Zero Acre launched their product today. See their website and their blog for lots of information.
I think these two graphics, from their article "Cultured Oil Health Report" really get to why this is going to be a game-changer.
"How cooking oils turn toxic" shows how superior a low-linoleic acid oil like Cultured Oil is to the alternatives we've been told to use.
It's a game changer, especially for stir frying or sauteing which is a major cause of lung cancer.
David Gornoski and I interviewed Jeff Nobbs, the founder of Zero Acre a little while back, and had a great talk about the new product.
"In this special nutrition science podcast, David Gornoski and Tucker Goodrich are joined by Jeff Nobbs, co-founder of Zero Acre Farms. The discussion starts off with the realization that seed oils are harmful to our health. Jeff Nobbs and Tucker Goodrich also explain the mission of Zero Acre Farms, the development of cultured/fermented oil, whether cultured oil will be safe for consumption, whether we can feed the world with existing fats, and more."
Since rumors started going around, I was curious about this oil and its production, so thank you sir for this interview. The oil seems a renewable and healthy way out of the seed oil chokehold in the long haul. Bummer though David did not seem to grasp (or was he playing devil’s advocate?) that although the production process is innovative, the fatty acids the cultures produce are actually natural occurring and biocompatible for humans.
ReplyDeleteAt least, I assume that is the case. Just to check, I took my Know Your Fats by Mary Enig of the shelf, there are many mono unsaturated fatty acids, but I assume in this cultured oil it is the ubiquitous Oleic acid. This fatty acid is also the major fatty acid in animal fats, fats that drove of our encephalization, confirming that the cultured oil is healthful for humans.
Also great to hear that the low levels of Linoleic acid (max 3%) is in line with our consumption throughout our evolution. Nevertheless, for now I am sticking to my sheep and beef tallow that is also extremely rich in the health promoting Stearic acid.
But just to get back to the topic of Kitava, the anthropologist that did extensive (medical) research there was dr. Staffan Lindeberg, I want to give the man credit here where it is due. His publication Food and Western Disease is truly a treasure. He observed leanness and insulin sensitivity despite the high carb consumption by the Kitavans. This is one of the many observations in the field that defy the carb driven model of insulin resistance and the carbs-are-bad-conundrum.
The only hypothesis to my knowledge that explains and aligns all the confounders and contradictions around carbs is the thesis by Ian Spreadbury, ‘Comparison with ancestral diets suggests dense a-cellular carbohydrates promote an inflammatory microbiota and may be the primary dietary cause of leptin resistance and obesity’ (available as a free pdf).
Spreadbury hypothesizes at length that ancestral carbs do not drive disease, providing that the carbs are consumed in their natural matrix, that is, the carbs are contained within the fibrous walls of plant cells. This slows down the digestion and release of carbs along the entire length of the small intestine. Plus, natural ancestral sources have a low carb-density, usually a carb content of max 20%.
Dear mister Goodrich, could I ask you to take a deep dive into this thesis and maybe at some time in the future elaborate on it? And maybe bring closure to the carb-paradox? Perhaps on your new channel?
Kind regards from the Netherlands, Gerlach Sven.
Thanks for your very thoughtful comment, Gerlach Sven!
DeleteYou are correct that cultured oil is mostly oleic acid. For a first product, this offers a major advantage in that high oleic (low linoleic) is in line with current health advice, which is loath to admit the health hazards of linoleic acid and so must dishonestly advise higher oleic acid content. ZAF alone can be frank about the health issues, since it doesn't have an existing product portfolio to protect.
It's not meant to be replacement for animal fat, so if that's what you prefer, continue to enjoy. For myself, I'll be trying this out as an alternative/replacement for olive oil and avocado oil, for things like salad dressings and mayo.
I did a deep dive in Spreadbury's hypothesis here, and he was kind enough to consider my critique and comment on it. I think it's fair to say his hypothesis doesn't hold water, but read and judge for yourself.
"Thoughts on Spreadbury's "Cellular Carbohydrate" Hypothesis"
Thank you kindly sir for your additional comments, the cultured oil is indeed a dietitians dream, so kudos to ZAF! And thank you also for the link to your blog on the thesis of cellular carbs, it was an excellent break down with many nuances and alternative views. However, it has left me somewhat confused: after all is said and done, what ARE the supposedly detrimental effects of carbs?
DeleteMaybe the high density of carbs in non-ancestral sources like grains? According commenter Melchior Meijer (another dutch dude, we seem to like your blog sir) a high density could overwhelm our digestion & absorption and leave a small window of opportunity for our microbiome to join in in the carb party, thus facilitating an overgrowth. But I am not sure even that argument can be upheld, considering that our grandparents have been eating high carb breads for centuries. So what are we left with? Maybe only the obvious: don’t mix and match carbs with linoleic rich ‘foods’.
On a different note: won’t be long now before dr. Chris Knobbe releases his new book The Ancestral Diet Revolution, it would be great if you could get dr. Knobbe on your podcast! All the best, Gerlach Sven.
I wish the first chart had included coconut oil. Like the first commenter, I'm more interested in saturated fats like stearic acid. I need to go read up on Zero Acres on their website.
ReplyDeleteRegardless, if the food Industry could become interested in replacing the current seed oils with something like this it can only be an improvement in the average diet. Of course it will all come down to cost.
This post contains a fatty acid profile. It's 91.2% oleic acid, the highest SFA is palmitic, at 2%.
Delete"Cultured Oil Health Report"