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Advice on canola oil, losing weight around the middle and battling overeating Date published: 7/2/2006
QShould I stop using canola oil? I have read on the Internet that canola oil is as toxic as insect repellent. The Web sites accuse canola oil of being genetically engineered and say it causes mad cow disease, raises cholesterol and causes lung cancer. --J.B., Farmville AI realize the irony of writing this, but don't believe everything you read. Anyone can write anything on the Internet, without checking facts. I use canola oil myself and recommend it to my patients. Based on the scientific evidence we have so far, canola oil is safe, even healthy. Studies in the U.S., Canada, Finland and New Zealand show canola oil helps reduce people's cholesterol levels. Canola oil has almost no artery-clogging saturated fat and has lots The American Heart Association and World Health Organization recommend getting more omega-3 fats, which are found not only in canola oil but also in walnuts, flaxseed and many fishes. Canola oil comes from the seeds of yellow flowers, mostly grown on Canadian farms. About 30 years ago, farmers bred these flowers the natural way, not through genetic engineering, from rapeseed plants. The original rapeseed oil was harsher, and "rapeseed" is not a pleasant name. The new breed of plants that produces milder oil was renamed "canola," for "Canada oil." Today, scientists have genetically engineered some canola--along with soybeans, corn and other crops--to resist insects and use less pesticide during farming. You can buy organic canola and other oils if you are concerned about genetic engineering. As for the charge that canola oil is an insecticide, it's true, but that applies to all oils, including olive, peanut, corn and all the rest. When you spray any oil on plants, it coats and suffocates soft bugs like aphids, while the plants remain healthy. Many organic gardeners recommend spraying cooking oils as a nontoxic bug killer on tomatoes, rose bushes and other plants that are vulnerable to aphids. QI have maintained a 50-pound [weight] loss for 18 years. I am a registered dietitian and former public health nurse, and I recently read your plan for a woman who suffered from binge eating. Are you aware of Overeaters Anonymous? I personally have found much support in this group. I am glad you mentioned therapy. Therapy was not enough for me. Overeaters Anonymous has helped me learn to live life between meals. Thanks.
Date published: 7/2/2006
1. Be respectful. No personal attacks.
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