Why does oil get such a bad reputation in the vegan community?

Question

Hi all,

For those that are familiar with plant-based and vegan doctors and influential vegan YouTubers practically all of them are anti- cooking oil. They say not to cook with any oil or put it on food. I have experienced the same attitude with vegans I have met in real life and on the internet. It's rarer to find a vegan who enjoys using avocado oil, extra olive oil or walnut oil etc. I feel almost alone on this issue sometimes! 

Michael Greger, Neal Barnard, John A. McDougall, Caldwell Esselstyn, Joel Fuhrman and many of the other celebrity vegan doctors and physicians have all all opposed the consumption of oils. This is the same with all the popular YouTube vegans like Mic the Vegan, Simnett Nutrition, Hence Herbivore etc.

One vegan physician Danielle Belardo has actually supported the consumption of extra virgin olive oil but sadly she was attacked on various social media platforms by other vegans. 

I am interested in how this anti-oil attitude came about. I believe vegans should come together and not attack each other about their personal dietary habitats. All I see on various websites is sadly vegans attacking a small minority of vegans that actually use oil in their cooking. The infighting is not productive.

I personally am a big fan of many different oils and use them a lot in my cooking. Has anyone else noticed the anti-oil thing going on with certain vegan influencers? Does anyone have anything to add about this topic? Please do!

alone · Answer

Slight correction, Mic the Vegan a well known YouTuber who makes videos on vegan nutrition has now come out in support of flaxseed oil although he doesn't use oil in his personal life. 

Flaxseed oil has good alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) content.

Vgian · Answer

Absolutely agree! There are great, healthy oils/fats out there such as avocado and its oil, extra virgin olive oil, even unrefined coconut oil. However, I do stay away from canola, soybean, corn oils, GMOs, and anything overly processed.

By the way, there's another misconception when it comes to sodium, everyone has been led to believe that any fat and sodium is bad for you when it's the total opposite, every normal healthy human being, vegan or not, needs sodium and healthy fats, but unfortunately the Standard American Diet (SAD), which is in fact very sad, is pretty much bland, heavy on carbs and everything tastes sweet. And veganism is no longer the exception, it too is heavy on carbs, starches, and sweets while you see many vegans, just like meat eaters, demonizing fats and sodium particularly in the US; Big Pharma and the corporate medical cartel have done a great job at brainwashing people and keeping them in the dark when it comes to true health.

Thankfully elsewhere in the world, people haven't lost their common sense and taste buds while they continue to enjoy nutritious, tasty (good oils and sodium), savory foods, vegan or not, and they're fit and healthy.

Forman · Answer

For me oil goes to my love handles. I also have atherosclerosis, that’s hardening of arteries. So for health reasons I try to avoid oils. And being a plumber you don’t want to dump oil or grease down the sink drain. Clogs up the pipes.

keokani · Answer

Following a whole food, plant-based (WFPB) diet means eating foods as they are found in nature (meaning nothing good is taken away from them, and nothing bad is added to them). This includes avoiding salt, oil, and sugar (SOS) because these don't exist as such in nature. Instead, they should only be consumed as they naturally occur in whole plant foods.

You can get all of the good fats you need by consuming nuts, seeds, and avocados. When oil is extracted from whole plant foods, most of the nutrition is left behind. Gone is the fiber that prevents your body from storing too much of the fat. Oil is the most processed food because it is pure fat, which is the most calorically dense component of food.

I love the cookbooks by Michael Greger because none of the recipes have oil as an ingredient. The Healthspan Solution (by Julieanna Hever and Ray Cronise) and The Plant-Based Athlete (by Matt Frazier and Robert Cheeke) are examples of books in which most of the recipes do not have oil as an ingredient. The few recipes that do include oil make it an optional ingredient and limit it to culinary amounts (i.e., not more than 1 teaspoon) rather than a primary caloric ingredient.

andyswarbs · Answer

Oils damage telemeres, which define the rate of aging.

Oils are both a refined product and extremely high in calories.

For my rheumatoid arthritis oils trigger inflammation.

Oils reduce the rate of conversion of ala to dha/epa - dramatically.

VeganForEternity · Answer

I also agree that vegans should come together and not attack each other for choices of whether to use oil or salt.  Each person needs to study the data and see how their bodies react to each of those items.  I believe for me that avoiding use of oil has brought down my cholesterol, which was never high, but was higher using oil to saute, etc.  We are such a small group of the population, we should support each other!

MaryCoal · Answer

I am very pro-oil in my cooking it's fat and wonderful!

JainRobin · Answer

Hmm. I didn't know oils get such a bad rep. I, for one, eschew it because I'm in the process of trying to shed around 80 pounds. Typically, I don't cook with it, but I'm sure I'll be eating it again once I start going out to vegan restaurants.

alone · Answer

"Oils reduce the rate of conversion of ala to dha/epa - dramatically."

There is flaxseed oil which has a good ALA content and Perilla oil which is very high in ALA (up to 64%). 

ALA is not good for dha/epa conversion, in some studies in men the conversation rate is low as 2% and I have not seen higher than 8% reported in men https://www.todaysdietitian.com/newarchives/020810p22.shtml which is still very low. If you are on a vegan diet then one should be taking an algae supplement, not rely on ALA for dha/epa. So in conclusion I don't think oils would be a problem here. I might create another thread on this, I would be interested in knowing what algae supplements people take here.

VeganTed · Answer

I can't imagine authentic Asian cooking without groundnut and sesame oils! For me, the importance of veganism is to reduce the suffering of animals. Health benefits to humans is serendipity and of secondary concern.

I think people should be more concerned about the oil that is pulled out of the Earth and destroying the planet. "Drill Baby Drill," indeed!

edwinnaicipevaca · Answer

La asimilación de líquidos fue terrible cuando quise hacerme vegano... la ingesta de aceite fue la solución, pues su densidad mas baja que el agua ralentizo la deshidratacion luego el organismo asimilo mas rápidamente el cambio a un metabolismo vegano.

Firebirdy · Answer

The Standard American Diet is promoted by fascist oligarchs who exploit lower class Americans. These same fascist oligarchs are trying to make most Americans have lower I.Q's, physical health illnesses, and mental health illnesses for profitable exploitation. Meanwhile, so-called therapists are sellouts to cut-throat corporate America. It is why some people renounced their American citizenship to migrate into countries that have fair enough leaders. Because America continues to be founded on slavery, genocide, and fascism while the American dream illusion exists. A fascist one-party system is disguised as the democratic and republican parties in America. Most Americans genuinely do not have voting power. Cut-throat oligarchs use bribing, lobbying, and blackmail to control who gets elected in America politically. Free press does not really exist in America. Independent journalists, Edward Snowden, Julian Assange, human rights activists, and others are being attacked by these cut-throat oligarchs in America. Which is why these oligarch-owned media companies are controlling what most Americans watch, read, and listen to. Online surveillance is used by these cut-throat oligarchs to keep most Americans in the dark. Popular "social" media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, etc. are controlled cut-throat oligarchs that use censorship for promoting their political agenda. Meanwhile, more people in Hawaii are becoming homeless because rich [censored] like Mark Zuckerberg take their land by force and forcefully put them into this toxic tourist economy while increasing wealth inequality happens. All that is why many Americans have a poor understanding of how to live a genuinely healthy lifestyle. Because they do not have enough wealth, non-propagandized education, legal protection, and equal access to justice in America. This is why there are non-American countries surpassing America in regards to scientific literacy, mathematical literacy, economic literacy, language literacy, I.Q's, mental health, physical health, happiness, etc.

I am going to guess that these veganazis who were attacking Danielle Balardo are mostly from America. Because the Americans in America are who troll, spam, behave illogically, and attack people online more than non-American people. The reason for this guess is because quality of life, standard of living, and civilization have all significantly been destroyed in America many decades ago. So, you end up with a mob of younger generations in America. They are showing that America's civilization is collapsing more from within by showing their lack of politeness, literacy, professionalism, ability to carefully think before speaking, ability to carefully listen before speaking, extremely short attention spans, etc.

Otherwise, these veganazis, wherever they are, who make cooking oils get an extremely bad reputation do not understand them fully. They are shoving their emotional drivel or lies in people's faces without much scientific proof that is peer-reviewed by professionals who do not let emotions blind them from facts. I will say that cooking oils are good for making comfort food. Otherwise, I would not recommend cooking oils for people who want to avoid their bodies from aging.

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