Seed oils and my new health tools
A review on seed and olive oils, a macro calculator, a cardiovascular calculator.
A careful look at cooking oils, two practical calculators, and the full round-up since Issue 7.5.
Hey there! I’ve been working on a new YouTube video about the benefits of video games. It should be coming out in the next weeks, and I’m very excited.
But for today, I would like to share a few things I have worked on since the last unPRESCRIBED issue.
Everything you should know about seed (and olive) oils
Seed oils have become a proxy battle for almost everything people dislike about the modern diet. One side talks about them as poison. The other side sometimes dismisses every concern as nonsense. As always, people are very passionate about their beliefs and not so much about real science. So here it is.
The evidence does not support either extreme.
The important questions are: What is the oil replacing? How much is being used? Is it fresh or repeatedly heated? What comes with it?
When polyunsaturated fat replaces saturated fat, LDL cholesterol falls. The randomized evidence probably supports a modest reduction in cardiovascular events, but it has not clearly shown a mortality benefit—or harm. Trials that increased linoleic acid within studied ranges also did not consistently raise inflammatory markers.
Some older trials did not show the cardiovascular benefit researchers expected, and one raised a possible mortality concern. Those findings are important because they stop us from overselling high-linoleic diets as protective. But they still do not show that modern, nonhydrogenated seed oils used in ordinary amounts are toxic.
If you don’t want to read the whole article, that’s okay. But understand this: heat changes the exposure.
Fresh oil used once for sautéing is not the same thing as oil held hot and reused through many frying cycles. And deep-frying is even a completely different exposure as well. In my kitchen, extra-virgin olive oil is the default for almost everything. However, I am also very comfortable with ordinary amounts of fresh canola, soybean, sunflower, safflower, or corn oil. I try not to let oil smoke, and I do not keep reusing it.
If avoiding seed oils helps you eat fewer chips, doughnuts, fast-food fries, and packaged snacks, that may improve your diet. It still does not prove that the oil itself was the harmful ingredient.
What I am trying to say is: do not go full-on crazy with, “I will not have seed oils at home!” If you use a little for pancakes, healthier cakes, and so on, that’s fine.
I think that part of I want to do with this series of e-mails is help you develop this critical scientific thinking.
- What did the oil replace, and how was it used?
- You do not need a seed oil detox.
Tool highlights
Now to some tools I’ve been working on. The PREVENT cardiovascular-risk calculator is more for healthcare providers for now, and the macro calculator is for both providers and the general public.
Macronutrient calculator
You can enter a goal weight, activity, eating pattern, and meals per day to see adjustable estimates for protein, fat, carbohydrate, calories, maintenance energy, and early weight direction.
It is a planning aid with the supporting evidence and a touch of my own expertise and opinions. You can use this along with your favorite tracker.
Try the macronutrient calculator ›
PREVENT cardiovascular-risk calculator
For clinicians, I published an updated PREVENT cardiovascular-risk calculator through Deolify Health and Research. It presents the official 10- and 30-year AHA PREVENT estimates with guideline context and projected treatment benefit.
The most important limitation I added is about lipoprotein(a), or Lp(a). PREVENT does not include it. If Lp(a) is elevated, the displayed percentage may underestimate risk. The tool explains that limitation without inventing a multiplier or changing the official result.
From my clinic
At Oriva Health, I published a group of guides with questions people ask about weight, hormones, lipids, performance, and medication.
Bodybuilding prep and post-show recovery What physician oversight can identify and monitor.
Metabolic health is one system. Your care should be too. How continuity connects weight, hormones, lipids, sleep, symptoms, and laboratory findings.
A GLP-1 is a medication. What you actually need is a program. Why eligibility, titration, side effects, muscle preservation, nutrition, and maintenance all matter.
Semaglutide vs tirzepatide What the head-to-head data show, and why average weight loss does not decide the right medication for one person.
Testosterone replacement therapy Who it may help, why diagnosis needs symptoms plus repeatedly low morning levels, and what responsible monitoring includes.
Low T, belly fat, or both? How obesity and low testosterone can reinforce each other, and why treatment should address the demonstrated driver instead of defaulting everyone to two medications.
My open diary
Last issue, I wrote that our environment is not neutral when it comes to motivation. I would like to add to that. Progress is not always visible in a feed. You don’t need to post everything, and it is okay to work quietly on things you believe in. Depending on the task, telling your audience what you are working on can create a helpful commitment that pushes you forward — like I did at the beginning of this issue when I mentioned the new YouTube video. But that is certainly not always the case.
I am also rethinking my short-form videos. They have not been performing well, so my genius guess is that my audience is not really enjoying them. I still don’t know exactly how to do them differently, but I will keep trying new things with my editor, Tawan.
Before you leave
If someone has sent you a scary seed-oil clip, is trying to set macro targets, or is confused by a risk-calculator number, forward them this issue. A little context can save a lot of unnecessary certainty.
Also, reply to this email and let me know: what project are you working on quietly right now that could use some extra motivation?
P.S. — If you have recommendations for future issues or topics, let me know!
Stay curious — and tchau!
Dr. Igor Deoli
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