U.S. government nutrition policies advise that we limit the amount of "bad" saturated fats we eat by reducing or eliminating butter, fatty meats, and shortening to prevent atherosclerosis and heart disease. Switching to "good" unsaturated vegetable oil for sauteing and pan-frying has been touted as a more healthful option. However, the kind of unsaturated fat you choose may still put your health at risk. According to the U.S. National Institutes of Health, consuming large amounts of polyunsaturated fat such as corn oil may increase the risk for some types of cancer.
Benefits
Diets enriched in polyunsaturated fatty acids, such as corn oil, can significantly lower elevated blood pressure in individuals with high blood pressure. Corn oil is an excellent source of tocopherols, which function as antioxidants and provide a good source of vitamin E. The fats in corn oil are about 60 percent polyunsaturated, 25 to 30 percent monounsaturated and 10 to 15 percent saturated.
Omega-6 Fats
Omega-6 fatty acids are considered essential fatty acids. They are essential to human health but cannot be manufactured by the body, so they must be consumed in food. Omega-6 fats are found in large concentrations in corn, sunflower, safflower, cottonseed and soybean oils. Ideally, your diet should contain only two to four times more omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3s, which means monitoring your ingestion of corn oil and other omega-6 rich fats is prudent.
Balancing Fats
Omega-3 fatty acids, another important group of essential fatty acids, are required for proper regeneration of skin, hair growth, bone health and fertility. Omega-3s are found in flaxseeds, flaxseed oil, salmon, sardines, fish oil, frozen spinach and mackerel. The typical American diet contains 14 to 25 times more of the omega-6 fats found in corn oil than it does omega-3s. This skewed imbalance may be the contributing factor in the rise in chronic diseases, such as heart disease, cancer, asthma, arthritis, and depression, in the United States. For better health, reduce intake of foods fried in or cooked with corn oil.
Research
A study published in February 2006 and conducted at the San Francisco VA Medical Center demonstrated that omega-6 fats doubled the growth rate of cancerous prostate and breast cancer cells when compared with those cells to which no omega-6 fat was added. Principal investigator Millie Hughes-Fulford, PhD, director of the Laboratory of Cell Growth at SFVAMC and adviser to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs stated that the omega-6 fats were "turning on a dozen inflammatory genes known to be important in cancer."
A study with similar conclusions was published in the April 2008 issue of Cancer Research. Researchers at the UCLA Jonsson Cancer Center and the UCLA Department of Urology released study results that demonstrated a definitive link between the consumption of large amounts of omega-6 fatty acids (specifically corn oil), and increased incidence and rate of progression in prostate cancer in mice. The mice were fed a diet that was 40 percent fat, which represents the typical Western diet.
Expert Insight
Dr. Bruce Fife, certified nutritionist and Doctor of Naturopathic Medicine writes "... Cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer's and other diseases associated with free radicals are becoming more and more prevalent nowadays. One of the best ways to prevent these diseases is to not use polyunsaturated oils. I recommend that if you have any polyunsaturated vegetable oils (corn oil, soybean oil, safflower oil, etc.) in your home that you throw them out. Don't even consider using them; get rid of them now. Throw away salad dressings made with these oils as well."
Hughes-Fulford says that her San Francisco VA study results have directly influenced her own diet. "I'm not a physician, and do not tell people how to eat, but I can tell you what I do in my own home," she says. "I use only canola oil and olive oil. We do not eat deep-fried foods."
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