Is beef tallow a healthier cooking fat than seed oils? According to Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., the answer is a resounding yes.

On October 21, Kennedy took Instagram to say that “seed oils are one of the driving causes of the obesity epidemic.” Kennedy, an environmental lawyer whom Trump has promised to leave “wild” on public health, explained that the rise in American obesity correlates with fast food restaurants switching from beef tallow to seed oils in deep fryers their – especially McDonald’s, which he says cooked. his potatoes in beef tallow until the 1990s.

Kennedy is not the only one on social media who claims that using seed oils can be harmful to health. Influencers like That Crunchy Mom Kate, who has over 220,000 followers on TikTok, have also railed against seed oils.

“I think we should ban canola oil and vegetable oil,” she said in one TikTok videos from September. “They’re not heart-healthy, and if you just YouTube how to make canola oil, you’ll literally puke.” If she “had to choose” something to cook with, she tells her followers, it would be ghee, tallow or avocado oil.

Meanwhile, the American Heart Association says there’s “no reason” to avoid seed oils and encourages their consumption for their heart-healthy benefits.

So what is the truth? Can you go carefree with seed oils, or is it time to “make frying oil tallow again,” as Kennedy suggests? Here’s a look at the nuanced reality.

Seed oils come from the seeds of plants rather than their fruits. Examples include canola, corn, sunflower, peanut, sesame seed, pumpkin seed, and chia seed oils.

“These oils have a high smoke point, which is good for high-temperature cooking.” Claire Edgemon, RDN, said a senior dietitian at Baylor College of Medicine Health.

Seed oils are also generally cheaper than animal fats, another reason restaurants may choose them.

While it may seem like seed oils have been “written off” on social media, experts say their demonization is an oversimplification. “Seed Oils Offer Advantages and Disadvantages”, Kristen White, RDN, said a dietitian in Springfield, Missouri Health. “They are rich in polyunsaturated fats and vitamin Ewhich are beneficial in moderation.”

Actually, Toby Amidor, MS, RD, CDNa registered dietitian and Wall Street Journal best selling author of Health shotspoints to a 2024 study that found that consumption of seed oils rich in unsaturated fats was associated with numerous health benefits, including reduced risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.

However, seed oils are not perfect. “They are high in omega-6 fats, which can promote inflammation if consumed in excess and can become unstable in high heat, forming harmful byproducts,” White said. She explained that when highly refined, seed oils can also lose nutrients and contain traces of trans fats– known to increase bad cholesterol and decrease good cholesterol.

Beef suet, sometimes referred to as “rendered” fat, is obtained by removing, heating and clarifying the fatty tissue surrounding the organs of cows. Tallow can also be made from the fat of other ruminant animals, such as deer, buffalo or goats, although this is less common in the US.

According to White, beef tallow has some significant nutritional and culinary benefits. “It’s stable at high temperatures, which makes it suitable for frying or high-heat cooking,” she said. She added that it also contains beneficial fats such as conjugated linoleic acid and omega-3 (when grass-fed), as well as vitamins K2 and E.

However, it is high in saturated fat. “Beef tallow provides 6 grams of artery clogging saturated fat per 1-tablespoon serving,” Amidor said. By comparison, one tablespoon of canola oil contains only 1 gram of saturated fat.

Since seed oils and tallow have potential benefits for nutrition and high-heat cooking, is one superior to the other?

“Choosing one over the other is nuanced and depends on a person’s lifestyle, behavior and environmental circumstances.” Emma Laing, PhD, RDN, FANDsaid a clinical professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Georgia Health.

Beef tallow and seed oils like canola or soybean have similar calorie counts, Laing said. “However, beef tallow has more knollvitamin D, cholesterol and saturated fat,” she said, “while seed oils have more vitamin E, vitamin Kand unsaturated fatty acids (omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids).”

These nutritional features may be weighted differently depending on your health goals. “People who frequently cook at high temperatures or want to reduce their omega-6 intake may find tallow helpful, while those who need to limit saturated fat may do better with using seed oil or oils high in monounsaturated fats ,” White said.

Amidor points out, however, that frying food in tallow has notable disadvantages for cardiovascular health. “Frying foods is linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease,” she said. “Adding more saturated fat only exacerbates the harmful effects of regularly using beef tallow.”

Individually, choosing a cooking fat may depend on personal preference or health goals. At a broader public health level, dietitians say the obesity epidemic can’t be pinned solely on seed oils. “There is no single cause that can be identified as driving the obesity epidemic,” Edgemon said. For example, portion sizes have contributed to the obesity epidemic, she said.

White agreed. “The obesity epidemic is a complex problem influenced by various factors, including the increased consumption of processed foodshigher sugar consumption and a more sedentary lifestyle,” she said. “This broader dietary pattern may have a greater influence on obesity than any one type of oil.”