Corn oil and sunflower oil: two omega-6 oils side by side

In the Minnesota Coronary Experiment, 9,423 residents of state institutions aged 20 to 97 replaced saturated fat with corn oil and cut serum cholesterol by 13.8 percent, against 1.0 percent in the control group, in a trial where many participants dropped out. Pooled across five randomized trials of such diets with 10,808 people, deaths from coronary heart disease did not fall (hazard ratio 1.13, 95% CI 0.83 to 1.54), and neither did deaths from any cause (1.07, 0.90 to 1.27). Those intervals run from benefit to harm, so the trials settle neither direction. Between the two oils the difference is in the bottle. Per 100 g, UK tables give sunflower oil 63.2 g omega-6 against 50.4 g in corn oil, and corn oil more monounsaturated fat, 29.9 g against 20.5 g. Sunflower oil lists 49.2 mg vitamin E against 17.2 mg for corn oil.

How much is actually in it

• Per 100 g, UK tables give sunflower oil 63.2 g omega-6 against 50.4 g in corn oil, while corn oil has more monounsaturated fat, 29.9 against 20.5 g. — CoFID reference entries Oil, corn (17-033) and Oil, sunflower (17-045) (n = 2 dataset entries) Evidence E source
  N-6 polyunsaturated 50.4 vs 63.2 g, monounsaturated 29.9 vs 20.5 g, n-3 0.9 vs 0.1 g per 3.5 oz (100 g) (corn vs sunflower)
• UK tables list sunflower oil with about three times the vitamin E of corn oil, 49.2 against 17.2 mg per 3.5 oz (100 g). — CoFID reference entries Oil, corn (17-033) and Oil, sunflower (17-045) (n = 2 dataset entries) Evidence E source
  Vitamin E 17.24 mg (corn) vs 49.22 mg (sunflower) per 3.5 oz (100 g)
• According to the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, most vitamin E in American diets is gamma-tocopherol from oils such as soybean, canola and corn. — US diet Evidence E source
  Gamma-tocopherol is the predominant dietary form

What a real portion looks like

• US dietary surveys record a tablespoon of corn or sunflower oil as 14 g, which carries about 7 g omega-6 for corn oil and about 9 g for sunflower oil. — FNDDS food codes 82102000 Corn oil (FDC 2710183) and 82108500 Sunflower oil (FDC 2710192) (n = 3 portion measures each) Evidence E source
  1 tablespoon = 14 g, 1 cup = 224 g; omega-6 per tablespoon about 7.1 g (corn) and 8.8 g (sunflower), computed from CoFID per 3.5 oz (100 g)

What cooking and storage change

• In a crossover RCT in 19 men, a meal fried in sunflower oil blend reheated for 10 days, with 23.8 percent polar compounds, did not acutely impair vascular function against fresh oil. — healthy men, high-fat meal with repeatedly heated (180 C, 10 days) vs unheated sunflower oil-palm olein blend, measured over 4 h (n = 19) Evidence B source
  Polar compounds 23.8% vs 7.2%; FMD, arterial stiffness, NEFA and glucose comparable; postprandial TAG rise lower after heated oil (p < 0.001)

What it does to your health

• In a meta-analysis of controlled trials, canola oil lowered LDL cholesterol by 5.4 mg/dL (0.14 mmol/L) more than sunflower oil across 11 comparisons. — adults in controlled clinical trials comparing canola oil with other edible oils (n = 11 comparisons with sunflower oil) Evidence A source
  LDL-C -5.4 mg/dL (-0.14 mmol/l) and LDL/HDL -0.30 for canola vs sunflower oil (P < 0.05)
• Across 16 RCTs where corn oil was the control, fish oil lowered triglycerides by 25.5 mg/dL and raised HDL by 2.5 mg/dL more than corn oil, with no difference in LDL. — 491 participants in 16 randomized trials using corn oil as comparator (n = 491) Evidence A source
  TG WMD -25.50 mg/dl (95% CI -42.44 to -8.57), HDL WMD +2.54 mg/dl (0.55 to 4.52), TC and LDL no significant change

Safety, limits and interactions

• A woman with anaphylaxis to sunflower seeds tolerated sunflower oil on prick testing and oral challenge, a single case. — one 46-year-old woman with three reactions to sunflower seeds (n = 1) Evidence D source
  Negative prick-to-prick and oral provocation to sunflower oil

What people believe that the data does not support

• Replacing saturated fat with corn oil cut serum cholesterol by 13.8 percent in the Minnesota Coronary Experiment, yet five such RCTs pooled showed no drop in coronary or total mortality. — 9,423 women and men aged 20 to 97 in Minnesota institutions, plus 5 RCTs with 10,808 participants (n = 9,423) Evidence A source
  Serum cholesterol -13.8% vs -1.0% (P<0.001); pooled CHD mortality HR 1.13 (0.83 to 1.54), all-cause 1.07 (0.90 to 1.27)
• A network meta-analysis of 17 RCTs found EPA cut cardiovascular death by 20 percent only against mineral oil placebo, and not against corn oil or olive oil placebo. — 141,009 patients in 17 RCTs of omega-3 supplements, 8,876 of them on corn oil placebo (n = 141,009) Evidence A source
  CV death HR 0.80 (0.65 to 0.98) for EPA vs mineral oil, no difference vs corn oil or olive oil placebo
• The EU rejected the claim that corn oil with guaranteed polyunsaturated fat and added vitamin E helps maintain normal blood cholesterol. — EU register of nutrition and health claims Evidence E source
  Status non-authorized

Who this works differently for

• In 9 cohorts with 382,094 adults, higher linoleic acid intake was linked to 11 percent lower hip fracture risk, and the authors suggest 9 to 16 g a day, about 2 to 3 tablespoons of corn oil. — adults in 9 prospective cohorts, 12,392 hip fractures, follow-up 7 to 24 years (n = 382,094) Evidence C source
  Linoleic acid HR 0.89 (95% CI 0.82 to 0.96), saturated fat HR 1.20 (1.08 to 1.33)
• The Italian Society of Human Nutrition advises vegetarians to get omega-3 from walnuts and flax and to limit linoleic acid from corn and sunflower oils. — vegetarians in Italy Evidence E source
  Position, no effect size

The bottom line

These are the standard oils. High-oleic sunflower oil has a different fat profile and is not described here, and neither oil has sample-to-sample data. A tablespoon is 14 g in US dietary surveys, which by the UK figures holds about 7 g omega-6 for corn oil and about 9 g for sunflower oil. The UK vitamin E figures count alpha-tocopherol, and the NIH Office of Dietary Supplements says most vitamin E in American diets is gamma-tocopherol from oils such as soybean, canola and corn. We found no trial that put corn oil and sunflower oil head to head. Against canola oil, sunflower oil came out behind on LDL cholesterol by 5.4 mg/dL (0.14 mmol/L) across 11 comparisons in a meta-analysis that reported no interval for that figure. Corn oil shows up most often as a placebo. In 16 trials with 491 people, fish oil lowered triglycerides by 25.5 mg/dL and raised HDL by 2.5 mg/dL more than corn oil, with no difference in LDL. A network meta-analysis of 17 trials in 141,009 patients found the omega-3 EPA cut cardiovascular death by 20 percent only when compared with mineral oil placebo, with no difference against corn oil or olive oil placebo. That shows the comparison oil shaped the result. It proves nothing about corn oil protecting the heart or mineral oil harming it. Across 9 cohorts with 382,094 adults, higher linoleic acid intake was linked to 11 percent lower hip fracture risk, an association. The authors suggest 9 to 16 g a day, which they equate to 2 to 3 tablespoons of corn oil, a figure drawn from cohorts rather than tested in a trial. On frying, 19 healthy men ate one meal cooked in a sunflower and palm olein blend reheated over 10 days to 23.8 percent polar compounds, and their arteries responded the same over 4 hours as after fresh oil. That was a blend and a single meal. The EU rejected a claim that corn oil with added vitamin E helps maintain normal cholesterol, and the Italian Society of Human Nutrition advises vegetarians to limit linoleic acid from corn and sunflower oils. On safety we have one case. A woman with anaphylaxis to sunflower seeds passed a prick test and an oral challenge with sunflower oil, and cold-pressed oil was not tested. One case cannot show the oil is safe for anyone else with this allergy. We found no data on either oil and medicines, pregnancy or children.

Sources

1. cosf-daily-r4-01 · food composition dataset
   n-6 poly /100g food (g) 63.20
   CoFID 2021, Public Health England, OGL v3.0, codes 17-033 Oil, corn and 17-045 Oil, sunflower · checked 2026-10-02
2. cosf-daily-r4-02 · food composition dataset
   Vitamin E (mg) 49.22
   CoFID 2021, Public Health England, OGL v3.0, codes 17-033 Oil, corn and 17-045 Oil, sunflower · checked 2026-10-02
3. cosf-daily-r4-03 · fact sheet
   Most vitamin E in American diets is in the form of gamma-tocopherol from soybean, canola, corn, and other vegetable oils and food products [4].
   NIH ODS, Vitamin E Fact Sheet for Health Professionals · checked 2026-10-02
4. cosf-daily-r4-04 · food portion dataset
   1 tablespoon · 21000 14
   USDA FNDDS, FDC 2710183 and 2710192 · checked 2026-10-02
5. cosf-daily-r4-10 · randomized crossover trial
   This randomized, single-blind, crossover study investigated the acute effects of a high-fat meal containing either repeatedly heated (at 180°C, over 10 days, with 5 potato fries per day) sunflower oil-palm olein blend, compared with an unheated blend (containing 23.8% and 7.2% polar compounds respectively), on postprandial lipids and vascular function in 19 healthy male participants. ... Postprandial vascular (FMD and arterial stiffness) responses as well as NEFA and glucose concentrations were comparable between meals.
   Lipids, 2026 · checked 2026-10-02
6. cosf-daily-r4-05 · meta-analysis
   Compared to sunflower oil, CO improved LDL-C (-0.14 mmol/l, n = 11), and LDL/HDL (-0.30, n = 3) (P < 0.05).
   Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis, 2020 · checked 2026-10-02
7. cosf-daily-r4-07 · meta-analysis of RCTs
   The results revealed that the fish oil supplements significantly reduced TG (WMD: - 25.50 mg/dl, 95% CI: - 42.44, - 8.57, P = 0.000) levels compared to corn oil. Also, in this study, fish oil supplements had a positive and significant effect on HDL (WMD: 2.54 mg/dl, 95% CI: 0.55, 4.52). There were no significant changes in TC and LDL.
   Syst Rev, 2024 · checked 2026-10-02
8. cosf-daily-r4-11 · case report
   Prick-to-prick and oral provocation tests of sunflower oil were performed, and a negative result was obtained.
   Medicina (Kaunas), 2021 · checked 2026-10-02
9. cosf-daily-r4-06 · RCT re-analysis and meta-analysis
   The intervention group had significant reduction in serum cholesterol compared with controls (mean change from baseline -13.8%v-1.0%; P<0.001). Kaplan Meier graphs showed no mortality benefit for the intervention group in the full randomized cohort or for any prespecified subgroup. ... In meta-analyses, these cholesterol lowering interventions showed no evidence of benefit on mortality from coronary heart disease (1.13, 0.83 to 1.54) or all cause mortality (1.07, 0.90 to 1.27).
   BMJ, 2016 · checked 2026-10-02
10. cosf-daily-r4-08 · network meta-analysis
    Rates of cardiovascular death [hazard ratio (HR) (95% confidence interval, CI) =0.80 (0.65-0.98); p =0.033], myocardial infarction [HR (95% CI) =0.73 (0.55-0.97); p=0.029] and stroke [HR (95% CI) =0.74 (0.58-0.94); p=0.014] were significantly lower in those receiving EPA compared to those receiving mineral oil, but were not different from rates in those receiving other oils or controls.
    J Cardiol, 2022 · checked 2026-10-02
11. cosf-daily-r4-13 · regulatory decision
    POL-HC-6985 Corn Oil with a guaranteed polyunsatured fatty acids content (56% of total fatty acids), supplemented with vitamin E. 1- When used within a healthy, balanced diet, in combination with a healty lifestyle, corn oil with an elevated vitamin E content and a guaranteed polyunsaturates fatty acids content contributes to the control of blood cholesterol. 2-When used within a healthy, balanced diet, in combination with a healty lifestyle, corn oil contributes to the control of blood cholesterol. 3-As a part of a healthy lifesyle, corn oil helps to maintain normal blood cholesterol level.4-As a part of a healthy lifesyle, corn oil helps to keep blood cholesterol levels under control. Non-authorised
    EU Register on nutrition and health claims, claim POL-HC-6985, snapshot 2026-09-21 · checked 2026-10-02
12. cosf-daily-r4-09 · meta-analysis of cohorts
    These findings suggest that consuming 9-16 g of linoleic acid (LA) daily (equivalent to 2-3 tablespoons of corn oil or 30-60 g of walnuts) and maintaining elevated blood levels of omega-3 fatty acids, especially eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), may help reduce the risk of hip fractures.
    Osteoporos Int, 2025 · checked 2026-10-02
13. cosf-daily-r4-12 · position paper
    Vegetarians can ensure good n-3 fatty acid status by habitually consuming good sources of a-linolenic acid (walnuts, flaxseeds, chia seeds, and their oils) and limiting linoleic acid intake (corn and sunflower oils).
    Nutr Metab Cardiovasc Dis, 2017 · checked 2026-10-02