What About Your Cooking Oils?

Have you ever thought about the oils you cook with? Until I started researching the Paleo diet, I didn't give them one thought. Everyone uses pretty much the same ones - canola or olive oil, right? Everyone on the Food Network does. So, you would think they were safe to use, but they're definitely NOT safe.

Why Vegetable Oils are Bad

Vegetable oils are unsaturated fats. They are liquid at room temperature and oxidize easily. If you were to leave them out, uncovered, in a week (maybe sooner) they would be rancid. If you were to do that same thing with a saturated fat, such as coconut oil, it would be perfectly fine. Unsaturated fats are susceptible to damage from not only air (like being left out), but also light and heat. Yes, it damages the fat when you cook it. 

When you eat unsaturated fats, like Canola Oil, your body won't recognize it as food. It will be treated like a toxin and will be stored in your fat cells instead of being digested like food. Too many toxins leads to inflammation. 

According to the University of Florida - 4.6% of the fatty acids in Canola oil are plastic due to the refining process.

Canola Oil

A few things I noticed when watching this video was:

70 Minute Chemical Solvent Wash

20 Minute Sodium Hydroxide Wash

Bleaching for Color

We're supposed to eat that? 

The chemical solvent used Canola extraction process is usually Hexane. According to EPA.gov, in addition to Canola Oil, it is used in Rubber Cement, Varnishes & Inks. It's also used in the processing of other oils, like peanut oil. I was most surprised to see this on the EPA site:

"No information is available on the reproductive or development effects of Hexane in humans."

Seriously bad! I didn't know what sodium hydroxide was, either. I found out that it's in floor stripping products, brick cleaners, drain cleaners, metal polishes and oven cleaners! I don't want to eat something that is used for cleaning out drains. 

Lastly, they didn't like the ugly color, so they BLEACHED it. Bleach is good for you, right? Cleans your insides.

*Olive Oil can be used for cold applications, like in salad dressings.

Transfats

Transfats are in man-made saturated fats like Crisco, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, Country Crock and others. Transfats are know to wreak havoc in your body and are linked to cancer, diabetes, decreased immune function, reproduction problems and obesity. Obviously, this not a good food choice.

Heart Disease and other heart problems are the #1 cause of death in the US with most Americans eating unsaturated fats that claim to be heart healthy. If they're so healthy, why so many deaths?

So, what should we cook with instead?

Cook with saturated fats, of course! most Read this article on why Fat is GOOD for you. My favorites and most widely available  fats are Coconut Oil and Grassfed Butter. They are safe for high heat cooking and you don't have to go to a grocery store like Whole Foods to find them, even Walmart has coconut oil. 

Coconut Oil, It's a Good Thing

Coconut oil has antimicrobial, antibacterial, antifungal & antioxidant properties.

It's also a high source of Medium Chain Fatty Acids. Why is that good? The longer the chain is, the harder the fat is for the body to digest. Shorter chains are good for people with Diabetes or gallbladder problems, too. 

Grassfed Butter Benefits

Grassfed Butter contains the following: Vitamin A, Vitamin K2, Conjugated Linoleic Acid, Omega 3 fatty acids & Omega 6 fatty acids. Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) helps the body combat cancer, high blood pressure, osteoporosis & food based allergies. It cannot be made by your body, it has to be ingested. The best sources for CLA are grassfed dairy and grassfed beef. If you can't afford grassfed beef, grassfed butter would be a great cooking fat to use (and if your body tolerates it, of course). Grassfed Butter is a super food!

Places to Buy

Look for unrefined Coconut oil. As you can see from the photo above, I did not buy unrefined. Sad face. I mainly use butter, so I'm ok with that. THE BEST coconut oil is made by Tropical Traditions, which you can only order online. Watch for sales. Like today, they are having their gallon size 50% off!  Regular grocery stores carry coconut oil, too, even Walmart.

Good grassfed butter brands are Kerrygold, Anchor and Organic Valley (be sure it's the grassfed kind). Do a search to see if your grocery store carries it. Chances are, it does.

The Bottom Line

Whether you are Paleo or not, you should switch out your cooking fats. It's a simple, easy change that will make a huge difference in your health! Next time you go grocery shopping, buy some coconut oil and grassfed butter!

Don't Like to Read? Listen Instead!

I just finished listening to an excellent podcast on grains, dairy and a few other topics.  I think it would be great for someone who is still on the fence about Paleo or new to Paleo. Seriously,  listen!

It's only an hour long and you don't need an iPod. You can probably use whatever device you are using to read this blog.

Balanced Bites - Episode #18 Paleo 101 Part 1

What is Paleo?

Hello there, welcome to my first blog! I've always wanted to blog, but I really wasn't passionate about anything to blog about, until now. I talk about the Paleo lifestyle a lot in real life. I worry about it being annoying to my family sometimes, but they need to hear it. Being healthy is important. So, I thought about a blog. It's a great way for me to "talk" about what I love & get information to my family & friends on their time when they feel like reading this blog.

First, I should explain what Paleo is. Keep in mind, this is not a diet people follow to lose the last unwanted pounds before swimsuit season. It's not a diet you count calories and points. It's a way of eating for the rest of your life. I know that's dramatic, but it's true. Of course, there will be times when you'll eat something not Paleo and that's ok. Life should be enjoyable and if you feel like having ice cream once in a while, go for it. 

What to Eat

Let's get to the nitty gritty - I'm sure you're wondering what you should eat and what you should avoid when eating Paleo. Here it is:

Eat:

• Meat / Fish
• Vegetables / Fruit
• Fats
• Seeds / Nuts

Avoid:

• Dairy
• Legumes
• Refined Sugar
• Grains              

The avoid list is probably freaking you out a little, isn't it? Grain and dairy are very prominent in the Standard American Diet, so it may seem like it's impossible to eat this way. It's not. 

The main focus of the modern Paleo diet is nutrient density. Most of what you eat will have a great deal of vitamins and minerals. Those are called micronutrients, you'll see that word a lot. Even sweeteners and cooking oils will have something that will benefit your body!

Intolerance's

Now, there is wiggle room.  For example,  I eat grassfed butter. It's dairy, obvs. Grassfed butter is considered a super food to the Paleo community. If you tolerate dairy or that form of dairy,  you should eat the butter!  When you first start the Paleo diet you want to cut out all the bad foods, probably for at least a month.  That's what I did.  When I started eating dairy a little I found out that I do not tolerate it in the form of yogurt, cheese & milk. I can tolerate butter.  Yogurt and cheese gave me digestive issues,  for others it may give them skin irritation.  Everyone's different. Just be aware of what symptoms you're experiencing.

Cooking Oils

Something else that's a little different is your cooking oils. You will have to stop cooking with canola oil, vegetable oil (which is probably soy), even olive oil.  Those oils are unstable at high heat & canola and vegetable oils are very processed. Instead,  you will cook with coconut oil, grassfed butter, ghee (clarified butter), or animal fat! I'll go into more detail on cooking fats/oils in an upcoming post.

The cooking fats I use most.

Fat & Cholesterol

Eating fat does NOT MAKE you fat. When you stop eating an American Standard Diet,  your body will start to burn fat for energy.  You need fat! Now, I'm not talking about trans fats here. I'm talking about fats like omega 3s.  Same with cholesterol,  eating cholesterol only increases your cholesterol by only 1% of the amount you just ate.  AND your body needs it, your cells are made of cholesterol (a great book on cholesterol is "Cholesterol Clarity" by Jimmy Moore)

Grade B Maple Syrup, Dried Dates, Raw Honey & Coconut Sugar

Sugars

Sugar is bad for you.  I think everyone knows that, but i want to refresh your memory. Too much sugar can cause liver disease, heart disease, and cancer.  Also,  sugar makes you hungrier by releasing a hunger hormone, Leptin. Not only are you eating sugar, but you are also eating more than you normally would because of the Leptin release. On this diet when you want something sweet, you should use raw honey, grade b maple syrup, coconut sugar, dates, etc. These sweeteners have micronutrients! At least when you have a treat,  it will do your body some good.   You may be wondering why only raw honey and not regular honey.  That's because the pasteurization takes out the nutrients. Same thing for maple syrup.  Try to avoid refined sugar and keep the your intake of sugar low.

Processed Foods

One last thing,  no processed foods are allowed.  Most processed foods are made of sugar & grain. Even food that appears to be Paleo compliant,  is probably not.  There's corn and soy in most packaged food.  To be clear, corn is a grain and soy is a legume - both on the no list. It'd be nice if we could just have real food instead of weird additives like corn syrup and soy lecithin in our food. Take Chocolate for example - it's allowed on the Paleo diet. BUT, you have to be careful because soy lecithin is in chocolate 9 times out of 10. Why?! Who knows? A good brand of chocolate is Lindt. The 90% chocolate bars have very little sugar, no weird ingredients and are easy to find in grocery stores.

This may be overwhelming for some people.  It's a lot of information and science all at once.  Just take your time and research. You may not want to do it because it seems too hard. Being unhealthy is harder. Or you don't want to give up your morning cereal or ice cream. There are Paleo versions of those! You may be thinking about your budget. You can make this fit your budget. Think about the money on soda you'll save. It's up to $2 for a 2-liter now! Think about money you'll save on doctor & dentist bills! Hopefully,  you get my point.  Start small,  don't get overwhelmed & stress out. Maybe instead of cereal for breakfast, you could eat egg muffins (just scramble the eggs and add meat and veggies. Bake in muffin tins) or Paleo granola and coconut milk.  Or stop drinking soda and drink water or tea instead.  The Paleo Mom has I quote I love - "It's only effort until it's routine". So true.

I can't possibly tell you everything about the Paleo diet. I'll leave it to the experts.  I really like Diane Sanfillipo's way of explaining the Paleo diet and the science behind it.  Click here to read her explanation of the paleo diet & check out her book - Practical Paleo. I think it's a great first Paleo book.  It's half information,  half recipes.

Here are a couple of my favorite Paleo recipes just to give you an idea of what Paleo food is like. I've made both of these multiple times & they are a couple of my husband's favorites.  Click the link for the recipes.

Fried chicken in Coconut Oil

Grain-free Chocolate Chip Cookies!

I've touched on it here, but in my next post,  I'll talk more about grains.