Richard Amerling's comment fills a gap I consciously left. Peter Dobromylskyj (Hyperlipid) has spent 14 years developing the ROS theory—that saturated fats generate the reactive oxygen species signal that correctly limits insulin's action, while linoleic acid fails to generate this signal. His work explains why seed oils make cells pathologically insulin sensitive before they become resistant. I referenced his research in strengthening the essay but didn't add him as a sixth investigator to keep the piece manageable. Richard's summary is worth reading twice.
Several questions about specific oils:
Peanut oil (Tony, Linda): High in linoleic acid—around 30%. Traditional Chinese cooking used it sparingly, in small amounts, fresh-pressed. Modern industrial peanut oil is a different product entirely.
Avocado oil (STH, Linda): Much lower linoleic acid (~13%), higher in oleic. Better than seed oils. The caveat from Marshall's torpor model: high oleic acid may still activate PPAR-gamma. For severely metabolically damaged individuals, saturated fats may be preferable during recovery.
Flaxseed oil and Budwig (Loiseau): Flaxseed is high in alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3), not linoleic. Different animal. Irving's point matters here—oxidation state at consumption is critical. Flaxseed oil oxidizes rapidly; freshly ground flax is different from bottled oil that's been sitting.
Nuts (Robin, Ingrid): The squirrel metaphor answers this. Whole nuts in small seasonal quantities are how humans evolved to encounter linoleic acid. Industrial extraction and year-round consumption are the problem. As CM Maccioli notes, even nuts are now coated in seed oils.
David Weiner's correction stands: CSPI may not have been "well-meaning." The essay framed it charitably. The outcome—driving the transition from tallow to hydrogenated soybean oil—was catastrophic regardless of intent.
Deb.Butler's testimony speaks for itself. A hundred pounds from switching fats, no other dietary change. The delivery trucks kept coming; the doors stayed open too long.
Elena and Ingrid's exchange on Mediterranean longevity: heritage, happiness, environment, fresh food—all contribute. But notice what Mediterranean populations didn't eat until recently: industrial seed oils. The absence of a toxin matters as much as the presence of protective factors.
This is the missing upstream piece most people never see.
We weren’t weakened by carbs or calories or laziness — we were quietly switched into hibernation mode by oils our bodies were never built to handle. Once linoleic acid gets into the membranes and mitochondria, the whole metabolic system flips from burn to store. Insulin doesn’t break first — it’s downstream collateral.
Seed oils are basically a “winter is coming” signal the body can’t turn off.
And suddenly the obesity epidemic, diabetes explosion, fatigue crisis, and even why traditional high-carb cultures stayed lean start making sense.
Remove the trigger, and the machinery can finally remember how to run.
Wolf sees it the same way: most modern pathologies aren’t defects — they’re misfires of ancient survival programming activated by industrial food. Turn off the signal, and the body does the rest.
If I understand this right, we have enough linoleic acid if we just eat nuts, use a bit of olive oil to cook, and don't use any of the other high omega 6 oils. I wonder though, when doctors started looking for diabetes? As long as I was in Belgium no doctor checked for it (40+ years). I come to the States and every doc so far has measured my blood sugar, usually at a time when digestion is in full swing and sugar is at its highest (usually mine was 160-170). The last one to measure prescribed me metformin which made me so sick after only 4 tablets, that I thought I would die if I took another one. Why do doctors jump to the conclusion of diabetic, when you have no signs at all? it seems to me they just hope to find it higher than 'normal' (and what is normal?) so they can put you on forever meds.
If the govt were to forbid these dangerous oils I presume lots of diabetic diagnosed would spontaneously heal. if my reasoning is right, you need to contact Kennedy!
Here's the thing Ingrid (love that name), they lie to make money.
Normal cholesterol is 250 to 300. Dropped to below 200
Body temperature is 98.6, yet I have always been 97.
Blood pressure must be 120/80 when systolic should be 100 plus your age. Example: 120/80 is when you're in your 20's. 150/80 is when you're in your 50's.
Eat a piece of chocolate cake and your sugar level is in the stratosphere.
Jog before a Dr visit and your EKG is off the charts. Smoke a cigarette before and your EKG is perfect. Go figure! They change parameters. Good marketing. We suffer.
I did not know the norm for cholesterol they want, but I did know the blood pressure. An old friend of mine and former nurse told me that 100+age. So mine is LOW LOL. After eating a breakfast of banana and bread and chocolate my sugar goes up to 170... and then down to 120. They keep on lowering the 'normal' till everyone is sick and anorexic! I came in last time out of breath and of course the doc wanted me to go on blood pressure med. I bought one of these measuring devices and found it to be jumping up and down within minutes. How can you measure something that is so unruly? They are looking for milking cows, not for healing! I have experimented for 40+ years with herbs and homeopathics and usually can manage, but sometimes something does not react and then you are out of choices... and have to go to the poison pushers. Only to find that their poisons cause your values to go out of whack! PS I have a high body temp and doctors frown on that. Mom used to call me 'our horse'because of it
And I was "cold as a fish" they said. I don't give allopaths a toss. I don't go to see them. I read, examine my diet, don't eat out, flip everything the FDA says on it's head, and buy the best food I can. I suggest you do the same. You will never get the full truth from an allopath. They're in this game for the money.
been doing the best I could for close to 45 years now. Former doc I saw 4 times in 15 years, but then I did not yet have the drawer of stuff I got now. Still cooking European. American on passport yes, but born and raised in Europe, I got no taste for American food.
As I mentioned, that number was in between 2 meals. I do not like fat or lard. Everyone says something different, and being European I keep what I am used to. I won't get used to the fat-dripping American kitchen. I leave that to those who love it.
Mine at very little meat, as that had to be bought, but lots of potatoes and veggies, as they grew them themselves. I am 68 and have seen a doc a handful of times in the last 25 years.
Brad Marshall introduced me to Petro Dobromylskyj, aka Peter, aka Hyperlipid (https://high-fat-nutrition.blogspot.com/), who developed the ROS (reactive oxygen species) theory of obesity and insulin resistance. My understanding is incomplete but it involves mitochondrial production of a ROS during fatty acid oxidation of saturated fatty acids that leads to blocking the insulin receptor on the cell surface, which prevents further glucose uptake. This phenomenon doesn't occur when burning unsaturated fatty acids, leading to unrestrained energy storage, i.e., obesity. In this model, consumption of mostly saturated fats prevents obesity; consuming unsaturated fats encourages it.
A strong case can be made for making saturated fat the principle energy source.
Fat oxidation generates far more ATP than glucose oxidation, and ketones, which are the preferred energy substrate for brain and heart. It also produces 30% less CO2, reducing the body's acid load.
Mitochondrial damage, as stated, impairs oxidative phosphorylation. Ultimately this leads to the Warburg effect where ATP is generated by glycolytic fermentation of glucose to lactic acid in the cytoplasm. It's not a big jump to consider that excess seed oil consumption is the proximate cause of cancer.
I believe industrially extracted seed oils were "approved" under GRAS (generally recognized as safe). Were any safety studies ever performed? Who knows?
Bottom line: Seed oils aren't simply not "heart healthy;" they are seriously toxic. Traditional saturated fats aren't simply OK; they are positively beneficial.
This is one of the most important articles I've read on Substack in a while. I radically altered my eating habits two years ago, going into the deep study of - well, all of it. Seed oils are the devil, for sure. I read every label, even if "safe" food products, because the manufacturer may have slipped in seed oils.
I've read about "high oleaic" content of seed oils in ingredients, not understanding what that's all about. The seed oil was a no go. It's clear now.
The point about some doubts or questions about olive oil - yes, it does matter but it's a hidden reason why it may be high oleaic content. Olive oil has a very high rate of counterfeiting, adulteration with seed oils. Olive oil must be made ASAP after olive harvest, else it's going rancid. Older rancid olive oil gets mixed in with newer oil.
From my study of the problem, the best countries for proper unadulterated olive oil are Chile and Australia, as those countries strictly regulate it. I'm also okay with certain California olive oils, especially vineyard properties that also have olive groves and produce estate olive oil. If I can find it.
This article is excellent, thank you. However, emphasis has to remain on the oxidised ("rusted") seed oils as the culprit. Due to their reactivity, they are almost always oxidised in our so-called modern diet (BEFORE we consume them), then go into our cell membranes - which are themselves lipid layers - and thus prevent normal oxygen transport into them, no matter how well your lungs are functioning, leading to cancer and other awful states. On this topic and the remarkable Budwig protocol also mentioned in the comments, please read "The Budwig Cancer Protocol: A 21st Century Perspective". It is a remarkable (dense, fine print!) work of hundreds of pages by Douglas Ahart, a medical doctor who was treating his pet greyhound that had bone cancer.
Author's Note
Richard Amerling's comment fills a gap I consciously left. Peter Dobromylskyj (Hyperlipid) has spent 14 years developing the ROS theory—that saturated fats generate the reactive oxygen species signal that correctly limits insulin's action, while linoleic acid fails to generate this signal. His work explains why seed oils make cells pathologically insulin sensitive before they become resistant. I referenced his research in strengthening the essay but didn't add him as a sixth investigator to keep the piece manageable. Richard's summary is worth reading twice.
Several questions about specific oils:
Peanut oil (Tony, Linda): High in linoleic acid—around 30%. Traditional Chinese cooking used it sparingly, in small amounts, fresh-pressed. Modern industrial peanut oil is a different product entirely.
Avocado oil (STH, Linda): Much lower linoleic acid (~13%), higher in oleic. Better than seed oils. The caveat from Marshall's torpor model: high oleic acid may still activate PPAR-gamma. For severely metabolically damaged individuals, saturated fats may be preferable during recovery.
Flaxseed oil and Budwig (Loiseau): Flaxseed is high in alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3), not linoleic. Different animal. Irving's point matters here—oxidation state at consumption is critical. Flaxseed oil oxidizes rapidly; freshly ground flax is different from bottled oil that's been sitting.
Nuts (Robin, Ingrid): The squirrel metaphor answers this. Whole nuts in small seasonal quantities are how humans evolved to encounter linoleic acid. Industrial extraction and year-round consumption are the problem. As CM Maccioli notes, even nuts are now coated in seed oils.
David Weiner's correction stands: CSPI may not have been "well-meaning." The essay framed it charitably. The outcome—driving the transition from tallow to hydrogenated soybean oil—was catastrophic regardless of intent.
Deb.Butler's testimony speaks for itself. A hundred pounds from switching fats, no other dietary change. The delivery trucks kept coming; the doors stayed open too long.
Elena and Ingrid's exchange on Mediterranean longevity: heritage, happiness, environment, fresh food—all contribute. But notice what Mediterranean populations didn't eat until recently: industrial seed oils. The absence of a toxin matters as much as the presence of protective factors.
Thank you for reading.
Thank you for this succinct clarification 🙏
This may be one of the most important articles yet !!!!
This is the missing upstream piece most people never see.
We weren’t weakened by carbs or calories or laziness — we were quietly switched into hibernation mode by oils our bodies were never built to handle. Once linoleic acid gets into the membranes and mitochondria, the whole metabolic system flips from burn to store. Insulin doesn’t break first — it’s downstream collateral.
Seed oils are basically a “winter is coming” signal the body can’t turn off.
And suddenly the obesity epidemic, diabetes explosion, fatigue crisis, and even why traditional high-carb cultures stayed lean start making sense.
Remove the trigger, and the machinery can finally remember how to run.
Wolf sees it the same way: most modern pathologies aren’t defects — they’re misfires of ancient survival programming activated by industrial food. Turn off the signal, and the body does the rest.
You got it. Good one.
If I understand this right, we have enough linoleic acid if we just eat nuts, use a bit of olive oil to cook, and don't use any of the other high omega 6 oils. I wonder though, when doctors started looking for diabetes? As long as I was in Belgium no doctor checked for it (40+ years). I come to the States and every doc so far has measured my blood sugar, usually at a time when digestion is in full swing and sugar is at its highest (usually mine was 160-170). The last one to measure prescribed me metformin which made me so sick after only 4 tablets, that I thought I would die if I took another one. Why do doctors jump to the conclusion of diabetic, when you have no signs at all? it seems to me they just hope to find it higher than 'normal' (and what is normal?) so they can put you on forever meds.
If the govt were to forbid these dangerous oils I presume lots of diabetic diagnosed would spontaneously heal. if my reasoning is right, you need to contact Kennedy!
Here's the thing Ingrid (love that name), they lie to make money.
Normal cholesterol is 250 to 300. Dropped to below 200
Body temperature is 98.6, yet I have always been 97.
Blood pressure must be 120/80 when systolic should be 100 plus your age. Example: 120/80 is when you're in your 20's. 150/80 is when you're in your 50's.
Eat a piece of chocolate cake and your sugar level is in the stratosphere.
Jog before a Dr visit and your EKG is off the charts. Smoke a cigarette before and your EKG is perfect. Go figure! They change parameters. Good marketing. We suffer.
I did not know the norm for cholesterol they want, but I did know the blood pressure. An old friend of mine and former nurse told me that 100+age. So mine is LOW LOL. After eating a breakfast of banana and bread and chocolate my sugar goes up to 170... and then down to 120. They keep on lowering the 'normal' till everyone is sick and anorexic! I came in last time out of breath and of course the doc wanted me to go on blood pressure med. I bought one of these measuring devices and found it to be jumping up and down within minutes. How can you measure something that is so unruly? They are looking for milking cows, not for healing! I have experimented for 40+ years with herbs and homeopathics and usually can manage, but sometimes something does not react and then you are out of choices... and have to go to the poison pushers. Only to find that their poisons cause your values to go out of whack! PS I have a high body temp and doctors frown on that. Mom used to call me 'our horse'because of it
And I was "cold as a fish" they said. I don't give allopaths a toss. I don't go to see them. I read, examine my diet, don't eat out, flip everything the FDA says on it's head, and buy the best food I can. I suggest you do the same. You will never get the full truth from an allopath. They're in this game for the money.
been doing the best I could for close to 45 years now. Former doc I saw 4 times in 15 years, but then I did not yet have the drawer of stuff I got now. Still cooking European. American on passport yes, but born and raised in Europe, I got no taste for American food.
As I mentioned, that number was in between 2 meals. I do not like fat or lard. Everyone says something different, and being European I keep what I am used to. I won't get used to the fat-dripping American kitchen. I leave that to those who love it.
Mine at very little meat, as that had to be bought, but lots of potatoes and veggies, as they grew them themselves. I am 68 and have seen a doc a handful of times in the last 25 years.
I will be sharing this far and wide. Thank you!
That was fast! Well done.
Brad Marshall introduced me to Petro Dobromylskyj, aka Peter, aka Hyperlipid (https://high-fat-nutrition.blogspot.com/), who developed the ROS (reactive oxygen species) theory of obesity and insulin resistance. My understanding is incomplete but it involves mitochondrial production of a ROS during fatty acid oxidation of saturated fatty acids that leads to blocking the insulin receptor on the cell surface, which prevents further glucose uptake. This phenomenon doesn't occur when burning unsaturated fatty acids, leading to unrestrained energy storage, i.e., obesity. In this model, consumption of mostly saturated fats prevents obesity; consuming unsaturated fats encourages it.
A strong case can be made for making saturated fat the principle energy source.
Fat oxidation generates far more ATP than glucose oxidation, and ketones, which are the preferred energy substrate for brain and heart. It also produces 30% less CO2, reducing the body's acid load.
Mitochondrial damage, as stated, impairs oxidative phosphorylation. Ultimately this leads to the Warburg effect where ATP is generated by glycolytic fermentation of glucose to lactic acid in the cytoplasm. It's not a big jump to consider that excess seed oil consumption is the proximate cause of cancer.
I believe industrially extracted seed oils were "approved" under GRAS (generally recognized as safe). Were any safety studies ever performed? Who knows?
Bottom line: Seed oils aren't simply not "heart healthy;" they are seriously toxic. Traditional saturated fats aren't simply OK; they are positively beneficial.
Where does cold-pressed flaxseed oil fit into this? Thinking about the Budwig diet.
Excellent post!
Dr. Ray Peat has long talked on this subject for over 50 years for example:
https://raypeat.com/articles/nutrition/oils-in-context.shtml
https://raypeat.com/articles/articles/unsaturated-oils.shtml
https://raypeat.com/articles/articles/fishoil.shtml
https://raypeat.com/articles/articles/diabetes.shtml
To read more from this brilliant researcher go to https://raypeat.com/
Excellent, important article. Minor quibble: I doubt that the CSPI was a well-meaning institution.
This is one of the most important articles I've read on Substack in a while. I radically altered my eating habits two years ago, going into the deep study of - well, all of it. Seed oils are the devil, for sure. I read every label, even if "safe" food products, because the manufacturer may have slipped in seed oils.
I've read about "high oleaic" content of seed oils in ingredients, not understanding what that's all about. The seed oil was a no go. It's clear now.
The point about some doubts or questions about olive oil - yes, it does matter but it's a hidden reason why it may be high oleaic content. Olive oil has a very high rate of counterfeiting, adulteration with seed oils. Olive oil must be made ASAP after olive harvest, else it's going rancid. Older rancid olive oil gets mixed in with newer oil.
From my study of the problem, the best countries for proper unadulterated olive oil are Chile and Australia, as those countries strictly regulate it. I'm also okay with certain California olive oils, especially vineyard properties that also have olive groves and produce estate olive oil. If I can find it.
What incredibly valuable info , merci
Hi, have you covered endometrioses and digestive system polyps as yet? Thank you, Olga
Such important information for most people! Thank you!
This is news I can use! Thanks for sharing.
This article is excellent, thank you. However, emphasis has to remain on the oxidised ("rusted") seed oils as the culprit. Due to their reactivity, they are almost always oxidised in our so-called modern diet (BEFORE we consume them), then go into our cell membranes - which are themselves lipid layers - and thus prevent normal oxygen transport into them, no matter how well your lungs are functioning, leading to cancer and other awful states. On this topic and the remarkable Budwig protocol also mentioned in the comments, please read "The Budwig Cancer Protocol: A 21st Century Perspective". It is a remarkable (dense, fine print!) work of hundreds of pages by Douglas Ahart, a medical doctor who was treating his pet greyhound that had bone cancer.