Oils like Coconut & Extra Virgin Olive Oil are well known for having health benefits, especially for the heart. It’s recommended to use them instead of processed or unhealthy oils such as vegetable or canola when cooking. However, cooking with these oils is actually incredibly bad for your health, sapping you of energy and contributing to heart disease. This is because of the molecular structure of these oils, and the science involved with them.
Why You Shouldn’t Cook With Oil
Heat Destroys Nutrients
The reason Olive & Coconut Oils are so healthy is that they contain healthy fats like Omega-3’s. This makes them good for overall health and improving the Omega-3-6 ratio. The problem however is that these nutrients are destroyed when heated, rendering their health benefits null. Another health component of Olive Oil is Polyphenols, an antioxidant also present Dark Chocolate and Red Wine. This nutrient acts as an antioxidant and is especially beneficial to the heart and is an anti-inflammatory. This nutrient is also destroyed when heated.
Oxidation
When oils heat up, they oxidize, becoming liquid free-radicals that age and kill your body from the inside out. Antioxidants are so beneficial because they bind to these free-radicals, preventing them doing damage. This is also why (good quality) Olive Oil comes in tinted green bottles. This prevents light from oxidizing the oil and making it go rancid. Thus cooking with oils is causing them to become toxic which you end up ingesting.
Omega-6 Content
Omega-3’s aren’t a magic supplement. Although they are incredibly beneficial, it is not because of the properties of the nutrient itself, rather it helps re-balance the omega-3-6-9 content in the body. The body is a fickle thing, requiring a perfect balance of nutrients to function optimally. However, with western diets being how they are, the biggest and most damaging imbalance is Omega-3-6, with the average american consuming upwards of 15 times more Omega-6’s than Omega-3’s. That’s a ratio of 15:1. This leads to inflammation across the body, causing fatigue, brain fog, poor immune function, and pretty much every other thing you don’t want. Seeds and grains are incredibly high in Omega-6’s, and popular cooking oils being Rapeseed (Canola), Grapeseed, Vegetable, Corn, and Nut Oils contributes to this imbalance. In fact the leading cause of the Omega-3-6 imbalance is the fact that vegetable oils are in so many foods.
Toxic Smoke
Most cooking oils like Olive & Coconut have a low-smoking point, the threshold at which they start smoking. When you cook a steak with them in a frying pan it exceeds the smoke-point, causing the oils to become toxic smoke and contribute to poor indoor air. This smoke contributes to a host of health problems especially of the lungs.
What To Cook With
The solution to this is cooking with Butter, or Ghee if you’re lactose-intolerant. Fats or lard also make great cooking agents. Coconut & Olive Oil are still incredibly healthy and powerful foods but they should be eaten raw instead of cooked. Drizzle them over a salad or take a spoonful. A spoonful of each oil is great for getting in extra calories for bulking, improving heart health, and boosting your energy levels.
Apex of Men 