Vegetable oil could increase your risk of DEMENTIA, new research warns

Eating a diet rich in vegetable oil could put you at risk for dementia, experts claim. Emerging research shows the oil is more likely than others to cause plaque build up in the brain, a known precursor to serious neurodegenerative diseases.

In the mid-20th century, Americans were increasingly concerned about the growing rate of heart disease and were told to ditch saturated fats - such as butter and cream - in favor of vegetable oil.

But Dr Catherine Shanahan, a nutritionist and family physician, says this was a serious mistake.

Dr Shanahan explains that in the 1950s, consumers were told to stop eating saturated fats and turn to products like vegetable oil, which soon became a pantry staple. But there was another factor to its popularity.

She told Daily Mail Online: 'Restaurants and other establishments turned to vegetable oil because of the cost and availability. Olive oil is 10 to 50 times more expensive than vegetable oil.

'Also, it's very easy to use in cooking because there's not a high smoke point and it doesn't have a flavor like olive oil. So it has a one-size-fits-all factor.' 

Vegetable oils comes in a variety of forms - canola, palm, corn, soy, sunflower, safflower, cottonseed, rice bran and grapeseed.

But according to Dr Shanahan, too much of these types of oils in our diets can take a toll on our bodies.

She says vegetable oils can make you feel foggy and fatigued, cause migraines and even trigger diseases such as Alzheimer's or dementia later down the line.

'Vegetable oil causes oxidative stress, which damages brain membranes and results in plaque building up on the brain,' she said.

'We've seen in research with Alzheimer's patients that doctors will biopsy part of the brain and see that plaque has built up.'

But Dr Shanahan says that even if you've grown up eating a diet rich in vegetable oil, you can reverse the negative effects by just cutting it out.

She said: 'I would encourage people to take a seven day challenge and they'll realize it's in everything and that's the problem.

'If you get rid of it, your taste buds will wake up a little bit, you'll taste food the way it's supposed to taste and you'll see improvement. You'll have more energy.'

A report released in May by the European Food Safety Authority found components in palm oil - the most heavily utilized vegetable oil and found in products such as Nutella -  to be 'geotoxic and carcinogenic'. 

In a statement to the Daily Mail Online, a representative for Ferrero, the company that makes Nutella, said the palm oil used in the hazelnut chocolate spread is refined at a lower heat, and therefore contains fewer contaminants.

Dr Shanahan said that this does help lower the risks, but not by much.

'It's like saying, "Mom, I'm going to start smoking but I'll be smoking just three cigarettes a day instead of a whole pack." You're not going to be very happy about it,' she said.

'Companies want these oils because they have anti-microbial benefits that extend their shelf life and prevent them from going bad - but that's because they're toxic.' 

Much more research has since come out linking vegetable oils to heart disease and antioxidant depletion.

The oil is promoted as healthy because it contains monounsaturated fats and Omega-3 fatty acids. But it also contains high levels of polyunsaturated fats.

These fats oxidize easily, depleting the body of antioxidants and causing inflammation and mutation in cells.

Vegetable oil also contains trans fats, which are highly toxic and associated with an increased risk of various diseases, like heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity.

In the last few years, research has begun to tout the benefits of heart-healthy fats such as butter and avocados.

Dr Shanahan says that consumers would do well to replace vegetable oils with olive, coconut, avocado or peanut oils.

She said: 'I would say when you're doing your own cooking to choose oils that have a flavor, like coconut or peanut, and then make sure that it's unrefined.' 

Source:Daily Mail