Dr. Weeks’ Comment: Only avoid seed oils if they are rendered toxic in the processing and if they are not organic. If you can find organic, non-rancid, non-oxidized seed oils which are not doused with glyphosate (RoundUp™), say a Grace and dig in!
Not only Americans, but world citizens around the globe all should be grateful to Bobby Kennedy for his courageous work improving the quality and purity of food.
One of the most important messages that Bobby shares is the toxicity of omega-6 seed oils in our diet.
By “omega-6” he means that the double chemical bond occurs 6 carbons from the start of the 18-carbon molecule, in contrast to omega-3 fish oil where the first double bond occurs three carbons from the start of a molecule which is also 18 carbons long.
By “seed” oils, he is referring to the rancid, adulterated, highly processed vegetable oils like canola (rape seed), corn oil and soy oil. These are the top three omega-6 seed oils in our diet.
One of the great dietary ironies of our times is the fact that, almost without exception, when my patients who are gluten intolerant travel to Italy or France and eat the wheat pasta and wheat bread in those European countries, most suffer no bad reaction. My conclusion is simply that it’s not usually the gluten and gliaden which are toxic, but rather the fact that the gluten and gliaden in the American wheat is doused with glyphosate (Round Up™). Many of these poor souls aren’t gluten intolerant, rather they are poison intolerant!
Why does big agribusiness insist on poisoning the food that they then want to market to the American public? Why is glyphosate so commonly used on crops, including those that create seed oils? The reason is because glyphosate is a desiccant. It dries out the plant it is sprayed on. What this does is it helps “preserve” the crop and make it less susceptible to mold or degradation. So typically, right before harvest, the soy, corn and rapeseed crops are sprayed with glyphosate as the first of many unhealthy, preservation strategies.
In my clinical experience, glyphosate and other aspects of chemical processing of omega-6 seed oils are the main reason for their toxicity. In and of themselves, assuming they’re not intoxicated with glyphosate and other oxidizing processes, not only are omega 6 seed oils healthy, but I maintain that we have a relative deficiency of healthy omega-6 seed oils and that, in out of itself, is a health catastrophe. As Dr. Carroll maintains we suffer a “famine” of healthy omega 6 oil.
I used to recommend fish oil supplements to all of my patients. Over a decade ago, I learned enough to no longer do that. Now I advise my patients to eat wild caught fish (avoid farmed fish) but to not eat fish oil supplements.
Having studied the excellent (albeit highly disruptive) work of Brian Peskin, I recommend not eating fish oil capsules and instead eating healthy omega-6 seed oils.
Prof. Peskin is one of the top cell membrane physiologists -despite being entirely self-taught. If you’re taking fish oil capsules, I urge you to look at these links, which I’ve posted before and do some research about parent essential oils.
Where do we find omega-6 oils in nature? They concentrate in the structures which perpetuate life. Wow! That should tell us something. The ancients taught “Life comes from life.” and “If you wish to be vital, eat living food.” For example, human and mammalian breastmilk is loaded with omega-6 oil compared to omega-3 oil. That fact alone would give anyone pause who seeks to demonize omega-6 oils. (Omega-6 is 12-15% of breast milk lipids whereas DHA from omega-3 is practically nonexistent: 0.2-0.3%)
The other structure aside from maternal breasts which perpetuates life itself, of course, is the seed. In order to reproduce itself, the plant invests most of its nutrients into its seeds. The seed is its ticket to the future. For example, the five apple seeds which typically accompany an apple have 20 to 30 times more nutrients, in terms of amino acids, vitamins, and minerals, compared to the flesh of the apple itself, which offers little but sugar, water and fiber. And what do we uninformed culinary consumers do? We eat the sweet flesh of the apple and we toss the core containing the nutrient dense seeds. The seeds are the nutritional treasure chest of nature. And the seeds are where the omega-6 oil is concentrated. The omega-6 oils have been demonized not because they are in and of themselves toxic, but because they have been intoxicated during the chemical processing.
I have spent decades clarifying to my patients that avoiding seed oils is smart because tragically, most of the seed oils have been rendered toxic through the processing. But if you can find healthy omega-6 seed oils which are non-oxidized, non-rancid and most importantly, not drenched with glyphosate, well then, those should be consumed gratefully.
So please heed Bobby Kennedy’s wise words to avoid seed oils because indeed ~ 98% of them on the market are bad for you… because of the way they were processed. However, if you’re able to get your hands on unadulterated omega-6 seed oils, which have NOT been oxidized and made rancid in the processing, well then, consider yourself fortunate! Not only flax oil, but Evening Primrose oil, Borage oil, walnut oil… all these seed or nut oils are highly beneficial. That said: my favorite three omega-6 seed oils are mixed in a product called Soul. The three seed oils include black cumin seed oil, the most powerful anti-inflammatory oil known to man. My second favorite is black or red raspberry seed oil and third is powerful Chardonnay grapeseed oil. If you were to Google the health benefits of these three oils, black cumin seed oil, black raspberry seed oil, and Chardonnay grapeseed oil you would find that they contribute powerfully to health in the face of many illnesses. Black cumin seed oil is referenced in the Quran where it said to “cure everything but death.”
So, eat the seed and eat the seed oils but only if they’re organic, non-GMO and not adulterated or rendered toxic in the processing. This is a very important caveat. The seeds you eat must be organic. Why is that important? It’s because, just as the plant concentrates nutrients in the seed, please remember that oil is always the repository for toxins. The flavor is in the fat, but so are the toxins. All living organisms use oil as a quarantine or repository for toxins. Therefore, if you’re eating the oily part of the plant, which is the seed, make sure it’s an organic plant otherwise you will eat, not just the concentrated nutrients, but also the concentrated toxins. (Same thing with liver – organic healthy, non-organic liver is toxic for the same reasons!)
The wise healers have always followed nature and her immutable laws. Paracelsus (1493–1541) taught us that true healing comes from natural forces, not from the physician. He taught his students to identify, mimic and enhance natural healing processes. So I hope today that you have learned to appreciate the nature of the seed and the oils therein.
Finally, any humble physician should encourage you to get a second opinion, so let’s get a second opinion now about seeds. I suggest we ask God what he thinks…
Psalm 139:14 reminds us that we humans are “fearfully and wonderfully made” and I maintain that we should heed the wisdom in Genesis 1:29 where God commands: “Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.“ (Note the pronoun “it” is singular and refers to the seed).
Finally, eat the healthy seed and oppose the sinister trend of having our fruit be delivered to us seedless! I like the watermelon seeds and they are good for you!