Seed Oils: What to Avoid & Use | Windback NZ

Disclaimer: The information in this article is for educational and general wellness purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or cure any health condition. Always seek the guidance of a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, lifestyle, exercise routine, or supplement use, particularly if you have any existing medical conditions or concerns.

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Seed Oils in Real Life: What to Avoid, What to Use, and Why It Matters

“Seed oils” have become one of the loudest topics in nutrition. Some people say they are the root of modern inflammation. Others point out that many studies link polyunsaturated fats to improved heart markers.

At Windback, we prefer a calmer, more useful question: what choices actually matter in real life?

Because for most people, the biggest “seed oil exposure” is not a drizzle of oil at home. It is the combination of ultra-processed foods, restaurant frying oils, and everyday packaged ingredients that add up quietly over time.

What are seed oils (and where do they show up)?

Seed oils are oils extracted from seeds or seed-adjacent plant parts. The most common ones in modern packaged foods include:

Canola (rapeseed)
Soybean
Corn
Sunflower
Safflower
Cottonseed
Grapeseed
Rice bran

They show up most often in:

Packaged snacks, crackers, chips, biscuits
Mayonnaise, dressings, sauces
Frozen meals and “ready to heat” foods
Restaurant frying and takeaways
“Healthy” bars, granola, and some protein products

Quick label trick: if the ingredients list includes “vegetable oil” or a blend of oils, it is often a mix of canola, soybean, sunflower, or similar. When in doubt, look for the specific oil named.

What is the real concern?

Most of the concern comes down to three themes:

Volume: seed oils are cheap and common, so they can push total intake up without you noticing.
Heat + reuse: polyunsaturated fats are more prone to oxidation under high heat, especially when oils are repeatedly heated (think deep-frying).
Imbalance: many people get plenty of omega 6 fats but not much omega 3 from seafood, which fuels the “ratio” conversation.

At the same time, it is important to be honest: large health organisations and many clinical sources do not consider seed oils inherently “toxic”, and typical dietary intakes have not consistently been shown to increase inflammation markers in humans. The more consistent “slam dunk” target remains ultra-processed foods overall.

So are seed oils “bad” or “fine”?

The most practical answer is: it depends on the context.

If your diet is mostly whole foods and you use a small amount of oil at home, seed oils are unlikely to be the main lever.
If your diet includes lots of ultra-processed foods or frequent takeaways, reducing seed oils usually happens naturally when you reduce those foods, and that is where many people feel the difference.
If you are heating oils hard and often (high-heat frying, reusing oil), choosing more stable options can be a sensible risk-reduction move.

What Dr Huberman and Dr Casey Means tend to emphasise

There are many opinions in this space, but two themes that are consistently practical:

Keep it simple at home: Huberman has repeatedly framed his personal approach as replacing seed oils with extra virgin olive oil and, if you eat animal products, limited butter or ghee.
Read labels and reduce refined oils in packaged foods: Casey Means often focuses less on arguing online and more on a behaviour that changes everything: avoid products made with refined seed/vegetable oils and choose olive, avocado, or coconut oil instead.

Whether or not you agree with every detail, the practical through-line is useful: more whole foods, fewer industrial ingredients, and better home cooking fats.

What to use instead (simple swaps that work)

If you want to be specific, here is a straightforward, food-first way to choose oils by use case.

For dressings, drizzling, and everyday cooking:

Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) for salads, finishing, and low-to-moderate heat cooking

For higher-heat cooking:

Avocado oil (choose a reputable brand; neutral flavour, generally higher heat tolerance)
Ghee or tallow if you enjoy cooking with traditional fats

For flavour oils (use mainly cold):

Sesame oil for flavour (best as a finishing oil rather than high-heat frying)
Walnut or flaxseed oil for cold use only (these are delicate oils; store cool and use quickly)

Storage matters: keep oils away from heat and light, and avoid using oils that smell “paint-like” or rancid. Freshness is a bigger deal than most people realise.

What to avoid first (the highest-impact targets)

If you want a short list that actually moves the needle, start here:

Deep-fried foods and foods cooked in repeatedly heated oils
Packaged snacks where the first or second ingredient is vegetable oil
Dressings and sauces made with “vegetable oil” blends
“Healthy” bars and granola that rely on canola/sunflower oils for texture

This approach avoids the trap of obsessing over one ingredient while the overall diet stays ultra-processed.

Food first (always): the omega 3 angle

If the seed oil conversation has a “useful centre”, it is this: many people would benefit from a more omega 3-rich pattern overall.

Eat fatty fish a few times per week if it suits you (salmon, sardines, mackerel)
Use EVOO as a default at home
Reduce ultra-processed foods that quietly raise omega 6 intake

Supplements can be helpful, but they work best when the food foundation is already in place.

A calm “bottom line” you can actually use

You do not need to panic about a single ingredient. The highest-impact move is to reduce ultra-processed foods and choose better fats at home.

If you want a simple rule that survives real life:

Default: extra virgin olive oil
High heat: avocado oil or ghee
Upgrade: more omega 3 foods (and supplement support if needed)
Reduce: deep-fried and packaged foods where vegetable oil is a main ingredient

That combination tends to be both practical and powerful, without turning eating into a purity contest.

References and further reading

Casey Means, “9 Essential Elements of Metabolically Healthy Meals” (includes advice to avoid refined seed/vegetable oils and choose avocado, coconut, and olive oil).
Memorial Sloan Kettering: “The Truth About Seed Oils” (discussion of seed oils, inflammation claims, and ultra-processed foods).
Mayo Clinic: “Omega-6 fatty acids: Can they cause heart disease?”