GAPS excludes processed fats as a category, including refined cooking oils, margarine, artificial butter replacements, hydrogenated fats and shortenings. The useful shopping question is what the product actually contains and how it was made. A front label saying “vegetable,” “spreadable” or “zero trans fat” does not answer the whole question.[1]
What the Book Calls Processed Fats
In Gut and Physiology Syndrome, Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride names oils extracted from seeds and plant matter, artificial spreads and fats used in prepared foods. She connects the extraction and processing methods with altered fatty acids and makes their exclusion part of the GAPS food rules.[1]
That does not make every plant food forbidden. Whole nuts and seeds, and suitable cold-pressed oils in their assigned roles, are separate parts of the source’s discussion. The cooking-and-finishing guide shows the practical distinction.
Extraction, Refining and Heating
The book describes high temperature, pressure and chemical processing during oil production, and discusses the sensitivity of unsaturated fatty acids to heat, light and oxygen. Those are the reasons it gives for preferring natural foods and carefully handled cold-pressed oils.[1]
Extraction, oxidation and the formation of trans fatty acids are different processes. A heating experiment depends on the oil, temperature, time and conditions; ordinary heating should not be described as producing the same large trans-fat amount in every fat. That clarification preserves the GAPS cooking instructions rather than making them a claim of chemical invulnerability.[2]
Partial and Full Hydrogenation
Hydrogenation adds hydrogen to unsaturated fats. Partial hydrogenation can create industrial trans fats. Full hydrogenation is a different process and can produce fats with very little trans fat. FDA’s description makes that chemical distinction explicit.[3]
The GAPS exclusion remains broader: a fully hydrogenated fat does not become a GAPS cooking choice simply because its trans-fat content is low. The book also discusses metal catalysts and residues in its processing argument; the word “hydrogenated” alone does not measure a person’s metal exposure.[1]
Natural and Industrial Trans Fats
Some trans fats occur naturally in ruminant foods such as dairy, beef and lamb. Industrial trans fats from partially hydrogenated oils are a separate source. Those categories should not be collapsed into a claim that every permitted animal food is free of any trans fatty acid.[3]
The book’s large gram estimates for snack foods describe its discussion of processed-fat exposure. They are not measurements of every current packet of chips, margarine or restaurant meal. Product formulation and serving size matter; keep the actual label with the product.
Read the Ingredient List
| Label or Ingredient | The Useful Distinction |
|---|---|
| Partially hydrogenated oil | An industrially modified fat; excluded by GAPS |
| Fully hydrogenated oil | Different trans-fat chemistry, but still within the processed-fat exclusion |
| Margarine, shortening or artificial spread | Check the ingredients; a cooking-fat substitute is not automatically a GAPS food |
| Natural virgin coconut oil | Different from hydrogenated or solvent-processed coconut products |
| Cold-pressed oil | Check the specific oil and role; not a general permission to use it for frying |
Solid texture alone does not establish hydrogenation. Some natural fats are solid at ordinary room temperatures. The ingredient and processing information are more useful than judging a product from its texture.
What to Use Instead
The GAPS book uses butter, ghee, natural coconut oil and rendered animal fats for cooking, with extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil on served food. Other seed/nut oil blends have their own supplement context. The practical fats-and-oils guide keeps those choices together.[1]
For a Full GAPS kitchen method, use our stovetop ghee recipe. For the reason natural fats remain important, read the source’s nourishment explanation.
Keep the Pregnancy and Baby Context Separate
The book discusses processed fats during pregnancy and breastfeeding as part of its wider nutritional concern. That is not a way to predict an individual baby’s outcome from one meal. Use the pregnancy and breastfeeding guide for the actual phase and source context.[1]
For a reference while replacing old cooking products and reading food labels, this is the relevant companion. The GAPS Food Swap Guide is listed in my printable catalog.
For practical meal choices, return to the GAPS fats-and-oils kitchen guide.
References
- Campbell-McBride, N. Gut and Physiology Syndrome (2020), “Fats: the Good and the Bad,” “Processed fats,” extraction, hydrogenation, trans fats and the GAPS exclusion; olive-oil and coconut-oil discussion.
- Tsuzuki W. Study of the Formation of Trans Fatty Acids in Model Oils and Edible Oils During the Heating Process. Japan Agricultural Research Quarterly. 2012;46:215–220. Model-oil/heating experiments; temperature, time and oxidation context.
- U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Interactive Nutrition Facts Label: Trans Fat (October 2021), partial versus full hydrogenation and natural versus industrial sources.
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