Rapeseed oil and heart risk factors in adults
What it found
In adults, canola oil improved cholesterol and other heart-related risk factors compared with other edible oils.
The authors say more well-designed trials are needed to confirm the dose-response links.
What they found
Studies in people
Cholesterol and related fats
Compared with other edible oils, canola oil lowered total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, the LDL to HDL ratio, the total cholesterol to HDL ratio, apolipoprotein B, and the apolipoprotein B to A-1 ratio.
Compared with olive oil
Compared with olive oil, canola oil lowered total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, the LDL to HDL ratio, and triglycerides in VLDL.
Compared with sunflower oil
Compared with sunflower oil, canola oil improved LDL cholesterol and the LDL to HDL ratio.
Compared with saturated fats
Compared with saturated fats, canola oil improved total cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL cholesterol, the total cholesterol to HDL ratio, and apolipoprotein B.
Dose-response
Based on a nonlinear dose-response curve, replacing about 15% of total calorie intake with canola oil gave the greatest benefits.
What the authors conclude
“CO significantly improved different cardiometabolic risk factors compared to other edible oils.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that canola oil significantly improved different heart and metabolic risk factors compared to other edible oils.
- They advise that further well-designed clinical trials are warranted to confirm the dose-response associations.
How it was done
Canola oil is a plant-based oil that may improve several heart and metabolic risk factors. The authors wanted to review controlled trials of its effects on cholesterol, blood fats, blood sugar, inflammation and blood pressure in adults.
They searched online databases for controlled clinical trials published up to January 2020. Forty-two articles met their inclusion criteria, all in adults, comparing canola oil with other edible oils.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- The trials compared canola oil with other oils, so they cannot show what would happen if people used no oil at all.
- The review cannot prove that canola oil itself causes the improvements, only that the groups differed.
Who paid
- Conflicts
- Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no other potential personal or financial conflicts of interest.
- Authors work at
- Shahid Sadoughi University of Medical Sciences, Iran; Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran; University of British Columbia, Canada
The paper
- Title
- The effects of Canola oil on cardiovascular risk factors: A systematic review and meta-analysis with dose-response analysis of controlled clinical trials
- Type
- Systematic review and meta-analysisThe authors follow a set, published method to find every relevant study, then combine the numbers from them into one result.
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Amiri M, Raeisi-Dehkordi H, Sarrafzadegan N, Forbes SC, Salehi-Abargouei A (2020). The effects of Canola oil on cardiovascular risk factors: A systematic review and meta-analysis with dose-response analysis of controlled clinical trials. Nutrition, metabolism, and cardiovascular diseases. doi:10.1016/j.numecd.2020.06.007PubMed 33127255DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error