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Corn Oil

This page explains what Corn Oil is, where it shows up in restaurant food, and which ingredient reports connect to it.

Concern
Low / Limited Concern
Function
Oil
Updated
2026-03-18

What this is

Corn oil is a vegetable oil pressed from corn kernels and widely used for deep frying in fast-food restaurants. It is rich in polyunsaturated omega-6 fatty acids and has a high smoke point (about 450 °F), making it suitable for crisp frying without burning. Using corn oil instead of butter or lard can lower LDL (“bad”) cholesterol levels. However, health experts advise moderation because frequent consumption of foods fried in corn oil has been linked to possible health risks. When corn oil is overheated or reused repeatedly, it can break down and form harmful compounds.

Critical Endpoints

The key endpoints experts review in safety assessments (critical endpoints). This is not a prediction of harm.

Cardiovascular
Gastrointestinal
Inflammation

State Actions

0 current actions

No current state action is listed for this ingredient in the policy tracker.