As you read this, I’ll be in my office, feet tucked under my desk, surreptitiously looking at all the baby photos on my phone and messaging the Irishman relentlessly to check they are still alive. The big Irishman is on paternity leave for a few weeks until the little Irishman starts hanging with Carmela, his lovely nanny.

We didn’t mean to have a nanny but the daycare struggle is real! I won’t bore you with the details but boy am I relieved we eventually found a solution. The pro – we found a nanny share that I am truly excited about, the con – we will be on a big food budget for a long time (economical recipes coming up!)

It is so hard letting go. Logically, I know he is perfectly fine but in my head I keep inventing disasters and panicking about them. I guess this is an evolutionary survival mechanism to make moms hyper-vigilant – but it’s not a comfortable experience. As for the baby, he will be more than happy. He laughs his head off with his dad. But I want to be there, just in case. I also want to be at work. And with my teens. And out running! Hmmmm has anyone figured out how to clone themselves yet? (Wait, I’ll give up that day dream because if I could do it then Donald Trump could also do it … and that would be a tragedy.)

Fortunately, I have lots of questions in my inbox to distract me. You’re sending me some great ones (thank you!) so let’s take a dive into this week’s topic. Here goes.

Question

“Could you explain a bit around cooking oils. Such as what to choose between rapeseed, corn, sunflower, various nutty ones and olive. On this last one in particular, is it only good cold, but becomes “carcinogenic” when heated? And also, is there much benefit in going for the (even more) expensive cold-pressed type rather than the bulk standard blends of virgin/other?”

Answer

Oooh, I love this subject and teach a whole class on it in Nutrifit. Interestingly, while my class on blood sugar has essentially stayed the same for 18 years, the research on oils has changed quite a lot since my original training. Certainly there are trends that come and go and I can understand why people are confused about which oils are healthy and which ones should be used when. Let’s look at the current picture.

In general, I recommend that people use avocado oil, refined coconut oil or ghee over a high heat. Over moderate heat you could use avocado, butter or light olive oil. Over a low heat I would use extra virgin olive oil or extra virgin coconut oil. And raw, you can use any of the above as well as any nut oil (except peanut) or flax oil.

One of the first things to understand is that different oils have different “smoke points”. This means that they vary in how hot they can get before they burn. Extra virgin oils tend to have a lower smoke point, which means they need to be used over a lower heat. So, although you’ve probably always been told that cooking with extra virgin olive oil is healthy, you only want to do that over a low heat. Getting this right is important because burnt oils oxidise and generate inflammation in the body. Inflammation isn’t just an issue when it comes to things such as headaches and arthritis. It is also connected to asthma, eczema, endometriosis, obesity, poor heart health, cancer and cognitive decline.

You may have noticed that the list I gave you of oils to cook with does not include many seed oils. Seed oils generally include canola, corn, cottonseed, soy bean, sunflower, safflower, grapeseed and rice bran oils. The issue with these is that to extract the oils, they are put under high heat and pressure as well as being mixed with chemical solvents. These lead to oxidation and inflammation, too, with the same damaging consequences as mentioned above. In addition, these oils are very high in their Omega 6: Omega 3 ratios, which can limit the body’s absorption of Omega 3 and contributes to inflammation through a separate mechanism. While some seed oils have previously been thought to be healthy due to their polyunsaturated fat content (thought to lower cholesterol) the monounsaturated fats (olive/avocado oils) have similar benefits without the problematically high Omega 6 ratios.

Lastly, buying cold-pressed, organic oils is always a better option as you maintain the integrity of the oils and avoid the chemical solvents. However, these can be very expensive. So my suggestion is to go with the recommendations above and only buy cold pressed if you can afford it. I go into more details in my Nutrifit classes (new dates coming soon) but for now I hope that helps!

If you are used to baking with vegetable oil, safflower or canola oil, I suggest you switch to avocado!

• The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Somorjay Burns BA Hons, Dip ION, BNTA is a fully qualified nutritional therapist trained by the Institute for Optimum Nutrition in Britain. Join Catherine on Facebook: facebook.com/nutrifitandnaturalnutritionbermuda or instagram @naturalbda