i was wondering on what oils people use in their diet? like cold pressed extra virgin olive oil, flax seed oil etc...

what oils should you be getting in, if any at all? and does anyone know if oils help joints?

Many oils are rich in omega-3 so they can help joint health. I use a little olive and coconut oil now and again but other than that really don't use alot of oil.

Coconut oil i like and it has many benefits such as thyroid health, its anti-microbial properties, increasing energy etc.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]

If you are 100% raw then this is an important question. Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina cover this area very thoroughly in their book 'Becoming Raw'

The oils that you could include in your diet are flaxseed oil, hempseed oil or olive oil. But you need to take care to balance your ratio of omega 6 to omega 3 levels (between 2:1 and 4:1)

Cold pressed extra vrigin organic olive oil and organic virgin coconut oil.

Tee hee, you guys said virgin .

thank you, that helps alot

gems Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> i was wondering on what oils people use in their
> diet? like cold pressed extra virgin olive oil,
> flax seed oil etc...
>
> what oils should you be getting in, if any at all?
> and does anyone know if oils help joints?

I use none. I rely on nuts and seeds in limited amounts for healthy fats. The rest of my diet is mostly vegetables, fruits and sprouts.

Paul

You can use different ones. I like extra virgin olive oil, flaxseed, and hempseed. I'm not a big fan of the taste of coconut oil with foods.

Check out my raw food review blog at rawfoodland.com!

coconut oil may not be better than butter when it comes to serum cholesterol. MCTs notwithstanding, the stuff may be as bad as butter as far as adding to serum cholesterol like other saturated fats. [nutritionfacts.org]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]. Caveats, it's one data point and a relatively small study



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/26/2012 07:33PM by pborst.

pborst Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> coconut oil is terrible. MCTs notwithstanding,
> the stuff is aweful as far as adding to serum
> cholesterol like other saturated fats.
> [nutritionfacts.org]
> od-for-you/
>
> I'm not suggesting that all saturated fats are
> created equal, rather just that none of them is
> any good and there are different degrees of how
> bad they are.



The latest I've read on this is completely contrary to what you've said. I'd be happy to read you elaborate a bit... Always refining the knowledge with the help of my smarty friends .

Coco,

I think I jumped the gun with Greger (and edited post above). He tends to overstate at times. His study supports his contention but it is just one data point. Just now, when going through Pub-Med, I read a study on pre-menopausal women in the Phillipines that went the other way. [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]. The Phillipine study was a cohort of 1800 Filipino women which says coconut oil is favorably associated with HDL and not associated with either LDL or triglycerides. Compared with the cohort of 1800, Greger's study was about 40. Lessons learned. I would say the jury is still out one way or the other for coconut oil. Nuts and seeds are still healthier though.

Paul

I would rather not have coconut oil as it is shipped to my area from far away. Hemp grows here, sunflower and pumpkin too. Hazelnut, walnut, pinenuts, all local sources.

The truth may be somewhere in the middle.

[www.health.harvard.edu]


"Q. I have started noticing more coconut oil at the grocery store and have heard it is better for you than a lot of other oils. Is that true?

A. I've also noticed that coconut oil seems to be catching on these days. Coconut oil is about 90% saturated fat, which is a higher percentage than butter (about 64% saturated fat), beef fat (40%), or even lard (also 40%). Too much saturated fat in the diet is unhealthy because it raises "bad" LDL cholesterol levels, which increases the risk of heart disease. So it would seem that coconut oil would be bad news for our hearts.

But what's interesting about coconut oil is that it also gives "good" HDL cholesterol a boost. Fat in the diet, whether it's saturated or unsaturated, tends to nudge HDL levels up, but coconut oil seems to be especially potent at doing so.

Saturated fat is divided into various types, based on the number of carbon atoms in the molecule, and about half of the saturated fat in coconut oil is the 12-carbon variety, called lauric acid. That is a higher percentage than in most other oils, and is probably responsible for the unusual HDL effects of coconut oil. But plant-based oils are more than just fats. They contain many antioxidants and other substances, so their overall effects on health can't be predicted just by the changes in LDL and HDL.

Coconut is a wonderful flavor and there's no problem using coconut oil occasionally. Coconut oil is solid at room temperature, so cooks are experimenting with using it instead of butter or vegetable shortening to make pie crust and other baked goods that require a solid source of fat. And if you're preparing a Thai dish, cooking with coconut oil may be essential.

But, for now, I'd use coconut oil sparingly. Most of the research so far has consisted of short-term studies to examine its effect on cholesterol levels. We don't really know how coconut oil affects heart disease. And I don't think coconut oil is as healthful as vegetable oils like olive oil and soybean oil, which are mainly unsaturated fat and therefore both lower LDL and increase HDL. Coconut oil's special HDL-boosting effect may make it "less bad" than the high saturated fat content would indicate, but it's still probably not the best choice among the many available oils to reduce the risk of heart disease.

— Walter C. Willett, M.D.
Harvard School of Public Health
Department of Nutrition
Harvard Health Letter Editorial Board"

I think any of the nourishing oils are good to have in moderation- like olive, coconut, sesame, flax/hemp, etc. Avoid GMO crap like soybean/vegetable oil.

I will have to agree with the use of nuts instead of oil. From a primative point of view oil is a convienence, nuts also stimulate stomach acid, quite a bit like eating meat.
This straight from HHI, Coconut oil causes a rise in tryglycerides and therefore raises cholesterol. Of coarse this does'nt happen in all people so if you are healthy dig in, I love it! IMO Hemp Oil is the best and it is the most balanced ratio of the omegas. If a person has a yeast infection oil is not the best thing imo. so lean toward the use of nuts until the body is stronger.

I was reading a rawfoodster recently (can't remember who) and s/he now just uses avocado as fat (oil) because it's in its whole form. I found that very interesting.

We hardly ever use oil, I'd rather have it in it's whole form too. Local sources are limited though, just a few nuts and seeds. Avocado and olives aren't on that list so those are occasional treats only.

thanks for advice everyone

Oils is oils equals FAT, no matter where the oil comes from. Do I have to say more???

Yes because all that is saying is that you have a paranoia about fat.

I use mostly ground up flaxseeds.
May not be the best source,but its so cheap and I figure if its flax,then the oil is in there.
Vinny

Geo,
My view on FAT was like yours years ago.
I did the 1980's thing and eliminated as much as I could from my diet.I mean i was down to almost zero.
I then went on to a very long term depression requiring many hospitalizations.
May not be related,but then again.....

Vinny



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/31/2012 03:40PM by eaglefly.

i like my fats from whole source as well ..avos, nuts, seeds . When i do use oil i really like hempseed oil

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

I will go with wholefood sources also usually as they contain supporting nutrition and phyto-nutrients etc. But there are some benefits to including a small amount of oils in your diet such as stopping bile from stagnating and gallbladder health.

Also some oils have individual health benefits which can be beneficial for some, coconut oil for example digests differently to other vegetable oils and is actually digested very quickly, this helps increase metabolism and energy making it possibly also beneficial for those with hypothyroidism. Also the MCT's that coconut oil contains are well known for their anti-microbial properties.

[www.vegankingdom.co.uk]

Animals in the wild do not ask these questions, they just eat raw and the oil comes along

While nuts and seeds are better sources of fats than oils because of their phytonutrients and fiber, small amounts of oil (less than 1 tbsp per day) are unlikely to cause weight gain or compromise health. In particular in the case of olives, EVOO may offer polyphenols and squalene without the sodium of the brined whole olive. the dose is the poison so they say. Best.

Paul

Hahaha noooo I not paranoid about fat, and ok, I'll say abit more. I realise we do need some fat in our diet. But I prefer the natural sources too, and I eat plenty of nuts. But I had a look in the cupboard, and found some 'rice bran' oil, is that a good one???

I think the operate question on this thread for plant based oils is not so much what but rather "how much"... 1 to 2 tbsp seems like a reasonable upper bound. And of course less is more... but then you knew that didn't you??? ;P

Paul

I put my oil for salads in a reusable spray bottle and spritz my oil I find I use less then just pouring it on

...Jodi, the banana eating buddhist

Great idea Jodi