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Healthy Home Economist / Archives / Healthy Fats / Walnut Oil: Best Plant-Based Omega-3 Fats

Walnut Oil: Best Plant-Based Omega-3 Fats

by Sarah Pope / Affiliate Links ✔

Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
  • Doctors Recommend Walnut Oil for Omega-3
  • Better Choice Than Flax Oil
  • How to Use

Walnut oil is the best plant-based source of inflammation-reducing omega-3 fats, with health benefits far surpassing flax or flaxseed oil.walnut oil

Over twenty years ago when I first began eating organic produce and clean meats, I discovered the wonders of walnut oil.  I was introduced to this high omega-3 oil by an Ayurvedic MD. She was coaching me on some very necessary diet and lifestyle changes. The reason? I was living a completely stressed-out corporate life at the time that was taking all the joy out of my life.

Doctors Recommend Walnut Oil for Omega-3

Prior to Dr. Wright’s recommendation to add walnut oil to my diet, I had never before heard of the wonders of omega-3 fatty acids. I certainly had never heard of cod liver oil. My introduction to the work of Dr. Weston A. Price was still quite a few years away.

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I was delighted by the slightly nutty clean flavor of walnut oil. So, I enthusiastically started using it on a daily basis for breakfast.

The usual way I would take my walnut oil was drizzled on a bowl of breakfast flakes made with organic amaranth, which is not exactly the best way to start the day. This is because boxed breakfast cereals are so highly processed. However, I was moving in the right direction and any progress at all in my diet at that time proved to be extremely helpful to my health.

Better Choice Than Flax Oil

Flax oil is the usual choice when people seek to add plant-based omega-3 fats to the diet. However, flax oil is known to sometimes exacerbate hormonal issues.  This observation from Raine Saunders, of the blog Agriculture Society, touches on the subject:

Something I try to be mindful of are foods which are very high in estrogenic properties. Even natural foods like flax seeds and flax oil, like many other foods (soy, sesame seeds (oil), and various beans), are very high in estrogen and can make certain health issues worse such as fibroids or fibrocystic breast conditions. Even if you have a traditional, balanced diet, even moderate consumption of these foods could be problematic anyway because of all the xeno-estrogens in our environment from plastics and other chemicals, which are increasingly pervasive in the world due to industry use and production of new chemicals.

Some other people also commented on that post about how flax oil caused them hormonal difficulties. Cystic or sore breasts was a common theme. Clearly there are potential dangers to consuming flax in this modern age with all the estrogen-mimicking chemicals literally everywhere.

For this reason, walnut oil seems to be a better choice than flax oil for adding plant-based omega-3 fats to the diet. Plant-based omega-3 oils are never a good substitute for animal forms of omega-3 fats like in cod liver oil. It can, however, be a healthy addition to salad dressings in very small amounts.

How to Use

Like hemp seed oil, rice bran oil, pumpkin oil, argan oil, grapeseed oil, some types of sunflower seed oil, and any other culinary oil high in polyunsaturated omega-6 and/or omega-3 fats, walnut oil is extremely delicate and goes rancid easily. After purchasing, it must be kept in the refrigerator and can never, ever be heated or used as a cooking oil.

One or two teaspoons added to your homemade dressings adds delightful flavor and nutrition to your salads.   Remember that even though healthy, omega 3 fats are still polyunsaturated oils and should comprise a very small percentage of the diet, so don’t overdo!

I’ve vetted this brand of unrefined, cold-pressed walnut oil.

Please note that walnuts are slightly goitrogenic the same as flax (although much less so). Hence, if your thyroid is a problem, it may be best to stick entirely with animal-based forms of omega-3 fats.

unrefined cold-pressed walnut oil in a glass bottle

More Information

The Many Shades of Palm Oil
Five Fats You Must Have in Your Kitchen
Selecting a Healthy Cooking Oil and Reusing it Safely
Caution When Using Chicken Fat for Cooking
Cooking with Olive Oil: Yea or Nay?
How Vegetable Oils Make Us Fat
Red Palm Oil Benefits Rival Coconut Oil

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Category: Healthy Fats
Sarah Pope

Sarah Pope MGA has been a Health and Nutrition Educator since 2002. She is a summa cum laude graduate in Economics from Furman University and holds a Master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania.

She is the author of three books: the bestseller Get Your Fats Straight, Traditional Remedies for Modern Families, and Living Green in an Artificial World.

Her eBooks Real Food Fermentation, Ketonomics, and Ancestrally Inspired Dairy-Free Recipes are available for complimentary download via Healthy Home Plus.

Her mission is dedicated to helping families effectively incorporate the principles of ancestral diets within the modern household. She is a sought after lecturer around the world for conferences, summits, and podcasts.

Sarah was awarded Activist of the Year in 2010 at the International Wise Traditions Conference, subsequently serving on the Board of Directors of the nutrition nonprofit the Weston A. Price Foundation for seven years.

Her work has been covered by numerous independent and major media including USA Today, ABC, and NBC among many others.

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Reader Interactions

Comments (45)

  1. Kristine Winniford via Facebook

    Sep 22, 2012 at 10:52 pm

    Thanks! They cold press it and don’t expose it to any heat or acids, so I’m happy with their process; I just haven’t come across any “Real Foodie” opinions.

    Reply
  2. Judith Scott via Facebook

    Sep 22, 2012 at 10:48 pm

    what kind of beans?

    Reply
  3. Autumn Bree Fata via Facebook

    Sep 22, 2012 at 10:48 pm

    How about hemp seed oil for balanced efa’s?

    Reply
  4. Beth Ward via Facebook

    Sep 22, 2012 at 10:46 pm

    Oh my, I have those and I use ground flax in my smoothie every day. I am guessing it has ypthe same effect. Thanks.

    Reply
  5. thehealthyhomeeconomist via Facebook

    Sep 22, 2012 at 10:41 pm

    Seems ok .. but how they process it would have to be closely checked out.

    Reply
  6. Kristine Winniford via Facebook

    Sep 22, 2012 at 10:20 pm

    On the subject of plant based omega 3’s, anyone have any thoughts on Camalina oil? We have an organic local source and their sales pitch is reasonable but on the other hand it doesn’t seem to be a very “traditional” fat (although they claim that Europeans have been using it for hundreds of years).

    Reply
  7. Judith Scott via Facebook

    Sep 22, 2012 at 10:17 pm

    which beans? i have a dinosaur egg in my uterus. gives me no real problems and for the most part we live together in understanding and respect..i don’t do any flax. LOVE homemade sesame milk. and i eat beans.

    Reply
  8. Leila

    Jun 4, 2011 at 10:13 pm

    I am still confused as to animal sources of omega 3s. Is there a way to supplement this? Or are whole foods the only way to get animal omega 3s? (I ask knowing that there is a small amount in CLO, but because the vitamins are so concentrated, it is really not a good omega 3 supplement…also knowing about the yucky processing involved in fish oil supplements…)

    Reply
    • Sarah, The Healthy Home Economist

      Jun 4, 2011 at 10:55 pm

      Hi Leila, Green Pasture Products does not highly process its cod liver oil and it does have a decent dose of omega 3’s. It is the only brand I choose to use or recommend for this reason. It is my family’s main source of omega 3 fats although we do use plant based oil like walnut on occasion for dressings primarily.

  9. Tajah Gerstenberger via Facebook

    Jun 4, 2011 at 9:37 pm

    Make sure organic, walnuts are heavy with pesticides if not :/

    Reply
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