Polyunsaturated oil, often praised in the press and popular media as the do-all, cure-all answer to heart problems and arterial blockage, may not be as good as you are lead to believe. In order to understand how these types of oil became the homecoming queen of fat, you have to look at the history of studies.

The first study that pointed to the benefits of reducing saturated fat in favor of polyunsaturated was conducted by Keys. Others found that his study was impaired but it was too late, he had the publicity and evidently, benefits in the area of health are recommended based on popularity not scientific fact.

Dr Pritikin developed a diet that worked to help him lose weight. This diet, based on the exclusion of fat, might have made him thinner but it caused depression, mineral deficiencies and low energy in others.

Fatty acids are saturated if all the carbon bonds are linked with hydrogen atoms. This makes them stable. The stability of the binds create a product that doesn’t become rancid if it’s used in cooking and exposed to heat. These are most often found in animal fats since animals produce saturated fat.

Monounsaturated fat have single bonds, which are not reactive and stable. They don’t react with other elements easily.

Polyunsaturated fat has many double bonds but their chains are far less stable than either the monounsaturated or saturated fats. This brings two negative properties into the picture for this type of fat. First, they go rancid very easily, particularly when exposed to heat. Secondly, these types of fats look for elements to connect to and become more stable. The elements might be your cells, which is not a good thing.

When the polyunsaturated fat reacts with the cells, it creates a break down of the cells, similar to what happens to an old car body when exposed to the weather. There becomes damage to the arteries, blood platelets become sticky, their walls harden, and circulation is interrupted.

The reactivity of the polyunsaturated oils causes a tendency for the oil to induce inflammation. While a small amount of this oil is actually good for the body, just like vitamin A, too much is damaging. Over time, it contributes to the development of heart disease, cancer, depression and arthritis. The effect of the inflammation tends to be an immune system depressant.

Heart disease was relatively unheard of in early America when the basis for meals was meat and potatoes with lots of butter. French cuisine is traditionally rich and fatty and yet this population had lower heart disease than Americans did. With the inclusion of fast food into the diet of the French, this trend is changing rapidly. The population of Okinawa, known for longevity, includes a great deal of saturated fat in their diet. Just like other Asian nations, much of the food is cooked with pork lard.

There are many scientific studies that refute the early findings of Keys, but the parade against butter and other saturated fats has been flashier. One has to wonder who promotes the continuation of the fallacy about saturated fat being bad and polyunsaturated fat being good for you. Something tells me that the promotional material might be presented by the makers of polyunsaturated oil.