Dr. Steven Gundry:
Seed oils get a bad rap, and a lot of cases they definitely deserve it. They’re overly processed, they’re produced using insanely high temperatures that destroy nutrients, and often create harmful byproducts, and they’re often extracted from seeds using chemical processes like hexane. But, and this is a big but there are a few exceptions. So, today I’m sharing four of the healthiest seed oils you can eat, including one that used to be on my no list. All right, let’s start with number one by far my favorite, Perilla seed oil, or simply perilla oil. Now, perilla most people have not heard of, but you’ve probably at some time in your life, or currently have grown perilla plants either indoors, or in your garden as an ornamental. They’re known in the United States as the coleus plant. And if you want to go ahead, and Google it, and you’ll see exactly what I’m talking about, these are multicolored leaves that are absolutely gorgeous.
But if you allow these plants to go to seed, they produce seeds, and perilla oil is the number one oil in Korea, and much of China. It is used for cooking, it is used for everything, and it’s usually marketed as organic. So, why be interested in perilla oil? Well, perilla oil is one of the highest concentrations of a short chain omega fatty acid called alpha linoleic acid, ALA for short. Now it gets really confusing when we talk about short chain essential fatty acids. So, bear with me for a second. We call them essential fatty acids, because they are essential. We do not make them so we have to get them from our environment, from our food. And here’s what everybody forgets in talking about the evils of seed oils. So, these oils have some omega fats, which are called alpha-linolenic acid, and they have some omega-6 short-chain fatty acids, which are called alpha-linoleic acid.
Ooh, that sounds very similar. In fact, you can abbreviate them the same way ALA both short-chain omega-3, and short-chain omega-6 are essential for making membranes in our cells in our mitochondrial membrane. And what’s forgotten as we talk about the evils of omega-6 seed oils is the fact that we actually have to have some short-chain omega-6, and short-chain omega-3s in our diet. The question is too much of a good thing, too much of a good thing? And in fact, it is. Normally in nature, there’s about two to three parts more omega-6 fats than omega-3 fats in food that we eat. So, that ratio seems to be the natural one that we evolved eating. The problem with so many seed oils is that by now most of the oils that we eat from seeds are primarily omega-6 based, and not very much omega-3 based. So, that golden ratio gets really disturbed.
Now here’s the beauty of perilla oil. Perilla oil is almost exclusively alpha-linolenic acid. The omega-3. Yes, it does have some omega-6, but it’s a huge source of alpha-linolenic acid. So, what? Well, ALA, the omega-3 ALA uncouples mitochondria, which if you’ve read my books, is a really good thing to do. Excitingly it absolutely positively reduces LPSs getting into your bloodstream. I am shocked the power of alpha-linolenic acid in reducing LPSs in my patients. And this has been confirmed in experimental studies as well. And let me assure you, reducing the amount of lipopolysaccharides, these gram-negative bacterial cell walls that get through the wall of your gut is a really important thing for long-term health. There’s an interesting study that was done on athletes was found that perilla oil improved both the diversity of the gut microbiome, and the gut wall integrity. Now, it also contains a really cool compound called rosmarinic acid.
Now if you think that was first found in rosemary, you are correct. Rosmarinic acid is an incredible anti-inflammatory compound. It’s actually one of the most impressive anti-inflammatory compounds, and anti-allergens that anyone has ever discovered, and it actually produces neuronal growth by improving BDNF production. So, rosmarinic acid has been studied for a long time. Since looking at this group of individuals in a little town south of Naples, Italy called Acciaroli. And you may know that the Acciarolians, about 30% of the population of the small town are over 100 years of age. And what intrigued researchers was that these guys, number one, eat a lot of anchovies, small fish, which are loaded with omega-3, but they chew rosemary leaves fall day long, they use it to season their food. They actually gnaw on rosemary, and I actually like rosemary for that reason, too. But perilla oil has rosmarinic acid, and if you want to live to a ripe old age, that’s a great place to start.
So, perilla oil is my number one oil. Now how do you use it? I tend to use it mixed half, and half with olive oil for salad dressing, but it has a really bland flavor. So, with my patients who have really bad leaky gut, and lots of LPSs in their bloodstream, I just have them use perilla oil exclusively until I can get their gut back to normal. You can even cook with it. It has a high smoke point. So, I saute in perilla oil as well. Please look for the organic varieties, and they’re actually very easy to find. Most of the time you have to go on the internet, but we’re starting to see them appear in stores as its popularity increases. So, look for perilla oil, an amazing source of alpha-linolenic acid. Number two, flaxseed oil. Now flaxseed is also incredibly rich in alpha-linolenic acid, the omega-3 fat.
It’s also high in lignans, which are great for hormone balance, and antioxidant protection. Now interestingly enough, studies in animals have shown that flaxseed oil prevents gut damage caused by saturated fat diets. It tames LPS-producing bacteria in our gut like bacteroides fragilis, and it encourages good gut buddy growth all in a single packet. Now there’s an interesting study that I highlighted in my new book, The Gut-Brain Paradox. So, mice were fed a high saturated fat diet, but they were supplemented with ALA from either flaxseed oil, or perilla oil. They had reduced inflammation, lower endotoxemia, that’s these LPSs’s getting into their bloodstream, and improved metabolic markers. In other words, they were less insulin resistant even with a high fat diet. In some studies, alpha-linolenic acid, the omega-3 fat has been as effective as metformin, the popular diabetic drug for improving insulin resistance. So, that’s a good thing, but it does more than that.
There are brain benefits. ALA has been shown to degrade tau proteins, and obviously you don’t want a lot of tau proteins building up in your brain. It’s been shown to reduce neuroinflammation. It represses neuronal loss, and studies show it enhances memory, and cognitive function. Now that seems to be a reason that you ought to do it. Here’s the problem with flaxseed oil. First of all, flaxseed oil has an interesting flavor that some of my patients find off-putting. The other problem with flaxseed oil is once you open the bottle, you really need to refrigerate it because it really starts to oxidize very quickly, and goes rancid very quickly. That makes it fairly inconvenient for a lot of my patients. It’s amazing to me. The refrigerated products that I ask them to take frequently are forgotten. Or for people who are busy, or traveling, sitting in the refrigerator, usually on a shelf it gets bypassed.
On the other hand, because of its interesting flavor, it’s fun to combine flaxseed oil with olive oil, and, or perilla oil as an additional way to get more alpha-linolenic acid into your diet. All right, number three is organic canola oil. Yes, you heard me right. Organic canola oil, aka rapeseed oil gets a spot on this list. Now if you’ve read any of my previous books except Gut Check, or The Gut-Brain Paradox, you’ll probably notice that canola oil was on the no list, and quite frankly, there was, in my opinion a very good reason for this. But let me give you a little history behind rapeseed oil, and canola oil. So, rapeseed oil has a toxin which can be present in fairly high amounts in certain strains of rapeseed, and it is urethristic acid. There was a time back in the 1950s when in Europe rapeseed oil was adulterated, and processed with several toxic chemicals, and sold as olive oil, and it actually caused a major health issue in Spain.
And in fact, over 50,000 people were affected with what was called then a toxic oil syndrome. It turns out that it was actually this toxin that was activated by the heat process of rapeseed oil, but since that was outlawed, and since it was discovered, the toxin in rapeseed oil is not very high. However, the Canadian government hybridized the rapeseed plant to produce very low levels of urethristic acid, and they named it Canola Oil Canada get it, and began marketing canola oil as a safe form of rapeseed oil. The problem has been in the past that canola oil generally was sprayed with glyphosate Roundup for harvesting purposes. Now because it was sprayed with Roundup, many people to this day think that canola oil is genetically modified, that the canola plant is genetically modified. It is not. It was hybridized to have low levels of urethristic acid, and hybridization is not genetic modification, sorry.
The reason it was sprayed with glyphosate was it makes harvesting easier. So, the same reason that almost all grain products in the United States, and Canada are sprayed with glyphosate, our wheat, our oats, our rye, our barley is because a dead plant, a dried dead plant is easier to harvest, and you make a lot more money by harvesting dead plants because the water is removed, and water weight is very expensive to haul things around. So, in modern agriculture, the weed killer Roundup is sprayed on conventional crops to kill it before harvesting, and they don’t wash the dumb stuff off. So, if you can now find organic canola oil, it’s not sprayed with glyphosate. So, why should it get our attention? Well, multiple reasons. Number one, I have continually preached the Gospel of the Lion Heart Study. The Lion Heart study was taking 65-year-old people who had suffered a heart attack, and they were randomized into two groups for five years.
One group was given basically a Mediterranean diet, but their diet was supplemented with a rapeseed based margarine that people had to use instead of butter, or olive oil. The other group was given the low-fat American Heart Association, heart healthy diet to follow. The study was supposed to go for five years. The study was stopped after three years because the Rapeseed Oil margarine group had so much better outcome, had so fewer new events than the American Heart Association low-fat diet that it was unethical to continue the study. Now here’s the really interesting part, and this diet has been debated up, and down, but what really impressed me after looking at all the factors between these two diets, the only single finding that correlated with the results of the study was the level of alpha-linolenic acid in the patient’s blood. The only factor where did the alpha-linolenic acid come from?
You guessed it. It was the rapeseed margarine. So, canola oil was used, it’s even better than a rapeseed, because this little toxin is just not present. So, canola oil is a rich source of alpha-linolenic acid. Yes, it also has alpha-linoleic acid, the omega-6 fat, but in terms of the seed oils that are generally available to us, canola oil has already passed the test in a human trial of heart disease prevention. So, why wouldn’t you want it in your diet now that organic canola oil is available? Now, once again, it is not GMO, and never was GMO. It was hybridized rapeseed oil, and just fun fact rapeseed is part of the cruciferous vegetable family, a brassica vegetable, just like very similar to mustard oil. Okay, canola oil is also high in phytosterols, high in vitamin E. Again, remember that we want omega-3s in our cell membranes.
We want omega-3s in our mitochondrial membranes, and this is just a great way to get it into our diet. Studies, once again, I’ll say it over, and over again, it improves microbiome diversity, it improves vessel health, and studies of ALA show that it really improves the lining of our blood vessels called the glycocalyx, and you can find more references about this in my bestseller Gut Check. Now, pro-tip here, always look for organic canola oil, and it’s beginning to be available. If it doesn’t say organic, please don’t buy it, because it’s almost certainly been sprayed with glyphosate. Okay, number four, sesame oil. Now this is at the bottom of my list for okay seed oils because I see actually many patients in my practice have a sensitivity to sesame, and sesame oil. But having said that, sesame oil is a fan favorite, particularly toasted because it has a very interesting, unique flavor that is prevalent in Asian cooking, but I’m talking about plain, un-toasted sesame oil, and it’s got some serious health benefits.
In one human study, participants with high blood pressure took two tablespoons of sesame oil daily. The result, their blood pressure dropped dramatically, and when they stopped the sesame oil, the blood pressure went right back up. Now, we think why it works is because sesame oil does block LPSs, these lipopolysaccharides from getting through the wall of our gut, and believe me, lipopolysaccharides contribute to inflammation as well as leaky gut. Now, final thoughts. All seed oils are not evil, but it’s not just what you eat, it’s how it’s grown, sourced, and processed. Now you’re wondering, well, coconut’s a seed. What about coconut oil? Well, coconut oil has definitely some benefits for cooking. It’s incredibly high heat tolerant. It has a very high smoke point, but why isn’t it mentioned as one of the greatest oils of all time on my list? I’m a huge fan as you know of polyphenols in oils. One of my main reasons for recommending olive oil is the very high polyphenol content in olive oil. Sadly, coconut oil has a 10th of the polyphenol content of olive oil.
So, if you are looking at oils as a delivery device for something useful like alpha-linolenic acid, or like rosmarinic acid, or polyphenols, then coconut oil despite its high smoke point just isn’t at the top of my list because it just doesn’t have a benefit that you’re going to get from it. Now you say, “Hold on, Dr. Gundry coconut oil is full of medium chain triglycerides”, and that’s absolutely true. Unfortunately, the vast majority of the medium chain triglycerides in coconut oil are not the ketogenic medium chain triglycerides, and that’s why it’s not listed as one of my top oils. So, my recommendation for brain health, for skin health, for gut health, olive oil, perilla oil, but flax seeds, sesame, and organic canola oil are all worth your interest, and get them into your regimen. There are healthy seed oils, get over it, and try them out.
Today I’m revealing hidden gem nuts you’ve probably never heard of each packed with unique health benefits to boost your nutrition. Now some of these are not nuts, but they’re seeds, or tubers, they just happen to look like nuts still, you should know all about them. Now before we get going, don’t forget to share, and subscribe. All right, number one, sacha inchi, sometimes called the Inca Peanut. Sacha inchi is a seed from the Amazon known for its high omega-3 content. Now it’s rich in omega-3 fatty acids. It contains alpha-linolenic acid, a plant-based short chain omega-3 that is really one of the best omega-3 fats that you can have. I go on, and on, and on about how important alpha-linolenic acid is. It actually blocks LPSs from getting through the wall of your gut. Alpha-linolenic acid is the hallmark of the famous Lyon Heart Diet Study, where people with a heart attack were randomized to a low-fat American Heart Association diet, or a diet that include a margarine made from alpha-linolenic acid.
And lo, and behold, this study, which was supposed to go five years, was stopped after three years, because the group that got the alpha-linolenic acid did so much better in avoiding new heart attacks that it was unethical to continue with the low-fat American Heart Association diet. Great stuff indeed, and it’s a great source of this short chain omega-3 fat. They’re also very high in protein. They actually contain all the essential amino acids, so that’s important for muscle repair, and immune support. They’re also loaded with antioxidants. They contain vitamin E, which protects against oxidative stress. Studies have shown that sacha inchi oil can even prevent fat accumulation in the liver. Other recent studies have highlighted sacha inchi’s potential in managing inflammatory conditions like rheumatoid arthritis. Sacha inchi’s, anti-inflammatory properties may work by modulating immune responses, and influencing gut microbiota, which could make it a natural support option for arthritis, and other inflammatory disease.
Now, I recommend eating a small handful about an ounce per day, and it’s plenty to reap the benefits without overdoing it. All right, number two, tiger nuts. Now tiger nuts have been eaten for thousands of years in Africa, and there is some evidence that ancient humans actually got much of their nutrition from these nuts. They’re not a nut at all, even though they’re called a tiger nut, they are a tuber, and they are a great source of prebiotic fiber. It’s very high in resistant starch. Now remember, prebiotic fiber, particularly those found in tubers feed good gut bacteria, promoting a healthier microbiome. Tiger nuts are rich in magnesium, and potassium. Most of my patients, particularly with skipped heartbeats with atrial fibrillation are very low in magnesium, and potassium. Most adults are low in magnesium, and potassium, so these are essential minerals for bone, and heart health, and it’s great for natural appetite control.
Now, thanks to the high fiber content, tiger nuts keep you fuller longer, and because they’re feeding your gut microbiome, the microbiome literally sends text messages up to your brain saying, “Hey, thanks a lot.” We’re eating this stuff, our needs are met, and you don’t have to go looking for other things. And that’s the benefit of fiber. Fiber doesn’t expand, and make you feel full, not at all. It actually feeds the good gut bacteria that tell you you’re full, because they’re full. Now tiger nuts do have a high oleic acid content. Oleic acid is in olive oil, and even though that’s not as great a heart health contributor as most people think about their unique fiber profile is really what you are going to get from these nuts. Same way when most nuts. About a handful is really what you’re going to want to eat. Now, word to the wise, please buy peeled tiger nuts.
I have tried unpeeled tiger nuts, and it is an experience you don’t want to repeat. You will definitely crack several tooth fillings, et cetera, get the peeled tiger nuts, it’ll be worth it. All right, how about baru nuts. Now these are grown in the savannas of Brazil. Baru nuts are nutrient dense, and environmentally sustainable. Our friend Doran Olyon, check out his interview in the past on this podcast. As a great brand, it’s easily accessible on Amazon called Baruca Nuts. Now why do I like Baruca Nuts so much? First of all, they’re very high in protein, and also in soluble fiber. Baruca Nuts provide more protein, and fiber than most other nuts making them once again, great for satiety. They’re also packed with polyphenols, and amino acids. They have a very high antioxidant capacity as measured by an ORAC score of about 6,000 per serving, and they’re great for combating free radical damage.
Now the other good news is compared to other nuts, baru nuts are lower in calories, making them a great option for those watching their weight. In fact, one study found that incorporating 20 grams of baru nuts daily, improved the good HDL cholesterol, and helped reduce waist circumference among overweight women, which again is likely due to their high fiber, and mono, and polyunsaturated fat content, and the antioxidants. Again, how much is the right amount? About a handful. Also remember that baru nuts are roasted. In fact, anyone claiming that they’re going to sell you raw baru nuts, you can’t eat raw baru nuts, so don’t worry about it. All right, number four, pili nuts. Now these originated from the Philippines, and also Indonesia. Pili nuts are known for their buttery texture, and are ideal for low-carb diets. I actually have a full episode discussing the full benefits of pili nuts here on this channel featuring Jason Thomas, the founder of Pili Hunters.
Now they’re really interesting fats. They’re very high in mono unsaturated fats, but they’re also very high in some very interesting saturated fats, and that’s actually where that really creamy texture comes from, and that’s why they’ve been a darling of the keto diet movement. The nice thing about them because of their high good saturated fat content is that they store for an extremely long time without going rancid. Most nuts, as you probably know, once you peel them, once you take them out of their shell begin to go rancid fairly quickly. And that’s why whenever you’re buying nuts, make sure you’re buying nuts from a high turnover store like for instance Costco, or Trader Joe’s. But pili nuts are really shelf stable, and that deserves our interest. They’re also very high in magnesium, and that’s, again, important for muscle function, relaxation, and even blood sugar control. Now, I recommend eating a small handful, or less a day.
Pili nuts are really high in fat, so a little goes a long way. And the nice thing about pili nuts is that really a little dab will do you. They are so rich, and creamy that you’re really not going to need much to satisfy your taste buds, and that’s one of their benefits. All right, number five, chestnuts. Well, you may have heard of chestnuts roasting on an open fire in your favorite Christmas song, but have you ever seen them before? If visited a big city like New York City in the winter, you can find chestnut, roasted chestnut vendors. They’re used extensively in Europe, but unfortunately they’re hard to find. Now, why are they so great for you? Number one, they’re high in resistant starches, prebiotic fiber, which is this prebiotic that feeds beneficial gut bacteria. Number two, they’re really low on the glycemic index, which means you don’t get a blood sugar spike, making them a great choice for people with diabetes, or insulin resistance.
Number three, they’re packed with antioxidants like vitamin C, gallic acid, and ellagic acid, which help combat oxidative stress, and reduce inflammation. Now, studies suggest that these compounds protect against chronic diseases such as heart disease, and cancer by neutralizing free radicals. Number four, chestnuts are also a good source of potassium. Again, potassium is essential for regulating your blood pressure, and actually combating arrhythmias skipped heartbeats. Addition, their high fiber content helps lower LDL quote, bad cholesterol levels, and research indicates that a fiber-rich diet is linked to a reduced risk of stroke, and heart attacks. Now, how best to eat them when you find them? Well, luckily you can find them in jars, they’re usually in glass jars, and you eat them, I find the best way is to slice them, and put them in salads, or incorporate them in your stews, or other cooking. If you’re lucky enough to be in Europe, or big cities during the winter, and you get them roasted, you eat them just like it sounds, you peel them off, and eat them, and they’re absolutely delicious.
Interestingly enough, chestnut flour is very popular in Europe as a baking flour, and some of the best cakes, and cookies I’ve ever had are actually made with chestnut flour as the ingredient. We can find chestnut flour in the United States. A lot of Italian markets do stock it, but it’s also on the internet. So, think about adding chestnut flour as one of your top baking essentials. Number one, ignoring the origin of the olive oil. Now, good olive oil comes from reputable regions with a tradition of quality. Look for bottles that specify a single source like Italy, like Greece, or Spain, or Morocco, or Tunisia instead of blended oils from multiple countries. Single origin oils almost always have better traceability, and superior quality. Believe it, or not, olive oil is shipped in tankers like gasoline, and believe it, or not, when you see multinational oils, or you see on the label this olive oil packed in Italy, but these are where they came from, run the other way even if it just mentions two countries of origin, that’s one country too many.
Now, before we get to number two, if you like what we’re doing here at the Dr. Gundry Podcast, please don’t forget to like, and subscribe, and please share with your friends, and loved ones. All right, number two, buying light olive oil. Now, don’t be fooled. There is absolutely nothing light about it. The word light just refers to the flavor, not the calorie content. Light olive oil is usually heavily refined, and lacks the beneficial properties of extra virgin olive oil, the polyphenols. They also tend to be blended with other inferior oils to bulk them up, and lessen that bitterness that you associate with high quality olive oil. You actually want the bitterness, and this is where the nutrients, the polyphenols, and the flavor are. So, light has nothing to do with low calorie. If you see the word light, you know you’re not going to get any benefit from that olive oil. Number three, saving it for a special occasion. Now, unfortunately, olive oil does not age like wine, or vinegar. Do not leave that fancy bottle sitting in the cupboard for years.
You’re wasting it. And please, when you see the fancy bottles at the grocery store, or at the specialty store, and it talks about how marvelous it was, and single origin, and everything, please turn the bottle over, and look at when the date it was bottled. Most olive oil is picked, or smashed in the late fall, sometimes in early January, and it’s good quite honestly. Preferably for one year after it’s bottled, two year maximum, the best occasion for good olive oil is every single possible day it’s in front of you. I have not been to a restaurant in France, south of France, or Italy where they do not put a bottle of olive oil on the table next to you, because they assume that whatever they’re going to bring you, you are going to pour the olive oil on, and I’m serious. The only purpose of food is to get olive oil in your mouth.
In fact, let me give you an amazing statistic. The per capita consumption of olive oil in Greece, get ready, drum roll, is 26 liters per year. You heard that right? 26 liters per person, per year. That’s a half a liter of olive oil per person. Now, that’s per person. A three-year-old kid isn’t having that, so that means most adults are having, consuming about a liter of olive oil per week. Fun fact. Now, obviously, I’m not advocating that you waste oil, but please put it on the table, and use it. Number four, plastic bottles. There is a very new popular olive oil that I’m seeing in high market grocery stores, and I’m shocked that it’s sold in a plastic bottle. Olive oil is sensitive to light, and heat, and plastic lets in far more light, always up for dark glass, or metal containers to preserve the oil’s integrity.
If you see a high quality olive oil in a plastic bottle, I actually would be very concerned about its quality. Now, another thing about plastic for storing olive oil. Olive oil contains acid. Believe it, or not, extra virgin has nothing to do with how virgin the olive oil is, but it actually has to do with the acid content of the olive oil. Acid is notorious for leaching microplastics out of plastic. So, the last thing you want is an olive oil in plastic. Do not be fooled. All right, number five, not storing it correctly. Now, proper storage is the key. Please keep your olive oil in a cool dark place away from direct light, and heat. Now, this prevents the oxidation, and helps maintain the oil’s flavor, and health properties for longer. I can’t tell you the number of people I see storing their best olive oil right next to the stove, or over the oven where they’re exposed to much higher temperatures than normal.
That’s the last place you want to keep it. Just don’t do that. Okay, that was my top five olive oil mistakes, but there is one more mistake I see all the time. People generally don’t know how to use their olive oil properly, especially for cooking. My recommendation is to always try, and have two olive oils at hand for cooking, a more readily available one that’s a bit cheaper, but still very good quality, but probably doesn’t have that distinct robust flavor that usually come from what you’re really looking for like in a salad dressing, or drizzling. These usually come in bigger bottles, because you’re going to use a lot more of it, and then have a nice high-quality olive oil that usually comes in a smaller bottle that packs all that flavor, and is full of polyphenols. Now, olive oil does have a much lower smoke point than many other cooking oils.
That means that at certain temperatures it will begin to smoke. Now, high temperatures have absolutely nothing to do with its benefits, or its flavor, and in fact, olive oil is the least oxidizable oil there is, far better than even avocado oil, or coconut oil. The fact that it’s smoking has nothing, and I repeat nothing to do with whether it’s oxidizing, or not. People have been cooking with olive oil for over 5,000 years, and if it was that dangerous, we should have figured it out by now. In fact, four out of the five blue zones cook their food in olive oil. That ought to tell us something. But if you really want to expend a lot of money on high-quality olive oil that has that big power of polyphenols, don’t waste it for sauteing, save that for the end. Use a less expensive but high-quality olive oil for your sizzling.
Speaker 1:
I hope you enjoyed this episode of the Dr. Gundry Podcast. If you did, please share this with family, and friends. You never know how one of these health tips can completely transform someone’s life when you take the time to share it with them. There’s also the Dr. Gundry Podcast YouTube channel where we have tens of thousands of free health insights that can help you, and your loved ones live a long, vital life. Let’s do this together.
