Health is one of the most important concerns that human beings are suffering.
Being omnivorous animals, human beings eat different kinds of foods to maintain their health. Different foods that we eat have different ingredients to benefit the human body.
Oils are also among the most important ingredients of the food.
Mostly, it is used for cooking various kinds of foods. There are different kinds of oils with different health benefits.
In this article, we will compare two mostly used oils and let you know which of these two is better.
Corn Oil
Corn Oil is the most beneficial oil being used for cooking purpose nowadays.
This is because it contains unsaturated fats that are not much harmful to human health. This oil is extracted from the germs of the corn plant.
This dark yellow oil is also extracted in various ways.
Cold pressed oil is the most recommended way of extraction due to numerous health benefits. However, most of the people get this oil through expellers.
This oil obtained from expellers is refined after treatment with some other liquids.
Nutritional Value
Corn Oil contains such ingredients as are beneficial for health.
These ingredients also contain a lot of nutritional value. The most important ingredients of the corn oil are the fats.
The larger part of these fats consists of polyunsaturated fats. One tablespoon of corn oil contains 7.4g of polyunsaturated fats, 3.8g of monounsaturated fats, and 1.7g of saturated fats.(1)
The total calories in one tablespoon of corn oil are 119. A little quantity of Vitamin E and Vitamin K are also present in corn oil.
Benefits
Following are some of the health benefits of this oil.
1. Lowers Cholesterol
The very first health benefit of using corn oil for cooking is that it lowers the blood cholesterols.
According to a 2017 study published in European Journal of Clinical Nutrition Nature, this oil “reduced atherogenic lipoprotein cholesterol and particle concentrations to a larger extent than did extra-virgin olive oil.“(2)
Also, it contains sterol compounds that are usually found in plants.(3)
These sterol compounds increase the absorption of the excess cholesterol in the blood.
However, it is recommended that excessive intake of corn oil can also increase the blood cholesterol due to saturated fats present in it.
A recommended quantity of corn oil, however, proves beneficial for health because it absorbs the cholesterol.
2. Maintains Heart Health
The heart is the most important organ of living things and corn oil has proven effects in maintaining heart health.
This is because corn oil contains polyunsaturated fatty acids and linoleic acid in good quantity.
Medical research proves that a diet with 8-10% energy from polyunsaturated fats is good for heart health.(4,5)
This means that the diets like corn oil are beneficial for health due to a good amount of polyunsaturated fats.
3. Lowers High Blood pressure
Due to sufficient quantity of polyunsaturated fatty acids, corn oil is a lot helpful in lowering the blood pressure.
About 10% of blood pressure is controlled by these fatty acids present in this oil.(6,7)
The users should be careful about the excessive intake of this oil.
4. Benefits for Skin
Corn Oil is widely used across the world as a massage oil because of the presence of linoleic acid in it, „which is thought to decrease inflammation in the skin“, according to an article published in Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine journal (8)
Though it does not contain effects like other oils, yet many people prefer its usage due to being emollient.
The linoleic acid and vitamin E in this oil improve skin functioning a lot because its penetration power is greater than many other oils.
5. Benefits for Hair
Corn oil can also be used for hair because it has the power to make these smooth.
Like conventional hair oils, it does not contain beneficial ingredients. However, it can be used as a hot oil treatment just once or twice a week.
Pros
- Due to a high smoke point of 450 degree Fahrenheit, it is the most recommended oil for deep frying.(9)
- It is used in soap making.
- Used in manufacturing of some medicines.
- Polished on iron surfaces for removal of erosion effects.
Cons
- It could also cause skin acne due to the high quantity of Omega 6 as compared to Omega 3.
- Not recommended for foods served cold (because of the corn flavour)
Vegetable Oils
Vegetable oils are the most used oils all across the world.
These oils are extracted from various plants like soybean, peanuts, cotton, olive, and palm nuts. These oils are frequently used because they remain liquid at the room temperature.
Oils are extracted in various ways and this changes their benefits.
Vegetable oils contain 100% fats and have light yellow color with mild odors.
Nutritional Value
Like all other oils, vegetable oils have a lot of nutritional elements.
About 100g intake of this oil provides approximately 880 calories. A good quantity of Vitamin E is also present in vegetable oils and these acts as an antioxidant in the body.
These oils are also a lot beneficial for health because of the large quantity of polyunsaturated fatty acids and monounsaturated fats.
Benefits
Following are some of the health benefits of these oils.
1. Improves Metabolism
The very first benefit of consuming vegetable oils is that these improve metabolism in the body.
Olive oil is the most recommended vegetable oil in this regard as it has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-blood clotting effects.
Various vegetable oils possess various ingredients that improve metabolism in the body.
Find out Can You Use Olive Oil to Bake Cake
2. Lowers Risks of Heart Diseases
Another benefit of vegetable oils is that these lower the risks of heart diseases.(10)
Research proves that regular intake of these oils might help in the control of the risk factors in heart diseases.
These oils help in lowering blood cholesterol, blood sugar, and serum cholesterol levels in the body.
You should use fresh oil every time you cook because the „consumption of the repeatedly heated oil has been shown to increase blood pressure and total cholesterol…“(11)
3. Good Source of Omega 3
Omega 3 fatty acids are the fatty acids that are the chief requirement of human body.
These fatty acids help in mental and heart health in human beings.
Moreover, these fatty acids are also essential for normal growth of the body.
Vegetable oils are an essential ingredient of the food because these contain a good quantity of Omega 3 fatty acids that are the requirement of the body.
Pros
- Readily available at affordable costs.
- Are cleaner in burning due to minimal smoke.
- Found in abundance and supply is usually sustainable.
Cons
- Greater demand may lead to deforestation.
- It lacks flavor
Conclusion
To sum up, we can say that corn oil is also a kind of vegetable oils because it is extracted from plants.
Both, the corn oils and vegetable oils are almost equally useful for cooking.
In some cases, vegetable oils can prove more beneficial for health because these contain more monounsaturated fatty acids and they can help lower your LDL cholesterol level & may help people with diabetes type 2 manage their blood sugar.(12)
Regular intake of these oils is a lot essential for mental and heart health.
Important: You should follow the recommended daily intake from Choose MyPlate and, when possible, use fresh oil for cooking!
More interesting articles to read:
(1)http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fats-and-oils/580/2
(2)Eur J Clin Nutr. 2017 Jan;71(1):33-38. doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2016.169. Epub 2016 Sep 28.
Corn oil intake favorably impacts lipoprotein cholesterol, apolipoprotein and lipoprotein particle levels compared with extra-virgin olive oil.
Maki KC, Lawless AL, Kelley KM, Kaden VN, Geiger CJ, Palacios OM, Dicklin MR.
(3)Biochem J. 1961 Dec; 81(3): 584–591.
PMCID: PMC1243382
The effects of corn oil on the amounts of cholesterol and the excretion of sterol in the rat
T. Gerson and F. B. Shorland
Fats Research Laboratory, D.S.I.R., Wellington, New Zealand
(4)J Am Coll Nutr. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2010 May 21.
Published in final edited form as:
J Am Coll Nutr. 2008 Oct; 27(5): 547–552.
Medium Chain Triglyceride Oil Consumption as Part of a Weight Loss Diet Does Not Lead toan Adverse Metabolic Profile When Compared to Olive Oil
Marie-Pierre St-Onge, PhD, Aubrey Bosarge, BA, Laura Lee T. Goree, RD, MSc, and Betty Darnell, RD
(5)American Heart Association: The Facts on Fats
50 Years of American Heart Association Dietary Fats Recommendations
(6)Exp Clin Cardiol. 2003 Winter; 8(4): 164–172.
Experimental Review
Polyunsaturated fatty acids and their effects on cardiovascular disease
Bradley P Ander, BSc, Chantal MC Dupasquier, BSc, Michele A Prociuk, BSc, and Grant N Pierce, PhD FACC FAHA
(7)Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2013 Mar 19; 110(12): 4816–4821.
Published online 2013 Mar 4. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1221997110
Physiology
Omega-3 fatty acids lower blood pressure by directly activating large-conductance Ca2+-dependent K+ channels
Toshinori Hoshi,a,1 Bianka Wissuwa,b Yutao Tian,a Nobuyoshi Tajima,a Rong Xu,a Michael Bauer,b Stefan H. Heinemann,c and Shangwei Houd
(8)Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2015; 2015: 676897.
Published online 2015 Jul 15. doi: 10.1155/2015/676897
Alternative, Complementary, and Forgotten Remedies for Atopic Dermatitis
Allison L. Goddard and Peter A. Lio
(9)The Vegetarian Health Institute: Smoke Point of Oils
(10)J Am Coll Cardiol. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2016 Apr 6.
Published in final edited form as:
J Am Coll Cardiol. 2015 Oct 6; 66(14): 1590–1614.
doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2015.07.050
Food Consumption and its impact on Cardiovascular Disease: Importance of Solutions focused on the globalized food system
A Report from the Workshop convened by the World Heart Federation
Sonia S. Anand, Corinna Hawkes, Russell J. de Souza, Andrew Mente, Mahshid Dehghan, Rachel Nugent, Michael A. Zulyniak, Tony Weis, Adam M. Bernstein,Ronald Krauss,Daan Kromhout,David J.A. Jenkins, Vasanti Malik, Miguel A. Martinez-Gonzalez, Dariush Mozafarrian, Salim Yusuf, Walter C. Willett, and Barry M Popkin
(11)Vascul Pharmacol. 2014 Apr;61(1):1-9. doi: 10.1016/j.vph.2014.02.004. Epub 2014 Mar 12.
Heated vegetable oils and cardiovascular disease risk factors.
Ng CY, Leong XF, Masbah N, Adam SK, Kamisah Y, Jaarin K.
(12)MedlinePlus: Facts about monounsaturated fats
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