oils and more on reducing carbs and sugars.
