The Real Reason I Only Cook With Ancestral Fats
The Oils Our Bodies Recognize
Why Ancestral Fats Support Better Health Than Industrial Seed Oils
In a world overflowing with processed foods, conflicting nutrition advice, and corporate-funded “health guidelines,” it’s easy to forget one simple truth:
Your body was not designed for modern, industrial seed oils.
It was designed for real, natural, ancestral fats.
Fats that humans have cooked with, thrived on, and passed down through generations.
Your cells know these fats.
Your hormones know these fats.
Your metabolism knows these fats.
Your genes know these fats.
Because they are the fats we evolved with — not the ones created through chemical extraction, high-heat refining, bleaching, deodorizing, and industrial processing.
This isn’t about diet trends.
This is about biological compatibility — choosing what your body recognizes as nourishment instead of what the modern food system creates for profit.
✤ Why Ancestral Fats Feel Different in Your Body
Ancestral fats are:
minimally processed
stable under heat
naturally occurring
rich in nutrients
aligned with human digestion
supportive to hormones and metabolism
Think:
grass-fed tallow
ghee
butter
coconut oil
pastured lard
cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil (unheated)
These fats require no industrial machinery.
No solvents.
No chemical extraction.
No high-heat deodorizing.
No bleaching.
Just food — real, simple, ancestral food.
Your body knows what to do with them.
✤ The Problem With Industrial Seed Oils (A Nature-Aligned Perspective)
Seed oils like:
soybean
canola
cottonseed
corn
safflower
sunflower
…undergo intense industrial processing to become “edible.”
This process can include:
chemical solvents (like hexane)
high-heat refining
bleaching
deodorizing
stabilizers
anti-foam agents
oxidative breakdown
These are not traditional or natural ways of extracting oils.
Your body has no ancestral blueprint for processing these substances.
And while people debate the research and politics behind seed oils…
The simplest truth remains:
Our biology is aligned with nature, not factories.
✤ Heat Stability: The Forgotten Factor
When cooking, one of the most important factors is fat stability.
Ancestral fats = extremely stable
Because they are rich in saturated and monounsaturated fats, they:
resist oxidation
don’t break down as easily
don’t form harmful compounds under heat
Industrial seed oils = extremely unstable
Because they contain high levels of polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs), they:
oxidize quickly
break down under heat
form inflammatory byproducts
create oxidative stress
Ancestral fats are the natural, unprocessed fats our ancestors consumed, primarily from whole foods like animal fats (tallow, lard, butter from grass-fed animals), fatty fish, eggs, avocados, coconut, and **olive oil, focusing on saturated and monounsaturated fats with a balanced omega-6 to omega-3 ratio, offering steady energy and fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K), unlike inflammatory modern seed oils.
A nature-aligned lifestyle honors the fats that support your health, not fight against it.
**Note: Olive oil is best consumed unheated or at low heat only.
✤ What Humans Cooked With for Thousands of Years
Our great-grandparents didn’t cook with soybean oil or canola oil.
Why?
Because these oils didn’t exist.
For 99.9% of human history, we cooked with:
tallow
ghee
butter
lard
coconut oil
olive oil (unheated)
These are the fats that fueled:
strong joints
healthy hormones
resilient metabolisms
reproductive health
long-term vitality
These fats built civilizations.
Seed oils built… industrial profits.
✤ How Your Body Responds to Ancestral Fats
Ancestral fats support:
hormone production
cell membrane integrity
nutrient absorption
metabolic stability
brain health
skin health
nervous system balance
When people switch to ancestral fats, they often notice:
less bloating
calmer digestion
reduced cravings
better skin
more stable energy
improved satiety
gentler mood regulation
This isn’t magic — it’s alignment.
Your body relaxes when it receives food it recognizes.
✤ My Personal Cooking Guide (Nature-Aligned & Ancestral)
Fats I trust completely:
grass-fed tallow
ghee
butter
coconut oil
duck or goose fat
cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil (unheated or very low heat)
Fats I avoid:
canola oil
soybean oil
safflower oil
sunflower oil (refined)
cottonseed oil
vegetable oil blends
commercial “avocado oil” (most are adulterated)
If I wouldn’t recognize it in nature, my body doesn’t need it.
✤ Final Thought
Our cells go way back —
they carry the wisdom of every generation before you.
When you choose ancestral fats — real, natural, unprocessed fats — you honor that lineage.
You’re not just cooking.
You’re reconnecting with how humans were meant to nourish themselves.
Your body feels the difference… naturally.
And when you choose the oils your biology recognizes,
you reclaim a piece of knowledge, your health,
and your connection to the natural world.
Wishing you good health,
Tamara
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