Omega-6 Fats and Hydrogenated Oils/Trans-Fats

Omega-6 fats are harmful to health, and most of us get far too much. Israelis consume some of the highest quantities in the world and suffer the consequences (as if a bad neighborhood wasn't bad enough). These fats are from vegetable oils, like soy oil (soybean/soya), corn oil, cottonseed, safflower, sunflower oils and the generic "vegetable oil". These oils are very fragile and become rancid, i.e. they oxidize quickly, and so they do not last very long on the shelf and may NOT be used for cooking. In fact, these oils should be avoided entirely. They are found in mayonnaise, margarine, salad dressing, fried schnitzel, potato chips, french fries, falafel, burekas, jachnun, fried eggplant, etc....

Beware: these oils are hidden everywhere, and restaurants and prepared food use soybean oil almost exclusively.

Omega-6, also called "linoleic acid", is a necessary oil - the body needs a small amount, and it is difficult to avoid it entirely, but we consume far to much and it seems the damage is very real. Omega-6 oils constitute the majority of the polyunsaturated oils that people used to think were healthy, partly because they may reduce cholesterol. Instead, they contribute to cancer, cardiovascular disease, likely all degenerative diseases, modify our fat storage ratios, contributing to the notorious "burekas belly" in women.

Omega-6 oils are also turned into trans-fats by a process called "hydrogenation", to create junk food and margarines, which make them even more dangerous, at least partly because omega-3 is preferentially destroyed in the process. So stay away from anything which lists "partially hydrogenated" or "shortening" in the ingredients, as these contain the toxic trans-fats.