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Seed oils have come under fire, with Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., leading the charge, saying Americans are being “poisoned” by themWhile they can cause inflammation, Julia Zumpano, a registered dietitian with the Center for Human. Nutrition at the Cleveland Clinic says the bigger problem is that they’re used in ultra-processed foodThe issue is less about the seed oils themselves and more about the foods they’re in
Seed oils — a type of processed oil found in packaged food and used for deep-frying — have come under fire, with the secretary of health and human services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posting on X that Americans are being “unknowingly poisoned.”
Wellness influencers have joined in, decrying them as the “hateful eight”: specifically, canola, corn, cottonseed, soybean, sunflower, safflower, grapeseed, and rice bran oils.
The real story is a bit more complicated. “They’re not poison, but we’re poisoning ourselves with everything else that’s ultra-processed and processed that may be cooked in seed oils,” Julia Zumpano, registered dietitian with the Center for Human Nutrition at the Cleveland Clinic, tells PEOPLE.
Stock image of French fries in a restaurant fryer.
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“The bigger picture is the fact that we’re eating way too much of seed oils, which happen to be found in highly processed foods,” she explains. “That’s where I see the problem.”
On their own, seed oils are high in Omega-6 fat, which Zumpano says is linked to increased inflammation. But, as she explains, “instead of deep frying chicken in beef tallow versus the seed oil, let’s just focus on the fact that fried chicken is not really that good for us.”
Beef tallow, which Kennedy has touted as a healthier option, does have some benefits, Zumpano tells PEOPLE. “There’s nutrients in it, fat-soluble vitamins that are essential.” But when you’re using it to cook highly processed foods, she explains, “we’re just flip-flopping between two issues that aren’t necessarily better.”
As she explains, “We’re heavily focused on the seed oils and not necessarily focused on the fact that the foods that they’re in are so processed: sauces and dressings and baked goods and potato chips and candy bars and granola bars and protein bars. Even coffee creamers are loaded with seed oils,” she says.
They’re in highly processed food because they’re more cost-effective to make, Zumpano explains: “It’s cheaper and quicker and easier to process it with chemicals and solvents.”
But if you’re cooking at home, she says, with “cold pressed or hi-oleic sunflower seed oil, or a canola oil and you’re drizzling it, pan-frying some fish with it, there are no health concerns like inflammation.
“We should just focus on really eliminating highly, ultra-processed and processed foods and going back to basics. Again, if you’re gonna use the beef tallow at home to cook your eggs, fine — or the canola oil.
“You’re using it in moderation, a small amount, just to get the job done versus deep frying a doughnut or deep frying french fries or deep frying whatever breaded food or processed fried food you’re consuming.”
Stock image of cooking oils.
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Ultimately, “It’s not the oil itself. It’s the food that’s found in the oil that is more of the problem.” If someone were to ban seed oils out of their diet, “that’s great, because they’re probably cutting out a bunch of junk food,” she says.
“But I don’t think anyone needs to be very fearful if their grandma made muffins with canola oil. They’re gonna be okay if they eat that.”
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