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Canola Rape Seed Oil Review

"Canola oil comes from the rape seed, which is part of the mustard family of plants. Rape is the most toxic of all food-oil plants. Like soy, rape is a weed. Insects will not eat it; it is deadly poisonous! The oil from the rape seed is a hundred times more toxic than soy oil." - John Thomas

"There is considerable controversy with regard to canola oil and the rape seed plant. One aim of my website is to present views which do not necessarily conform to the views of the establishment. It is very easy to find views which conform to the establishment's views. It is very often difficult to find opposing views. Therefore, you can read the views presented on my website and then visit other websites which present opposing views,
and then you can make up your own mind."- Shirley


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Blindness, Mad Cow Disease and Canola Oil

By John Thomas excerpt from:
Young again: How to Reverse the Aging Process

Millions of people have suffered the loss of their vision from glaucoma, a disease involving atrophy (deterioration) of the optic nerve. For years, "experts" have been telling us that glaucoma results from fluid-pressure buildup in the eye that causes the optic nerve to deteriorate. This theory was based on an incorrect medical model: They were wrong! Now, the experts have admitted that this is not true and have given birth to a new theory. According to it, glaucoma is instead caused by a deficiency of oxygen and blood flow. Finally they are on the right trail. In the end, they will discover that glaucoma is the result of insufficient blood flow due to agglutination (clumping together) of the red blood cells and waste buildup in the cells and intercellular fluids.

These blood-corpuscle clusters cannot squeeze through the extremely tiny capillaries in the posterior of the eye, so cannot deliver oxygen to the mitochondria.1 This is what the problem has been all along, and if people continue to eat soy and canola oils, a lot more of them are going to experience vision irregularities - like retinas and macula lutea degeneration.

Canola Plant Death of the mitochondria in the cells in the posterior of the eye is due to oxygen starvation, sodium toxicity and waste accumulation. When the mitochondria die, the cells die and the posterior eye tissues atrophy. In this respect, glaucoma has much in common with hair loss, Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy and hearing problems.

There are several things a person can do to reverse these debilitating conditions. Biologically friendly water is basic to all rejuvenation, as is fresh, viable food. Detoxification of the tissues and body fluids is accomplished with yucca extract, Kombucha tea, PACs and colon therapy.

Degradation of Vision

Loss of vision is a known, characteristic side effect of rape oil which antagonizes the central and peripheral nervous systems again like soy oil, again worse. The deterioration takes years, however. Rape (canola) oil causes emphysema respiratory distress, anemia, constipation, irritability and blindness in animals-and humans. Rape oil was widely used in animal feeds in England and Europe between 1986 and 1991 when it was thrown out. You may remember reading about the cows, pigs and sheep that went blind, lost their minds, attacked people and had to be shot.

Mad Cow A woman called me from Chicago to tell me that she had been in England when the "Mad Cow Disease" had been at its peak. She said that she had seen a television news report that told people not to panic if they had been using rape oil in their diet and were over 65 years of age. The "experts" added that the effects of rape oil ingestion takes at least 10 years to manifest, and in all likelihood, most of these people would be dead by then anyway. Comforting!

In the reports I read, the "experts" blamed the behavior on a viral disease called scrapie. However, when rape oil was removed from animal feed, "scrapie disappeared.

No longer a European livestock problem; now it is ours. U.S. farmers grow rape seed, and manufacturers use its oil (canola) in thousands of processed foods, with the blessings of government watchdog agencies, of course.

Rape Seed Oil or "Canola"?

  • Canola is a coined word. It appeared out of nowhere and is not listed in any but the most recent reference sources.
  • The flip side of the canola coin reads: "rape"! You must admit that canola sounds better than rape. The name canola disguised the introduction of rape oil to America.
  • Canola oil comes from the rape seed, which is part of the mustard family of plants. Rape is the most toxic of all food-oil plants. Like soy, rape is a weed. Insects will not eat it; it is deadly poisonous!
  • Canola is a semi-drying oil that is used as lubricant, fuel, soap and synthetic rubber base, and as an illuminate for the slick color pages you see in magazines. It is an industrial oil and does not belong in the body!
  • Canola oil has some very interesting characteristics and effects on living systems. For example, it forms latex-like substances that agglutinate the red blood corpuscles, as does soy, but much more pronounced.

Officially, canola oil is known as "LEAR" oil

Genetic Roulette Officially, canola oil is known as "LEAR" oil - Low Erucic Acid, Rape. Industry experts love to tell how canola was developed in Canada and that it is safe to use. They admit it was developed from the rape seed, but that through genetic engineering, i.e. irradiation, it is no longer rape seed, but "canola" instead. ["Canadian oil", get it?]

They love to talk about canola"s qualities - its unsaturated structure(Omega 3, 6, 12), its wonderful digestibility and its fatty acid makeup. They turn us against naturally saturated oils and fats, while they come to the rescue with canola oil. They even tell us how Asia has warmly embraced canola due to its distinctive flavor. Isn't it wonderful how internationalists brokers "help" third-world peoples? Reminds me of the introduction of the microwave oven.

An earthly expression from the Old West sums up the flimflam accompanying rape oil"s rebirth and promotion worldwide: "horse shit and gun smoke!" Its new name provided the perfect cover for commercial interests wanting to make billions in the United States. The euphemism is still very much in use, but is no longer needed. Look at the ingredients list on peanut butter labels. The peanut oil has been removed and replaced with rape oil.

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Chemical Warfare

Chemical Laboratory Between 1950 and 1953, white mustard(rape) seed was irradiated in Sweden to increase seed production and oil content. Irradiation is the process the experts want use to make our food "safe" to eat. Genetically engineered fruits and vegetables - which will soon have innocent things like hepatitis-B spliced into their DNA - are another example of man"s misuses of technology and abuse of public trust by powerful interests and "head-in-the-sand" watchdog agencies.*8*

Canola oil contains large amounts of "isothiocyanates" - cyanide-containing compounds. Cyanide inhibits mitochondrial production of adenosine triphosphate(ATP), which is the energy molecule that fuels the mitochondria. ATP energy powers the body and keeps us healthy and young !

Canola Oil and Metabolism
  • Many substances can bind metabolic enzymes and block their activity in the body. In biochemistry, theses substances are called inhibitors.
  • Toxic substances in canola and soy oils encourage the formation of molecules with covalent bonds which are normally irreversible: They cannot be broken by the body once they have formed.
  • For example, consider the pesticide malathion. It binds to the active site of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase and stops this enzyme from doing its job, which is to divide acetylcholine into choline and acetate.
Nerve Function and Organophosphates

Acetylcholine is critical to nerve-impulse transmission. When acetylcholinesterase is inhibited, as by pesticide residues, nerve fibers do not function normally, and muscles do not respond.

GMO Hidden DangerFor example, think of a garage door opener: If its signal is not received, the door does not open. worth one"s body, the hand or leg is ordered to move, but does not respond. Recently there has been a tremendous increase in disorders like systemic lupus, multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, "Myelinoma"*10* pulmonary hypertension and neuropathy. Soy and canola oils are players in the outbreak of these disease conditions. So are the organophosphates, insecticides such as malathion used in food production in the name of efficiency.

Acetylcholinesterase inhibitors cause paralysis of the striated) skeletal) muscles and spasms of the respiratory system. That is why malathion is the pesticide of choice by the experts; it kills insects by paralysis - just like rotenone from soy beans does! It inhibits the insect"s enzymes and those of humans, too!

Canola oil is an edible vegetable oil that can be used to control insects on a wide variety of crops.

The public Bamboozled?

Agents Orange and Blue that were used in Viet Nam to defoliate jungle cover are also organ-ophosphorus compounds. The Viet Nam vets and the Vietnamese people know about them firsthand. Government experts who okayed their use and chemical companies that manufactured them have finally owned up to their toxic effects on people and the environment. Nonetheless, present-day experts in academia and government continue to bamboozle the public with stories of "safe" science and cheap food through the use of poisons.

  • Canola oil is also high in glycosides that cause serious problems by blocking enzyme function and deprive us of our life force - - chi, qi, prana, call it what you like.
  • Glycosides interfere with the biochemistry of humans and animals. Their presence in rattlesnake venom inhibits muscle enzymes and causes instant immobilization of the victim.
  • Canola Oil, HIV, and AIDS Soy and canola oil glycosides also depress the immune system - the T cells - to go into a stupor and fall asleep on the job. These oils alter the bioelectric "terrain" and promote disease.
The Cancer/Trans-Fatty Acid Connection - Known in 1949!

In orthodox cancer research, renowned cancer researchers, among them, Nobel Prize winner, V. Euler of Stockholm, wrote and published a book in 1949 in which they concluded that if the numerous and diverse symptoms associated with various types of cancer were reduced to one common denominator, it would be that "the fat lacks the ability to integrate in the living tissue". "Trans-Fatty acid is the name of the fat that lacks this ability - it is bad fat.

Non-Spoiling", Spreadable" Oils Are Destroying Our Health

Since 1902, Western countries have resorted to chemical process to destroy the "unsaturatedness" of vegetable oils. It is done to make them easier to handle; easier to market; and to preserve them so they will not spoil so quickly. In the early 1900s, clever advertisements hailed its "spreadability" - exclaiming that what everyone was waiting for was "a spreadable fat"! Although the destruction of the essential elements of the fat was originally well intended - to prevent it from spoiling the methods of processing fats are destroying our health. Avoid any vegetable oil that is labeled 'hydrogenated', or partially hydrogenated, as this oil contains 100% Trans-fatty acid!

Why Are We Still Being "Sold" Trans-Fatty Acid?

Food manufacturing is a big, profitable business and employs many highly skilled lobbyists. The new U.S. labeling laws do not list "Trans-Fatty acid" because the large food manufacturers spent billions of dollars to pay for lobbyists to keep "Trans-fatty acid" off the labels. "Cold Pressed" labeling means nothing in the U.S. All commercial oils and nut butters sold in U.S. Supermarkets contain Trans-fatty acid this is because the U.S. government allows heat treated and high pressure squeezed vegetable oil to be used and even labeled "Cold Processed". The Italian government passed a law that olive oil must be protected from heat and high pressure. The U.S. government could save many lives if it passed a similar law to include all vegetable oil (and banned cotton seed oil - it is poison).

Figure The Amount of Trans-Fatty Acid In Packaged Food By Using The New U.S. Labels
  1. Find the amount of "Total Fat" on the label.
  2. Find the amounts of "Saturated Fat", "Polyunsaturated Fat" and "Monosaturated Fat". (These are found on the label, listed directly under "Total Fat" and slightly indented. If one or the other is not listed, that particular food does not contain it.)
  3. Add theses three together. If there are only two listed, add them together or use one amount if only one is listed.
  4. Subtract the total amount of #3 from the amount of #1. This would be the answer is the amount of Trans-fatty Acid in that product.
Fats That Can Be Safely Heated

Butter and tropical fats - coconut, palm, palm kernel, cocoa, and shea nut - are safest for frying, because they contain only small quantities of Essential Fatty-Acids(EFAs). The saturated fatty acids contained in these fats/oils are inert and therefore heat stable. Heat does not destroy them in the same way it destroys EFAs. Butter and tropical Fats are best used unhydrogenated. Only small amounts should be eaten, as they are sticky, hard, saturated fatty acid-containing fats.

Tropical oils got a bad reputation for increasing cholesterol and triglyceride levels that supposedly cause cardiovascular disease. An unconfirmed rumor suggests that the soy bean industry financed the successful campaign against tropical fats to kill imports and increase soy bean sales. Tropical oils used in their country of origin have been shown in several studies to decrease cholesterol levels. The difference in results may be due to several causes: deterioration in tropical oils during storage, differing experimental design; or a combination of the above. Raw tropical oils are rich sources of vitamin E and tocotrienols, which help protect arteries from damage leading to cardiovascular disease(CVD). Olive oil imported from Italy is safe for baking but not for frying or deep frying. But only imported Italian olive oil as it is cold processed by law.

Liver and Gall Bladder Problems Improved

The metabolism of fat affects each and every organ. Anyone with liver and gall bladder problems is quite aware of how fats affect them. In medicine they say "Eat less fat", because it was observed that fats do not agree with the sick person. However, if this person with liver and gall bladder problems is given "good fat", i.e. live, highly unsaturated fat, it will agree with him or her very well. It is best to use the threefold unsaturated fat from flaxseed oil or hemp seed oil, together with a substance that makes it soluble(mix it with plain, low fat cottage cheese or emulsify it with 2 or more ounces of low fat milk) before you take it.

Many serious medical problems can be solved on the simple basis of taking flax seed oil or hemp seed oil and a sulfur containing protein.

Diseased organs react very favorably to this remedy. (Ed. Note: Also Recommended: EPA capsules (fish oil) and Evening Primrose Oil capsules) Alcohols and glycosidcs in canola and soy oils shut down our protective grid-the immune system. Fluoride, immunizations, antibiotics and bio-junk food play a similar role in immune system collapse. An alcohol is a chemistry term for the "reactive" chemical group on an organic molecule. Those "R" groups are what make organic compounds work-for good and bad! Canola alcohols and glycosides are very reactive. They are as toxic as fermented alcohols, but their effects manifest differently. The damage takes years to show up. In a future article, I will discuss the sweet proteins in soy.

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Hybrid or Genetically Engineered?

Canola is a hybrid variety of rapeseed developed in Canada during the 1970s from traditional pedigree hybrid propagation techniques based on black mustard, leaf mustard, and turnip rapeseed. It is true however, that some forms of rapeseed are genetically engineered. Canola oil that is certified organic is from non-genetically altered seed. Our own Whole Foods Market 365 Brand of canola oil is from non-genetically altered rapeseed.

The Truth About Genetically Modified Foods

When surveyed, the majority of consumers are not comfortable eating genetically engineered foods, but most people can't really explain specifically why they have concerns. Watch this in depth look at the history of the GE debate. This web movie covers every aspect of the issue, from health impacts, to pesticide use, to biotech industry cover-ups.

"Canola oil is a health hazard to use as a cooking oil or salad oil. It is not the healthy oil we thought it was. It is not fit for human consumption, do not eat canola oil, it can hurt you. Polyunsaturated or not, this is a bad oil."The Wall Street JournaL June 7, 1995 pB6 (W) pB6 (E) col1(11 col in) Compiled by Darleen Bradley.

Canola is now Confined to those Cultivars Brassica rapa and B. napus

"Traditional rapeseed is considered unsuitable as a source of food for either humans or animals due to the presence of two naturally occurring toxicants, erucic acid and glucosinolates. Following intensive conventional plant breeding over a period of twenty years, canola is now confined to those cultivars (Brassica rapa and B. napus) that contain low levels of erucic acid and glucosinolates, so called “double low” varieties. Quality control measures also stipulate that no protein is present in canola oil suitable for human consumption."

The analyses were conducted on test material grown over multiple growing seasons and at different geographical locations and thus demonstrate that the genetic modifications have not resulted in any significant variation in composition or agricultural performance in the transformed lines when compared to the non-transformed control lines grown under the same conditions. Detailed compositional analyses on the transformed seeds also showed no differences in the levels of natural toxicants. In particular, the level of erucic acid in the oil (and glucosinolates in the meal) conformed to the compliance requirements for certification as canola. The transformed lines were tested in a range of environmental situations and following treatment with commercial levels of glufosinate-ammonium. The nutritional value of the transformed seeds was evaluated in two animal feeding studies using rabbits and broiler chickens. In both instances, where the transformed canola seeds were included in the diets of the animals over a defined period, no adverse effects attributable to the test material were observed in the animals, and all animals displayed normal patterns of growth. Conclusion On the basis of the available evidence, oil derived from the genetically modified canola lines (T45, Topas 19/2, Ms1, Ms8, Rf1, Rf2, Rf3 and their crosses), is equivalent to oil from non-GM canola in terms of its safety and nutritional properties.

Key toxicants - Seeds from the original native oilseed rape plants naturally contain high levels of two toxins, erucic acid and glucosinolates, and prior to the mid 1950s, the extracted oil was used primarily for industrial purposes. Erucic acid, a long chain fatty acid, is a natural constituent of the seed oil, while glucosinolates are confined to the seed meal with the majority of the protein and other seed components.

Excerpt from Holistic Health Encyclopedia

Rape seed oil (Canola oil) is widely used in thousands of processed foods...with the blessings of our own government. Canola oil was first developed in Canada. It's proponents claim that due to genetic engineering and irradiation, it is no longer rape oil, but "canola" (Canadian oil). They also claim it is completely safe, pointing to it's unsaturated structure and digestibility. Although, I could not verify it, it is claimed the Canadian government paid the FDA the sum of $50 million dollars to have canola oil placed on the GRAS list (Generally Recognized As Safe). However it was done, a new industry was created.

The truth is, however, that rape is the most toxic of all food oil plants. Not even insects will eat it. No wonder farmers like growing it.

Studies of canola oil done on rats indicate many problems. Rats developed fatty degeneration of heart, kidney, adrenals and thyroid gland. When the canola oil was withdrawn from their diet, the deposits dissolved, but scar tissue remained on the organs. Why were no studies done on humans before the FDA placed it on the GRAS list? Consumed in food, Canola oil depresses the immune system, causing it to "go to sleep." Canola oil is high in glycosides which cause health problems by blocking (inhibiting) enzyme function. It's effects are accumulative, taking years to show up. One possible effect of long term use is the destruction of the protective coating surrounding nerves called the mylin sheath. When this protective sheath is gone, our nerves short-circuit causing erratic, uncontrollable movements.

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Excerpts The Great Con-ola
by Sally Fallon and Mary G. Enig, PhD

Rapeseed oil was a monounsaturated oil that had been used extensively in many parts of the world, notably in China, Japan and India. It contains almost 60 percent monounsaturated fatty acids (compared to about 70 percent in olive oil). Unfortunately, about two-thirds of the mono-unsaturated fatty acids in rapeseed oil are erucic acid, a 22-carbon monounsaturated fatty acid that had been associated with Keshan’s disease, characterized by fibrotic lesions of the heart. In the late 1970s, using a technique of genetic manipulation involving seed splitting,2 Canadian plant breeders came up with a variety of rapeseed that produced a monounsaturated oil low in 22-carbon erucic acid and high in 18-carbon oleic acid. The new oil referred to as LEAR oil, for Low Erucic Acid Rapeseed, was slow to catch on in the US. In 1986, Cargill announced the sale of LEAR oil seed to US farmers and provided LEAR oil processing at its Riverside, North Dakota plant but prices dropped and farmers took a hit.3

Marketing Lear Oil as a 'Healthy Alternative' to Polyunsaturated Oils

Before LEAR oil could be promoted as a healthy alternative to polyunsaturated oils, it needed a new name. Neither “rape” nor “lear” could be expected to invoke a healthy image for the new “Cinderella” crop. In 1978, the industry settled on “canola,” for “Canadian oil,” since most of the new rapeseed at that time was grown in Canada. “Canola” also sounded like “can do” and “payola,” both positive phrases in marketing lingo. However, the new name did not come into widespread use until the early 1990s. An initial challenge for the Canola Council of Canada was the fact that rapeseed was never given GRAS (Generally Recognized as Safe) status by the US Food and Drug Administration. A change in regulation would be necessary before canola could be marketed in the US.4 Just how this was done has not been revealed, but GRAS status was granted in 1985, for which, it is rumored, the Canadian government spent $50 million to obtain.

Modern oil processing is a different thing entirely. The oil is removed by a combination of high temperature mechanical pressing and solvent extraction. Traces of the solvent (usually hexane) remain in the oil, even after considerable refining. Like all modern vegetable oils, canola oil goes through the process of caustic refining, bleaching and degumming—all of which involve high temperatures or chemicals of questionable safety. And because canola oil is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which easily become rancid and foul-smelling when subjected to oxygen and high temperatures, it must be deodorized. The standard deodorization process removes a large portion of the omega-3 fatty acids by turning them into trans fatty acids. Although the Canadian government lists the trans content of canola at a minimal 0.2 percent, research at the University of Florida at Gainesville, found trans levels as high as 4.6 percent in commercial liquid oil.24 The consumer has no clue about the presence of trans fatty acids in canola oil because they are not listed on the label.

A large portion of canola oil used in processed food has been hardened through the hydrogenation process, which introduces levels of trans fatty acids into the final product as high as 40 percent.25 In fact, canola oil hydrogenates beautifully, better than corn oil or soybean oil, because modern hydrogenation methods hydrogenate omega-3 fatty acids preferentially and canola oil is very high in omega-3s. Higher levels of trans mean longer shelf life for processed foods, a crisper texture in cookies and crackers—and more dangers of chronic disease for the consumer.

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CANOLA OIL: Deadly for the Human Body!
Beware of Canola Oil, Canola Oil is an Industrial Oil, Not Fit For Human Consumption
  • It is genetically engineered rapeseed
  • It has been shown to cause lung cancer (Wall Street Journal: 6/7/95)
  • Generally rapeseed has a cumulative effect, taking almost 10 years before symptoms begin to manifest. It has a tendency to inhibit proper metabolism of foods and prohibits normal enzyme function. Canola is a Trans Fatty Acid, which has shown to have direct link to cancer. These Trans Fatty acids are labeled as a hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils. Avoid all of them!
  • According to John Thomas' book, Young Again, 12 years ago in England and Europe, rape seed was fed to cows, pigs and sheep who later went blind and began attacking people. There were no further attacks after the rape seed was eliminated from the diet.

What's Wrong with Partially Hydrogenated Oils?

Unlike butter or virgin coconut oil, hydrogenated oils contain high levels of trans fats. A trans fat is an otherwise normal fatty acid that has been "transmogrified", by high-heat processing of a free oil. The fatty acids can be double-linked, cross-linked, bond-shifted, twisted, or messed up in a variety of other ways. Trans fats are poisons, just like arsenic or cyanide. They interfere with the metabolic processes of life by taking the place of a natural substance that performs a critical function. And that is the definition of a poison. Your body has no defense against them, because they never even existed in our two billion years of evolution -- so we've never had the need or the opportunity to evolve a defense against them. Partially hydrogenated oils will not only kill you in the long term by producing diseases like multiple sclerosis and allergies that lead to arthritis, but in the meantime they will make you fat!

Canola oil from the rape seed, referred to as the Canadian oil because Canada is mainly responsible for it being marketed in the USA The Canadian government and industry paid our Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA). $50 million dollars to have canola oil placed on the (GRAS) List "Generally Recognized As Safe". Thus a new industry was created. Laws were enacted affecting international trade, commerce, and traditional diets. Studies with lab. animals were disastrous. Rats developed fatty degeneration of heart, kidney, adrenals, and thyroid gland. When canola oil was withdrawn from their diets, the deposits dissolved but scar tissue remained on all vital organs. No studies on humans were made before money was spent to promote Canola oil in the USA.

Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) is a rare fatal degenerative disease caused by in a build up long-chain fatty acids (c22 to c28) which destroys the myelin (protective sheath ) of the nerves. Canola oil is a very long chain fatty acid oil (c22). Those who will defend canola oil say that the Chinese and Indians have used it for centuries with no effect, however it was in an unrefined form.

Be Careful of Canola

Refined canola oil, typically found in conventional food stores, is usually exposed to high temperatures, deodorizing and bleaching. Its health-giving constituents are processed away, and its omega-3s converted into the undesirable trans form. Even "lightly refined" and "expeller pressed oils can be exposed to deodorizing, which may raise the oil temperature to a sizzling 450°– 470°F.