Sunflower oil vs. Canola oil — Health Impact and Nutrition Comparison

Price

Canola oil is cheaper than sunflower oil, mainly because it is cheaper to produce.

Taste 

Canola and sunflower oils are heavily processed and refined; due to that, they have a neutral taste. 

Smoke point

One of the most important features of oils is their smoke point. It is important to know the smoke point of oils while cooking to prevent free radicals and carcinogenic compounds formation. It is important to stay within the smoke point of oils while cooking. 

Canola oil has a smoke point of 204°C, whereas sunflower oil has a higher smoke point which is 232°C.

Calories

They have similar amounts of calories - 884 calories per 100g. These two oils are classified as foods high in calories. 

Protein and carbs

They are devoid of proteins and carbs since they are refined and processed oils.

Fats

Their fat profile is important to take into consideration. 

They are low in saturated fats compared to other types of oils.

They are 100% fat per weight; however, the distribution of the different types of fats matters. 

Over 85% of sunflower and canola oils’ fats are unsaturated, with sunflower oil being richer in polyunsaturated fats and canola oil being richer in monounsaturated fats. Sunflower oil is higher in saturated fatty acids.

Fat Type Comparison

Fat type breakdown side-by-side comparison

Sunflower oil

1

Saturated Fat: Sat. Fat 13 g

Monounsaturated Fat: Mono. Fat 46.2 g

Polyunsaturated fat: Poly. Fat 36.4 g

Canola oil

2

Saturated Fat: Sat. Fat 7.365 g

Monounsaturated Fat: Mono. Fat 63.276 g

Polyunsaturated fat: Poly. Fat 28.142 g

Contains more Poly. FatPolyunsaturated fat

+29.3%

Contains less Sat. FatSaturated Fat	-43.3%
Contains more Mono. FatMonounsaturated Fat	+37%

Mineral

Their mineral profile is negligible.

Vitamins

The oils contain only fat-soluble vitamins E, and K. Sunflower oil is over 2 times higher in vitamin E, whereas canola oil is over 13 times higher in vitamin K.

1 tbsp of sunflower oil covers 37% of the recommended daily vitamin E intake.

Below we can visualize their vitamin diagrams. 

Vitamin Comparison

Vitamin comparison score is based on the number of vitamins by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" charts below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food.

Sunflower oil

1

Canola oil

2

Contains more Vitamin EVitamin E

+135.3%

Contains more Vitamin KVitamin K

+1220.4%

~equal in Vitamin C ~0mg

~equal in Vitamin A ~0IU

~equal in Vitamin D ~0µg

~equal in Vitamin B1 ~0mg

~equal in Vitamin B2 ~0mg

~equal in Vitamin B3 ~0mg

~equal in Vitamin B5 ~0mg

~equal in Vitamin B6 ~0mg

~equal in Vitamin B12 ~0µg

~equal in Folate ~0µg

Vitamin E 

Sunflower oil is a good source of vitamin E and provides several positive health impacts (1).

Vitamin E has antioxidative, immune-supporting, and anticarcinogenic properties.   

Vitamin E benefits coronary artery disease, cancer, cognitive decline, and eye disorders such as cataracts and age-related macular degeneration.

According to the NIH, excess vitamin E from food does not adversely affect health, whereas vitamin E supplements may cause bleeding, interact with statins and anticoagulants, and reduce chemotherapy effectiveness (2).

Further on, you can read about sunflower oil vs. peanut oil, which are rich in vitamin E. However, there have other differences that exist between them. 

Cancer

On the one hand, canola oil may positively impact colon and breast cancer; on the other hand, it contains polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, potentially increasing cancer risks (3, 4, 5, 6).

Raw sunflower oil may be protective against colorectal cancer, whereas heated sunflower oil may increase the risk of cancer due to the formed compounds (7, 8).

Metabolic Health

Canola oil increases the risks of obesity and metabolic diseases, including diabetes, although it does not contain any amount of carbs and has zero glycemic index (9).

In addition, canola oil, although low in saturated fats during high-temperature cooking, trans fats and other harmful chemicals are produced due to oxidation of the fats, and they are linked with increased cardiovascular disease (10).

Overall, both these oils are better than animal-based oils due to their higher amounts of unsaturated and lower saturated fats. 

Taking into comparison both sunflower and canola oil, sunflower oil is richer in polyunsaturated fats, whereas canola oil is richer in monounsaturated fats. Making sunflower oil an even better option regarding metabolic diseases (11, 12).

Neurological Health

An animal study has shown that long-term canola oil consumption may negatively affect memory and synaptic integrity (normal functioning synaptic unit) (13).

Conversely, according to several animal studies, sunflower oil may beneficially affect the brain, whereas oxidized sunflower oil may be a risk factor for neurodegenerative disease (14, 15).