A recent study funded by the USA government has revealed a worrying increase in colon cancer cases among younger individuals, which may be linked to the use of certain cooking oils. The research suggests that high consumption of seed oils such as sunflower, canola, corn, and grapeseed could lead to bodily inflammation, with this connection now being supported by more concrete evidence.
The pioneering study, focusing on American subjects, looked at tumours from over 80 people with colon cancer and pinpointed seed oils as a potential factor in the rise of this form of cancer. These tumours showed higher levels of bioactive lipids—small oily molecules that are produced when seed oils are metabolized—as reported in the esteemed Gut journal.
The investigation involved examining 81 tumour samples from individuals aged between 30 and 85, finding that these samples had increased amounts of oil-derived lipids compared to healthier fats within their tumours. Such lipids are notorious for exacerbating inflammation, promoting tumour growth, and hindering the body's innate cancer defences.
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The scientists behind the study are advocating for a switch to oils abundant in omega-3 fatty acids, like those found in olives and avocados, to mitigate these risks. In light of these findings, President-Elect Donald Trump's nominee for Health and Human Services Secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, has previously warned about the danger of Americans being "unknowingly poisoned" by widespread cooking oils.
Wellness advocates have been left scratching their heads, as it turns out that despite the maelstrom of blog posts and health claims, there's zilch evidence that seed oils, when consumed in moderation, spark cancer, according to top US health bodies. But not all medical experts are buying it, Surrey Live.
Stanford University School of Medicine's distinguished professor Dr Christopher Gardner, who also moonlights as a nutritional scientist at Stanford's Prevention Research Centre, shed light on the matter while having a chat with heart.org last August. His no-nonsense take on the use of oils in the kitchen was clear: "People are cooking with these oils, not drinking them. In a situation where you need some kind of fat for cooking or food preparation, you can use plant oils or you can use butter or lard."
When it comes to dietary fats, Gardner didn't beat about the bush, claiming, "Very consistently, all the data say butter and lard are bad for our hearts. And studies show swapping out saturated fats and replacing them with unsaturated fats lowers the risk for heart disease."
Meanwhile, Americans are swigging seed oils like never before, with current figures at a whacking 100 pounds a head each year – that's a whopping increase since the 1950s, clocking in at over 1,000 times more.
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