Image Source: Onlyfood

People know sunflowers as beautiful yellow flowers that are found all over the world. But that’s not it. Sunflower oil, which is extracted from these beautiful flowers is gaining popularity day by day because it is very beneficial for your body and can be used to control and prevent a large number of diseases.One of the primary reasons for the growing popularity of sunflower oil is its high fatty acid content. The fatty acids are extremely important for the body to maintain health.

Also, some of those fatty acids and vitamin E act as antioxidants in sunflower oil;therefore, they affect the immune system of the body in a positive way. It has more unsaturated fats than any other commonly used vegetable oil. Some of the benefits of this oil are described below:-

Heart Health:

The balance of fatty acids found in sunflower oil is very good. Furthermore, sunflower oil helps in lowering the cholesterol of the body because of absence of saturated fats from the oil. It is rich in choline and phenolic acid that are beneficial for your heart. Thus you are least likely to develop atherosclerosis, which clogs arteries, raises blood pressure, and increases your chances of suffering a heart attack or a stroke. All these benefits make sunflower oil a perfect choice for health conscious people. If you already have a little blockage in your heart, you can take 3 tablespoons of coconut oil per day. This will help to reduce plaque build-up in the arteries by converting cholesterol in the blood stream into a form that our bodies can use easily. 

SkinHealth:

Sunflower oil acts as an antioxidant in the body because of an abundance of vitamin E, which is specifically related to improving skin health and regenerating cells. Your skin is better protected against damage from the sun, as well as the natural degradation of age that occurs when free radicals are present in the body. Vitamin E neutralizes these free radicals, barring them from destroying or damaging healthy cells. That’s why sunflower oil is so widely used in cosmetic products. You can also use wheat germ oil for this purpose because it contains highest amount of vitamin E.

Energy Booster:

 The fatty acid content in sunflower oil is also connected to energy levels in the body. Saturated fats can make you feel sluggish, and you feel sleepy all the time. Unsaturated fats, on the other hand, keep you feeling energized throughout the day.

Cancer Prevention:

 Sunflower oil is rich in antioxidants and substances that act as antioxidants. Vitamin E can eliminate free radicals before they can mutate healthy cells into cancerous cells. To be precise, sunflower oil helps in preventing colon cancer.

Anti-Inflammatory Capacity:

Asthma costs thousands of lives throughout the world. Sunflower oil, because of its anti-inflammatory properties lowers the amount and severity of asthma attacks. Along with asthma, sunflower oil has also been linked to a reduction in severity of arthritis, which is an inflammatory disease too.

Immune System Health:

Sunflower oil also affects your general immune system and the ability of the body to resist attacks by infection in a positive way. Sunflower oil protects strengthens the membrane barriers, thus making it harder for bacteria and viruses to enter the body. Sunflower oil is highly recommended for premature babies because it can protect them from infections. This same benefit is extended to adults who use the oil as well, although the effects are not much visible.

Although the fatty acids in sunflower oil are important and necessary for your body to function properly, sunflower oil does have a little higher omega-6 content than most other vegetable oils. Thus, if sunflower oil is eaten in high quantities, it can result in an imbalance of fatty acids in the body, which is more dangerous than you can imagine. Sunflower oil can be a highly beneficial addition to your diet if consumed in low quantities.