Row of glass dishes of cooking oils beside sunflower seeds, corn, soybeans, rapeseed, olives and avocado

Seed Oils List: Which Oils Count, Which to Limit, and What the Evidence Says

By Yusuf Elsayed, Founder of Sidr & Stone · Last updated 12 October 2026

A seed oils list usually starts with eight names: canola (rapeseed), corn, cottonseed, grapeseed, rice bran, safflower, soybean and sunflower. Those are the oils the online "seed oil" debate is really about, and much of what we eat of them arrives in fried and packaged food rather than from the bottle in the cupboard. The harder questions are the ones a bare list skips — which oils are genuinely high in omega-6, which seed oils have been bred to look more like olive oil, what the major health bodies actually say, and where the critics have a point and where they overreach. Below is the full list, the fatty-acid figures for sixteen common oils from the US Department of Agriculture's FoodData Central database, and an even-handed account of the evidence — no fear, no hype.

For our own oil, see our Cold-Pressed Single-Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Marrakech (500ml).

The Short Answer

  • The core seed oils list is the "hateful eight" named by US physician Cate Shanahan: canola (rapeseed), corn, cottonseed, grapeseed, rice bran, safflower, soybean and sunflower. Peanut and sesame oil are often added; flaxseed and hemp oil sometimes are.
  • Olive oil and avocado oil are fruit oils, not seed oils. Coconut and palm oil are rarely put on the list, but they are the oils health bodies most clearly ask us to limit, because of their saturated fat.
  • USDA FoodData Central lists standard sunflower oil at 65.7 g of linoleic acid (omega-6) per 100 g, safflower oil at 74.6 g and olive oil at 9.76 g — a several-fold difference.
  • High-oleic sunflower and safflower oils are seed oils with a fat profile close to olive oil: 3.61 g and 12.7 g of linoleic acid per 100 g respectively.
  • The American Heart Association, the NHS and the World Health Organization all support replacing saturated fat with unsaturated fats, seed oils included. The 2025–2030 US Dietary Guidelines instead name olive oil first, with butter or beef tallow as other options, and call for more research.
  • The strongest critical evidence comes from re-analysed 1960s–70s trials; the largest body of cohort data points the other way. Neither side has a knockout.
  • If you want to cut back, a Cleveland Clinic dietitian points to packaged foods, fast food and eating out as where most seed oil is eaten; at home, an unrefined fruit oil such as extra virgin olive oil is the simplest swap.

The Seed Oils List: The Eight Oils and the Rest

"Seed oil" is less a botanical category than a shorthand. Shanahan's list of eight — which she says she first identified herself — is the version most people meet online, and the American Heart Association uses the same eight when it describes the debate. These are the oils it covers:

  1. Canola oil (low-erucic rapeseed oil)
  2. Corn oil
  3. Cottonseed oil
  4. Grapeseed oil
  5. Rice bran oil
  6. Safflower oil
  7. Soybean oil
  8. Sunflower oil

What the eight share is a method and a market: most are extracted from small seeds with high-yield industrial processes, typically including solvent extraction and refining, and most are cheap enough to dominate frying and packaged food. Several other oils are pressed from seeds but sit on the edges of the debate — peanut and sesame oil (often added to extended lists), flaxseed, hemp and pumpkin seed oil (usually sold cold-pressed in small bottles, and prized for omega-3 in flax's case). Walnut and almond oil are nut oils, and they rarely feature at all.

Just as useful is what is not on the list. Olive oil and avocado oil come from the flesh of a fruit; our article on whether olive oil is a seed oil covers the botany and the one olive product made the seed-oil way, pomace oil. Coconut and palm oil are not usually on the list either — which, as the next section shows, does not make them the healthier choice.

Small ceramic bowls of sunflower seeds, rapeseed, soybeans, corn, grape seeds, rice and cotton bolls on wood

Seed Oils by the Numbers: USDA Fat Profiles for 16 Oils

A list tells you which oils are being argued about; the fatty-acid figures tell you why. The table below uses USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy records, read in October 2026). Figures are grams per 100 g of oil; they do not add up to exactly 100 because the database also counts other fat components. Linoleic acid is the main omega-6 fat; alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is the plant omega-3.

Oil On the "eight"? Saturated Monounsaturated Linoleic acid (omega-6) ALA (omega-3)
Safflower (standard, high-linoleic) Yes 6.2 14.4 74.6 0
Grapeseed Yes 9.6 16.1 69.6 0.1
Sunflower (standard, high-linoleic) Yes 10.3 19.5 65.7 0
Corn Yes 12.9 27.6 53.5 1.16
Cottonseed Yes 25.9 17.8 51.5 0.2
Soybean Yes 15.6 22.8 51.0 6.79
Sesame Sometimes added 14.2 39.7 41.3 0.3
Rice bran Yes 19.7 39.3 33.4 1.6
Peanut Sometimes added 16.9 46.2 32.0 0
Canola (rapeseed) Yes 7.36 63.3 19.0 9.14
Safflower, high-oleic Yes (variant) 7.54 75.2 12.7 0.096
Avocado No — fruit oil 11.6 70.6 12.5 0.957
Olive No — fruit oil 13.8 73.0 9.76 0.761
Palm No 49.3 37.0 9.1 0.2
Sunflower, high-oleic Yes (variant) 9.86 83.7 3.61 0.192
Coconut No 82.5 6.33 1.68 0.019

Three things stand out. First, the "eight" are not one uniform thing: standard safflower and sunflower oil are around two-thirds to three-quarters linoleic acid, while canola is mostly monounsaturated and carries more plant omega-3 than any other oil in the table. Second, breeding has blurred the line — high-oleic sunflower oil, at 83.7 g of monounsaturated fat per 100 g, is closer to olive oil on paper than olive oil is to corn oil. Third, the oils lowest in omega-6 are not automatically the ones health bodies favour: coconut oil is 82.5% saturated fat and palm oil 49.3%.

What no table of fats captures is processing. A refined seed oil and an unrefined extra virgin olive oil can share a fatty-acid range and still differ in everything refining removes — aroma, flavour and the polyphenols our guide to monounsaturated fats discusses alongside oleic acid.

Four glass laboratory beakers of cooking oils from pale yellow to golden-green beside a blank notebook

Which Oils to Limit — and Why the Answer Depends on Who You Ask

"Seed oils to avoid" lists and official advice disagree less about the facts in the table than about which fact matters most. There are three separate reasons people give for limiting an oil, and each points to a different list.

If your concern is omega-6

The highest-linoleic oils are standard safflower, grapeseed, sunflower, corn, cottonseed and soybean oil — all above 50 g per 100 g in USDA's figures. The NHS notes that "most people get enough omega-6" and advises more omega-3 instead, which is a different emphasis from "avoid", but it is consistent with using these oils with a lighter hand.

If your concern is processing

Most supermarket seed oils are refined, and many are solvent-extracted. The practical alternatives are mechanically pressed oils — extra virgin olive oil, cold-pressed rapeseed oil, or other cold-pressed oils — which keep more of the compounds refining strips out. This is a fair preference, though it is a quality argument rather than proof of harm.

If your concern is saturated fat

This is the official list. The NHS names palm oil, coconut oil and coconut cream, butter, ghee and lard among foods high in saturated fat, and advises men to eat no more than 30 g of saturated fat a day and women no more than 20 g. The WHO names butter, ghee, lard, palm oil and coconut oil among the main sources of saturated fat, which it advises keeping to no more than 10% of energy.

The overlap between those three lists is small — and the oils that sit outside all three concerns are mechanically pressed, low-omega-6, mostly monounsaturated fruit oils, with extra virgin olive oil the most widely available. For the wider picture of which fats to favour, see our guide to healthy fats.

Jar of solid white coconut oil, halved coconut, pale sunflower oil and golden-green olive oil on stone

What the Major Health Bodies Say

The mainstream position is consistent across three continents, with one notable recent exception.

  • American Heart Association. An AHA News article (August 2024) headlined "There's no reason to avoid seed oils and plenty of reasons to eat them" states that the AHA "supports the inclusion of omega-6 fatty acids as part of a healthy diet". The article was corrected in March 2025 to remove a statement that omega-6 is pro-inflammatory.
  • NHS. The NHS advises cutting down on saturated fat and swapping some of it for unsaturated fat, noting "good evidence" that this helps lower cholesterol. It lists rapeseed, corn and sunflower oil as sources of omega-6, and olive and rapeseed oil as sources of monounsaturated fat.
  • World Health Organization. WHO's 2023 guidelines say adults should limit total fat to 30% of energy or less, keep saturated fat to no more than 10% and trans fat to no more than 1%, and replace them with polyunsaturated fats, monounsaturated fats from plant sources, or fibre-rich carbohydrates. WHO said at the time that a separate guideline on polyunsaturated fats would follow.
  • US Dietary Guidelines 2025–2030. The new US guidelines, published in January 2026, say: "When cooking with or adding fats to meals, prioritize oils with essential fatty acids, such as olive oil. Other options can include butter or beef tallow." They keep the 10% saturated-fat ceiling, do not name seed oils, and add that "more high-quality research is needed" on which dietary fats best support long-term health.

The regulators take a similar line. Under the UK's assimilated version of Regulation (EU) No 432/2012, read on legislation.gov.uk, linoleic acid has an authorised health claim — "Linoleic acid contributes to the maintenance of normal blood cholesterol levels" — for foods with at least 1.5 g of linoleic acid per 100 g and per 100 kcal, with the beneficial effect obtained at 10 g a day. The same register authorises "Replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats in the diet contributes to the maintenance of normal blood cholesterol levels" for foods high in unsaturated fat. Neither claim is about any particular brand, ours included; both show where the official evidence review landed.

What the Critics Argue — and Where the Evidence Is Thin

The critics' case is not baseless, and it deserves a fair hearing. Shanahan's own site presents the eight as oils that are "destroying your health". US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr has called seed oils poisonous, according to reporting on the launch of the 2025–2030 guidelines. And there is real trial evidence they point to.

In the Sydney Diet Heart Study, recovered and re-analysed by Ramsden and colleagues in the BMJ in 2013, 458 men aged 30 to 59 with a recent coronary event were randomised to replace saturated fat with safflower oil and safflower margarine, or to no dietary advice. Deaths from all causes were higher in the safflower group — 17.6% against 11.8% (hazard ratio 1.62, 95% CI 1.00 to 2.64). In 2016, the same group's re-analysis of the Minnesota Coronary Experiment (1968–73), also in the BMJ, covered 9,423 people in a nursing home and six state mental hospitals. Swapping saturated fat for corn oil cut serum cholesterol by 13.8% against 1.0% in controls, but the authors concluded this did not translate into a lower risk of death.

Those are old, unusual trial populations, and the wider evidence is less dramatic in either direction. A 2018 Cochrane review by Hooper and colleagues pooled 19 randomised trials in 6,461 people and found low-quality evidence that eating more omega-6 fat "may make little or no difference" to all-cause deaths (risk ratio 1.00) or cardiovascular events (0.97). On the other side, a 2020 meta-analysis by Li, Guasch-Ferré, Li and Hu in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition covered 38 studies with 811,069 participants and found the highest linoleic-acid intakes were associated with 13% lower all-cause mortality than the lowest (relative risk 0.87). Those are observational cohorts, which show association, not cause.

The honest summary: there is no strong evidence that ordinary amounts of seed oils in a balanced diet are harmful, and no settled answer on the ideal amount of omega-6 either. Where critics and mainstream bodies agree is that deep-fried and ultra-processed foods — where most seed oil is eaten — are worth eating less of.

Where Seed Oils Hide: Labels, Takeaways and "Seed-Oil-Free" Foods

Much of the seed oil people eat is never poured from a home bottle. If you are building a personal list of seed oils to avoid, the label and the fryer matter more than the cupboard.

  • "Vegetable oil" on a UK or EU label — under Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, refined plant oils may be grouped as "vegetable oils" only if the specific plant sources follow immediately, sometimes with "in varying proportions". Look for "rapeseed", "sunflower" or "palm" in that bracket.
  • Hydrogenated oils — the same rules require "fully hydrogenated" or "partly hydrogenated" to be stated, so these are visible on the label.
  • Common hiding places — crisps, crackers, biscuits, mayonnaise, shop-bought dressings, ready meals, frozen chips and breaded foods.
  • Restaurants and takeaways — the frying oil is rarely listed. Asking what the fryer oil is, or choosing grilled and roasted dishes, is the only reliable check, and some restaurants now advertise seed-oil-free menus.
  • "Olive oil blend" — often mostly sunflower or rapeseed oil. The ingredients list should show olive oil alone.

That last point matters at home too. Our guide on how to choose a quality olive oil covers the grades and label terms that tell a single-ingredient extra virgin oil apart from a blend or a refined "light" oil.

Unbranded crisps, crackers, biscuits, a plain dressing bottle and a basket of chips on a wooden counter

Healthy Alternatives to Seed Oils

If you have decided to use fewer seed oils, the swaps that fit both the critics' concerns and official advice are short.

  • Extra virgin olive oil — a mechanically pressed fruit oil, 73.0 g monounsaturated and 9.76 g linoleic acid per 100 g in USDA's figures, and the oil the 2025–2030 US guidelines name first. It handles ordinary home cooking well; our article on olive oil at high heat explains what happens in the pan.
  • Avocado oil — another fruit oil with a similar profile (70.6 g monounsaturated, 12.5 g linoleic acid).
  • Cold-pressed rapeseed oil — still a seed oil, but mechanically pressed, mostly monounsaturated and a source of plant omega-3. A reasonable middle ground for those whose objection is refining rather than the seed.
  • Butter, ghee and tallow — not seed oils, and named as options in the new US guidelines, but high in saturated fat; the NHS and WHO advise limiting them.

For a side-by-side of every common oil by cooking use, see our ranking of the healthiest cooking oils.

Why Sidr & Stone

If you are reading a seed oils list because you want an oil made the simple way — fruit in, oil out, nothing added — that is how we make ours. Sidr & Stone's Cold-Pressed Single-Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Marrakech (500ml) is a mechanically pressed fruit oil from olives grown on our own farm on the plains outside Marrakech, Morocco.

  • Single-estate: Sidr & Stone's olive oil comes from our own family-owned farm near Marrakech, with every step from tree to bottle under our control and no blending across origins.
  • Rain-fed: the trees are not irrigated; they take what the season gives.
  • Organically grown: no synthetic fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides are used (not yet certified organic; certification is in progress).
  • Single harvest: each batch is a small, limited single-harvest batch, picked when the fruit is ready.
  • Cold-pressed within hours of harvest: Sidr & Stone's olive oil is extracted mechanically, with no solvents and no refining.
  • Unfiltered extra virgin: minimally processed, so it may show natural sediment, which is normal.
  • 100% natural: one ingredient — olive oil — with nothing blended in.
  • Dark glass with a gold label: the 500ml bottle protects the oil from light.
  • 10% of profits to charity: a commitment across every Sidr & Stone product.
  • Fulfilment in the UK, EU, and US.

We will not tell you Sidr & Stone is the best olive oil — that would be exactly the kind of claim this article asks you to look past. What we will say is that our oil is single-estate Moroccan, rain-fed, organically grown and cold-pressed within hours of harvest: a fruit oil, made without solvents or refining, from a farm we run ourselves.

Sidr & Stone olive oil bottle and box on pale stone with green olives and golden-green oil

Frequently Asked Questions

What is on the seed oils list?

The core list is canola (rapeseed), corn, cottonseed, grapeseed, rice bran, safflower, soybean and sunflower oil. Extended lists often add peanut and sesame oil, and sometimes flaxseed and hemp oil.

Which oils are not seed oils?

Olive oil and avocado oil are fruit oils, pressed from the flesh of the fruit. Coconut and palm oil are not usually counted as seed oils, and butter, ghee and tallow are animal fats — though all four are high in saturated fat.

Which seed oils are highest in omega-6?

In USDA FoodData Central, standard safflower oil has 74.6 g of linoleic acid per 100 g, grapeseed 69.6 g and standard sunflower 65.7 g. Corn, cottonseed and soybean oil are all above 50 g, while canola is 19.0 g.

Is canola oil the healthiest seed oil?

It depends on the yardstick. Canola is mostly monounsaturated, low in saturated fat and the richest plant omega-3 source in the table above. Critics object to how most canola is refined; a cold-pressed rapeseed oil answers that objection.

How is Sidr & Stone's olive oil different from a seed oil?

It is pressed from the olive fruit on our own farm outside Marrakech, cold-pressed within hours of harvest and never solvent-extracted, refined or blended. The bottle holds one ingredient: extra virgin olive oil.

Are seed oils inflammatory?

The evidence does not support that as a blanket statement. The AHA corrected its own 2024 article to remove a line calling omega-6 pro-inflammatory, and its expert says both omega-6 and omega-3 fats play a role in the body's inflammatory response. For any health concern, consult a qualified medical professional.

Where can I buy a single-estate olive oil with nothing added?

Our Cold-Pressed Single-Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Marrakech (500ml) is available to pre-order from the Sidr & Stone website as a limited single-harvest batch, with fulfilment in the UK, EU, and US.

Is olive oil a medicine?

No. Olive oil is a food, not a medicine. It has a long traditional history — including being honoured in the Prophetic Sunnah — and a substantial body of modern research, particularly around polyphenols, cardiovascular health, and the Mediterranean diet pattern. It can be a worthwhile part of a healthy routine, but it does not cure diseases and is not a substitute for medical care. Be cautious of any olive oil marketed with specific disease-cure claims.

Final Thoughts

A seed oils list is easy to write and harder to use. The eight names are well established; what they mean for your plate depends on whether your concern is omega-6, refining or saturated fat — and on that, USDA's figures show the oils differ far more than the label "seed oil" suggests. The major health bodies see no reason to avoid seed oils in a balanced diet; the critics point to old trials that genuinely complicate the story; the newest US guidelines sit somewhere in between and ask for more research.

What both camps share is a practical starting point: eat less fried and ultra-processed food, read the oil in the ingredients list, and cook at home with an oil you understand. Our Cold-Pressed Single-Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Marrakech (500ml) — single-estate, rain-fed and cold-pressed within hours of harvest — is available to pre-order now as a limited single-harvest batch, with fulfilment in the UK, EU, and US.

Sidr & Stone olive oil bottle with gold pourer beside a salad glossed with golden-green olive oil

Our extra virgin olive oil is grown organically on our own single-estate farm on the plains outside Marrakech: we control every step from tree to bottle, and no synthetic pesticides, herbicides or fertilisers are used. It is not yet certified organic — certification is in progress, and we will publish it as soon as it comes through.

Pre-Order Sidr & Stone Cold-Pressed Single-Estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil — Limited Single-Harvest Batch →

Disclaimer: This article summarises published nutrient data, official dietary guidance and research on seed oils at the time of writing; database figures, guidelines and research findings may change, and readers should check current sources. Fatty-acid figures are USDA FoodData Central averages and individual oils vary. Olive oil is a food, not a medicine, and is not a substitute for medical treatment of any condition. For any health concern, consult a qualified medical professional.

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