[www.huffingtonpost.com]

"Is Coconut Oil Really All It's Cracked Up To Be?

So ... is coconut oil actually healthy or just a passing health fad? And, if it is healthy, why did we used to think it was so bad for us?

Coconut oil is everywhere these days -- as a butter substitute in vegan baking, a smoothie topper for natural health nuts and even a beauty treatment, for moisturizing skin and hair and improving oral health via oil pulling.

But ... wasn't it just a generation ago that we were decrying coconut oil as the worst of the worst, due to its high levels of heart-harming saturated fat? Did we get it very wrong back then or is the reemergence of the tropical oil nothing but a slick stunt?

According to Tom Brenna, a professor of nutritional sciences at Cornell University's College of Human Ecology, the answer is some combination of both. Not all coconut oils are created equal. The flakey, fragrant stuff you might find in a superfood smoothie is a very different type of coconut oil than the partially-hydrogenated fat found in junk food in the '80s, which was a highly-processed version of the plant oil, containing trans fats and other dangerous, cholesterol-promoting compounds.

"The older refined-deodorized bleached coconut oil causes rapid and very unhealthy looking rises in cholesterol, for sure, no doubt," Brenna said in an email to HuffPost Healthy Living. "There is no evidence that that is the case for virgin coconut oil, which is available today but was not in the 1970s and '80s when people were using RDB coconut oil."

Virgin coconut oil and even a refined version (most studies have been conducted on refined coconut oil) are now available in grocery stores and health stores and are being touted for their ability to help us lose weight, stave off illness and even prevent Alzheimer's. Sure, it's better than its junk food predecessor, but is it quite all that?

"It has properties that are promising, but we need a lot more research before we can say this is the superfood of 2014," says Kristin Kirkpatrick MS, RD, LD, manager of wellness nutrition services for the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute.

Recently, a study conducted on mouse cells and published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease got some attention when it found that treatment with coconut oil helped protect cortical neurons in a lab setting. Can we extrapolate that to a protective brain effect in living humans quite yet? Of course not.

Coconut oil may also help encourage weight loss, as in a 2009 study during which women with abdominal obesity who supplemented their diet with coconut oil were able to lose more weight than those who were given a soy bean oil supplement. But Kirkpatrick cautions against the "health halo effect," in which we give a pass to foods that we think are healthy and lose sight of portion control. "Just because we think there are some health benefits doesn't mean you can use a whole jar of coconut oil to cook," she says.

Natural coconut oil is made of 90 percent saturated fat (butter, a distant second, contains a comparatively puny 64 percent saturated fat), but the kind of saturated fat matters just as much as the amount. About half of virgin coconut oil's saturated fat is lauric acid, a medium-chain triglyceride that turns out to have a number of health-promoting properties, including the ability to improve levels of "good" HDL cholesterol. People can also more easily digest medium-chain triglycerides and convert them to energy, according to The Wall Street Journal, making coconut oil a good choice for athletes. That said, because it's so high in saturated fat, even the purest, most natural coconut oil could be problematic for longterm heart health, according to a Harvard nutrition professor.

"Most of the research so far has consisted of short-term studies to examine its effect on cholesterol levels. We don't really know how coconut oil affects heart disease," wrote Walter C. Willett, M.D., chair of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School for Public Health, in a newsletter. "And I don't think coconut oil is as healthful as vegetable oils like olive oil and soybean oil, which are mainly unsaturated fat and therefore both lower LDL and increase HDL."

Kirkpatrick herself cooks with coconut oil about once a week for taste, but is hesitant to use any more than that until there's more research. "I really stick with olive oil," she says. "It's not as sexy, but there are so many more studies about its benefits."

It usually not the case that a part of something is better than the whole thing.
I prefer coconut to the oil.

Simple, it's natural and if you don't have any health issues then it is fine in moderation just like everything else.

RawPracticalist Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It usually not the case that a part of something
> is better than the whole thing.
> I prefer coconut to the oil.


I agree. I do use olive oil for sake of convenience. However, I find coconut oil to be too strong in flavor. No matter what I make, it takes on that flavor. Ironically, young coconut and even mature flesh does not seem to have such an intense flavor. And you also get the fiber, etc., which is not present in the oil.

whenever i use recipes for gourmet treats (rare), i just use coconut butter by Artisana. it works great and is more "whole" although still processed.

Utopian Life Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> whenever i use recipes for gourmet treats (rare),
> i just use coconut butter by Artisana. it works
> great and is more "whole" although still
> processed.


Now and then I do that, too. I mix a little xylitol I've powdered, (which makes it taste just like powdered sugar - learned that trick from a Gabriel Cousens book ), a drop of cinnamon essential oil, and a T. of coconut butter. I usually just mix those ingredients up in a big spoon with a fork. It takes less than a minute, is satisfying, and tastes really good.

I think I would gag if I did that. lol A spoonful of almond or brazil nut butter, on the other hand. I have to mix more things in with the coconut butter or it's just too fatty tasting for me, although some of the ingredients are typically nuts, which are also high in fat.

Utopian Life Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I think I would gag if I did that.

You don't have to use the coconut oil part if you don't want to. Warm up the jar and the oil rises to the top so you can skim it off and throw it out. The treat I posted works with macerated fresh coconut, too, It's really good.

If that's too scary for you try adding a drop of cinnamon essential oil to your preferred nut butter. Parasites hate cinnamon.

Its not scary. Just not palatable

Cassar eats 2 pound jars of it a month...

NuNativs Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Cassar eats 2 pound jars of it a month...

He's got the best truly raw centrifuged coconut oil I've ever tasted. Puts every other of the many brands I've had to shame. I buy it from him by the gallon tub.

I have all the equipment to make my own. Now if I could only find ripe organic coconuts. I have trouble even finding nonorganic ones for less than $2.99 where I am. It would be way too expensive, at that rate, to make my own. I just buy them for grinding my own coconut meat since it's so much better than anything that can be bought.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/25/2014 04:28PM by SueZ.

Why not just eat the coconut.
You get the fiber and the oil.

RawPracticalist Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Why not just eat the coconut.
> You get the fiber and the oil.

Good ripe coconuts are no longer available in my area at all for any price. If I buy them mail order they are $3.99 each and I have to buy over 30 of them to get free shipping. That's one of the things that has happened since the young coconut water craze started - for obvious reasons.

Coconot oil has definitely beneficial qualities,but which minerals are you getting from it? Ther are practicaly no minerals or vitamins in any oil and it seems just to act as a calorie source.I would prefer coconut butter instead of the oil due to the nutrition content.Only because Dr. Cassar eats that much oil does not mean that it is the right choice. And if you choose to eat a lot of fat you have to make sure that youre gallblader is in tip top shape.

Coconut oil can be good, but it's better to eat actual coconuts. Many get stomach problems after just a few spoons, so it can be taxing on peoples' body. The real coconut itself has all the nutrients, plus fresh.

Oil by itself is never good for the body.
I have never seen oil growing in nature.
People are doing fine in spite of the oil not because of it.
Maybe a good oil based dressing may help eat a salad.
Oil is not a good thing but in this case it helps eat a good thing.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/23/2014 05:16AM by RawPracticalist.

centenarians in Okinawa did not eat coconut oil neither olive oil.

"centenarians in Okinawa did not eat coconut oil neither olive oil."

Maybe they would've lived as long as Jeanne Calment if they did.

"Some of the health benefits of consuming coconut oil include:
•Promotes weight loss and helps maintain healthy body weight
•Reduces the risk of heart disease
•Supports thyroid function
•Increases metabolism and energy
•Prevents bacterial, viral, and fungal infections
•Helps control diabetes and chronic fatigue
•Improves digestive disorders such as Crohn’s disease and IBS
•Protects against alcohol damage to the liver
•Rejuvenates skin and prevents wrinkles

Lauric acid, known for its antiviral, antibacterial, and antiprotozoal functions, makes up about 50% of the fatty acid in coconut fat. In the body, it is converted to monolaurin, a powerful monoglyceride that destroys lipid-coated viruses (such as HIV, herpes, cytomegalovirus, and influenza) as well as pathogenic bacteria including helicobacter pylori and listeria monocytogenes."


[nouveauraw.com]

Not just coconut oil hype
Olive oil hype
Any oil hype

Coconuts are dangerous, they fall from trees and hit you in the head! lol

Superjuice Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Coconuts are dangerous, they fall from trees and
> hit you in the head! lol



[www.cadiresearch.org]

Quote

Coconut is the principal agent used for producing experimental atherosclerosis.10 Waqar et al. have demonstrated that the intake of saturated fat in the form of coconut oil with a normal number of calories is detrimental to glucose and lipid metabolism.10 The enhanced atherosclerosis on rabbits fed 26% energy from coconut compared to 15% and normal chow is given in Figure 069. 10

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/19/2014 08:39PM by Panchito.

Panchito Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Superjuice Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Coconuts are dangerous, they fall from trees
> and
> > hit you in the head! lol
>
> [www.cadiresearch.org]
> 1/10/069-Fig.jpg
>
> [www.cadiresearch.org]
> -coconut
>
> Coconut is the principal agent used for producing
> experimental atherosclerosis.10 Waqar et al. have
> demonstrated that the intake of saturated fat in
> the form of coconut oil with a normal number of
> calories is detrimental to glucose and lipid
> metabolism.10 The enhanced atherosclerosis on
> rabbits fed 26% energy from coconut compared to
> 15% and normal chow is given in Figure 069. 10
>
> [www.thevisualmd.com]
> 510_Ahterosclerosis/AW2510_01.jpg

Remember Panchito, many phytochemical and anti-oxidants in raw plants stop these negative effects of plaques/lesions occuring. Some of the most powerful greens to prevent this problem are broccoli and radish sprouts. Funny enough, the research that Dr Esselstyn often quotes (Vogel) provides the solution to high fat, but Esselstyn conveniently chooses not to mention that part. Hmmm.

Btw, we now know that atherosclerosis is not caused by the cholesterol at all. What is now being discussed is that the cholesterol found in people with atherosclerosis is considered to be repairing the damage caused by other factors. I will be looking at the research in this area soon.

And no Panchito, this is no ja ja ja stuff, this is SERIOUS business.

The Sproutarian Man Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Panchito Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Superjuice Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > Coconuts are dangerous, they fall from trees
> > and
> > > hit you in the head! lol
> >
> >
> [www.cadiresearch.org]
>
> > 1/10/069-Fig.jpg
> >
> >
> [www.cadiresearch.org]
>
> > -coconut
> >
> > Coconut is the principal agent used for
> producing
> > experimental atherosclerosis.10 Waqar et al.
> have
> > demonstrated that the intake of saturated fat
> in
> > the form of coconut oil with a normal number of
> > calories is detrimental to glucose and lipid
> > metabolism.10 The enhanced atherosclerosis on
> > rabbits fed 26% energy from coconut compared to
> > 15% and normal chow is given in Figure 069. 10
> >
> >
> [www.thevisualmd.com]
>
> > 510_Ahterosclerosis/AW2510_01.jpg
>
> Remember Panchito, many phytochemical and
> anti-oxidants in raw plants stop these negative
> effects of plaques/lesions occuring. Some of the
> most powerful greens to prevent this problem are
> broccoli and radish sprouts. Funny enough, the
> research that Dr Esselstyn often quotes (Vogel)
> provides the solution to high fat, but Esselstyn
> conveniently chooses not to mention that part.
> Hmmm.
>
> Btw, we now know that atherosclerosis is not
> caused by the cholesterol at all. What is now
> being discussed is that the cholesterol found in
> people with atherosclerosis is considered to be
> repairing the damage caused by other factors. I
> will be looking at the research in this area soon.
>
>
> And no Panchito, this is no ja ja ja stuff, this
> is SERIOUS business.


It's pretty much common sense now, except for the simpletons entrenched in outdated information

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "Similar intakes of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids between the cases and controls indicated that the consumption of total fat or saturated fat, including that from coconut, was not a predictor for CHD in this food culture. However, the intakes of animal foods, total protein, dietary cholesterol and less plant derived carbohydrates were predictors of CHD."

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "Furthermore, VCO administration prevented the oxidative stress, which is indicated by the decreased formation of lipid peroxidation and protein oxidation products like malondialdehyde, hydroperoxides, conjugated dienes and protein carbonyls in serum and tissues compared to other oil fed rats (P < 0.05). Wet processing of VCO retains higher amounts of biologically active unsaponifiable components like polyphenols (84 mg per 100 g oil) and tocopherols (33.12 µg per 100 g oil) etc. compared to other oils (P < 0.05). From these observations, it is concluded that VCO has a beneficial role in improving antioxidant status and hence preventing lipid and protein oxidation."

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "The results imply no specific role for coconut or coconut oil in the causation of CHD in the present set of Indian patients from Kerala. The exact reason for the high and increasing incidence of CHD among Indians is still unknown".

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "Around 92% of these fats are saturated fats. This has lead to the belief that coconut fats are 'bad for health', particularly in relation to ischaemic heart disease. Yet most of the saturated fats in coconut are medium chain fatty acids whose properties and metabolism are different to those of animal origin. Medium chain fatty acids do not undergo degradation and re-esterification processes and are directly used in the body to produce energy."

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "Although dietary recommendations have focused on restricting saturated fat (SF) consumption to reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk, evidence from prospective studies has not supported a strong link between total SF intake and CVD events... A higher intake of dairy SF was associated with LOWER CVD risk. In contrast, a higher intake of meat SF was associated with GREATER CVD risk. The substitution of 2% of energy from meat SF with energy from dairy SF was associated with a 25% lower CVD risk. No associations were observed plant or butter SF and CVD risk".

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "Two populations of Polynesians living on atolls near the equator provide an opportunity to investigate the relative effects of saturated fat and dietary cholesterol in determining serum cholesterol levels. The habitual diets of the toll dwellers from both Pukapuka and Tokelau are high in saturated fat but low in dietary cholesterol and sucrose. Coconut is the chief source of energy for both groups. Tokelauans obtain a much higher percentage of energy from coconut than the Pukapukans, 63% compared with 34%, so their intake of saturated fat is higher. The serum cholesterol levels are 35 to 40 mg higher in Tokelauans than in Pukapukans. These major differences in serum cholesterol levels are considered to be due to the higher saturated fat intake of the Tokelauans. Analysis of a variety of food samples, and human fat biopsies show a high lauric (12:0) and myristic (14:0) content. Vascular disease is uncommon in both populations and there is no evidence of the high saturated fat intake having a harmful effect in these populations"



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/19/2014 09:34PM by jtprindl.

jtprindl Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The Sproutarian Man Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Panchito Wrote:
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> > -----
> > > Superjuice Wrote:
> > >
> >
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> >
> > > -----
> > > > Coconuts are dangerous, they fall from
> trees
> > > and
> > > > hit you in the head! lol
> > >
> > >
> >
> [www.cadiresearch.org]
>
> >
> > > 1/10/069-Fig.jpg
> > >
> > >
> >
> [www.cadiresearch.org]
>
> >
> > > -coconut
> > >
> > > Coconut is the principal agent used for
> > producing
> > > experimental atherosclerosis.10 Waqar et al.
> > have
> > > demonstrated that the intake of saturated fat
> > in
> > > the form of coconut oil with a normal number
> of
> > > calories is detrimental to glucose and lipid
> > > metabolism.10 The enhanced atherosclerosis on
> > > rabbits fed 26% energy from coconut compared
> to
> > > 15% and normal chow is given in Figure 069.
> 10
> > >
> > >
> >
> [www.thevisualmd.com]
>
> >
> > > 510_Ahterosclerosis/AW2510_01.jpg
> >
> > Remember Panchito, many phytochemical and
> > anti-oxidants in raw plants stop these negative
> > effects of plaques/lesions occuring. Some of
> the
> > most powerful greens to prevent this problem
> are
> > broccoli and radish sprouts. Funny enough, the
> > research that Dr Esselstyn often quotes (Vogel)
> > provides the solution to high fat, but
> Esselstyn
> > conveniently chooses not to mention that part.
> > Hmmm.
> >
> > Btw, we now know that atherosclerosis is not
> > caused by the cholesterol at all. What is now
> > being discussed is that the cholesterol found
> in
> > people with atherosclerosis is considered to be
> > repairing the damage caused by other factors. I
> > will be looking at the research in this area
> soon.
> >
> >
> > And no Panchito, this is no ja ja ja stuff,
> this
> > is SERIOUS business.
>
>
> It's pretty much common sense now, except for the
> simpletons entrenched in outdated information
>
> [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] -
> "Similar intakes of saturated and unsaturated
> fatty acids between the cases and controls
> indicated that the consumption of total fat or
> saturated fat, including that from coconut, was
> not a predictor for CHD in this food culture.
> However, the intakes of animal foods, total
> protein, dietary cholesterol and less plant
> derived carbohydrates were predictors of CHD."
>
> [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] -
> "Furthermore, VCO administration prevented the
> oxidative stress, which is indicated by the
> decreased formation of lipid peroxidation and
> protein oxidation products like malondialdehyde,
> hydroperoxides, conjugated dienes and protein
> carbonyls in serum and tissues compared to other
> oil fed rats (P < 0.05). Wet processing of VCO
> retains higher amounts of biologically active
> unsaponifiable components like polyphenols (84 mg
> per 100 g oil) and tocopherols (33.12 µg per 100
> g oil) etc. compared to other oils (P < 0.05).
> From these observations, it is concluded that VCO
> has a beneficial role in improving antioxidant
> status and hence preventing lipid and protein
> oxidation."
>
> [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "The
> results imply no specific role for coconut or
> coconut oil in the causation of CHD in the present
> set of Indian patients from Kerala. The exact
> reason for the high and increasing incidence of
> CHD among Indians is still unknown".
>
> [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] -
> "Around 92% of these fats are saturated fats. This
> has lead to the belief that coconut fats are 'bad
> for health', particularly in relation to ischaemic
> heart disease. Yet most of the saturated fats in
> coconut are medium chain fatty acids whose
> properties and metabolism are different to those
> of animal origin. Medium chain fatty acids do not
> undergo degradation and re-esterification
> processes and are directly used in the body to
> produce energy."
>
> [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]
> 7/ - "Although dietary recommendations have
> focused on restricting saturated fat (SF)
> consumption to reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD)
> risk, evidence from prospective studies has not
> supported a strong link between total SF intake
> and CVD events... A higher intake of dairy SF was
> associated with LOWER CVD risk. In contrast, a
> higher intake of meat SF was associated with
> GREATER CVD risk. The substitution of 2% of energy
> from meat SF with energy from dairy SF was
> associated with a 25% lower CVD risk. No
> associations were observed plant or butter SF and
> CVD risk".
>
> [www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "Two
> populations of Polynesians living on atolls near
> the equator provide an opportunity to investigate
> the relative effects of saturated fat and dietary
> cholesterol in determining serum cholesterol
> levels. The habitual diets of the toll dwellers
> from both Pukapuka and Tokelau are high in
> saturated fat but low in dietary cholesterol and
> sucrose. Coconut is the chief source of energy for
> both groups. Tokelauans obtain a much higher
> percentage of energy from coconut than the
> Pukapukans, 63% compared with 34%, so their intake
> of saturated fat is higher. The serum cholesterol
> levels are 35 to 40 mg higher in Tokelauans than
> in Pukapukans. These major differences in serum
> cholesterol levels are considered to be due to the
> higher saturated fat intake of the Tokelauans.
> Analysis of a variety of food samples, and human
> fat biopsies show a high lauric (12:0) and
> myristic (14:0) content. Vascular disease is
> uncommon in both populations and there is no
> evidence of the high saturated fat intake having a
> harmful effect in these populations"


You have schooled and schooled Panchito in this stuff, but he is still not getting it, he is still pushing the mainstream nonsense beliefs. I wonder why you have not been able to wake Panchito up yet?

Panchito: please read the studies, jtprindl is trying to school you in facts that are important to know.

regards: The Sproutarian.

www.thesproutarian.com

Thanks for the tip. I just ordered the gallon tub and saved a ton of money compared to the Nature's Way that I usually get from Amazon.

SueZ Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> NuNativs Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Cassar eats 2 pound jars of it a month...
>
> He's got the best truly raw centrifuged coconut
> oil I've ever tasted. Puts every other of the many
> brands I've had to shame. I buy it from him by
> the gallon tub.
>
> I have all the equipment to make my own. Now if
> I could only find ripe organic coconuts. I have
> trouble even finding nonorganic ones for less than
> $2.99 where I am. It would be way too expensive,
> at that rate, to make my own. I just buy them for
> grinding my own coconut meat since it's so much
> better than anything that can be bought.

[nutritionfacts.org]

Quote

Sellers of coconut oil use a beef industry tactic to downplay the risks associated with the saturated fat in their products.

Why not give it a try, though? Well, unlike other natural remedies, like the spice saffron, which was able to beat out placebo and seemed to work as well as a leading drug without the side effects, coconut oil is one of the rare plant sources of saturated fat, normally only found in animals, which tends to increase LDL, or bad cholesterol, the number one risk factor for our number one killer, heart disease. So hey, you want to try it on someone with Alzheimer’s for a few days to see if it makes a difference, fine. God, I'd try almost anything. But if, as expected, you don't see an improvement, I would be hesitant to keep anyone on it long-term. Now those selling coconut oil say one needn't worry because coconut oil contains a saturated fat that doesn't raise cholesterol. You hear the same thing from the beef people. The National Cattlemen's Beef Association is always going on about how beef contains a saturated fat called stearic acid. Unlike those evil saturated fats, palmitic, myristic, and lauric acids - which do increase blood cholesterol levels - stearic acid has been shown to have a neutral effect on blood cholesterol. That's true, and beef does have stearic acid, but guess what it has twice as much of the palmitic and myristic, which they just admitted does raise cholesterol. That's like coca cola saying they know for a fact that soda doesn't make you gain weight, because it contains water, and water has a neutral effect on weight gain. Yeah, but that's not the only thing in it, and the same with coconut oil. Years ago I profiled this study that found that cholesterol levels were significantly lower during a coconut oil diet—but only when compared to a butter diet. Yes you know you have a bad product when the only way you can make it look good is to compare it to diets rich in butter. Yes it made bad cholesterol go up, but not as bad as butter, but how much is that really saying. That was all the science we had for ten years, but four new studies have recently come out, a population study and three clinical trials. The population was Filipino women, and although those that ate the most coconut oil had the worst levels of bad cholesterol, they were also more overweight, which alone can raise your cholesterol. When the fact that the coconut oil eaters were eating a lot more calories, and were more overweight, etc. was factored out the rise in cholesterol lost statistical significance. To really control for factors, though, you've got to put it to the test. The first clinical trial involved giving people 2 tablespoons of coconut oil a day for 3 months and their bad cholesterol went up but not significantly. But during this time they were all forced to lose weight be being placed on a calorie-restricted diet. When you lose weight your LDL should drop naturally; the fact that it didn't on the coconut oil suggests an adverse effect. A most encouraging study was this one, an open-label, meaning not blinded, no control group, pilot study in which 2 tablespoons for coconut oil a day for a month added to their regular diet did not worsen their cholesterol, though when tested in a better designed study—a randomized crossover trial coconut oil did significantly worsen bad cholesterol, hence Walt Willett's recommendation from Harvard, if you are going to use it use it sparingly. Now look, if you're eating so healthy that your LDL cholesterol is under 60 or 70, then I don't see coconut oil as a problem. Unlike saturated animal fats, coconut oil doesn't cause that spike inflammation immediately after consumption of animal foods, which makes sense because as you'll remember it may be the dead bacterial endotoxins in animal products ferried into the body by saturated fat that are to blame. So in this study when people were given chocolate cake made out of flax seed oil or coconut oil we didn't see much change in inflammatory gene expression, but the cod liver oil cake seemed worse.

Now let's take a look at the real science done on quality coconut oil (virgin coconut oil).

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "RESULTS: VCO obtained by wet process has a beneficial effect in lowering lipid components compared to CO. It reduced total cholesterol, triglycerides, phospholipids, LDL, and VLDL cholesterol levels and increased HDL cholesterol in serum and tissues. The PF of virgin coconut oil was also found to be capable of preventing in vitro LDL oxidation with reduced carbonyl formation."

Lowers LDL (bad cholesterol) and increases HDL (good cholesterol).

Since we're on the topic of oils...

I'd post the conclusions but I keep getting an error. Nonetheless, enjoy...

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov] - "The Mediterranean diet with extravirgin olive oil significantly reduced the risk of atrial fibrillation (hazard ratio, 0.62; 95% confidence interval, 0.45-0.85 compared with the control group). NO EFFECT was found for the Mediterranean diet with nuts (hazard ratio, 0.89; 95% confidence interval, 0.65-1.20)."

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]

[www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov]



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/19/2014 11:44PM by jtprindl.

Panchito Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> [nutritionfacts.org]
> log-arteries/
>
> Sellers of coconut oil use a beef industry tactic
> to downplay the risks associated with the
> saturated fat in their products.
>
> Why not give it a try, though? Well, unlike other
> natural remedies, like the spice saffron, which
> was able to beat out placebo and seemed to work as
> well as a leading drug without the side effects,
> coconut oil is one of the rare plant sources of
> saturated fat, normally only found in animals,
> which tends to increase LDL, or bad cholesterol,
> the number one risk factor for our number one
> killer, heart disease. So hey, you want to try it
> on someone with Alzheimer’s for a few days to
> see if it makes a difference, fine. God, I'd try
> almost anything.

Actually I did try the coconut oil for my mother who developed dementia after having a severe stroke. I did this after seeing the video of the Dr. who saw great improvements in her husband using it. I followed the Dr.'s testing method which involved having the patient draw a picture of a clock face every week with remarkable progressive accuracy improvements in his drawings. On the coconut oil my mother's drawings of a clock each week were even more remarkable. Unfortunately after a few months she informed me that she was sick to death of coconut oil and would never eat it again.




But if, as expected, you don't
> see an improvement, I would be hesitant to keep
> anyone on it long-term. Now those selling coconut
> oil say one needn't worry because coconut oil
> contains a saturated fat that doesn't raise
> cholesterol. You hear the same thing from the beef
> people. The National Cattlemen's Beef Association
> is always going on about how beef contains a
> saturated fat called stearic acid. Unlike those
> evil saturated fats, palmitic, myristic, and
> lauric acids - which do increase blood cholesterol
> levels - stearic acid has been shown to have a
> neutral effect on blood cholesterol. That's true,
> and beef does have stearic acid, but guess what it
> has twice as much of the palmitic and myristic,
> which they just admitted does raise cholesterol.
> That's like coca cola saying they know for a fact
> that soda doesn't make you gain weight, because it
> contains water, and water has a neutral effect on
> weight gain. Yeah, but that's not the only thing
> in it, and the same with coconut oil. Years ago I
> profiled this study that found that cholesterol
> levels were significantly lower during a coconut
> oil diet—but only when compared to a butter
> diet. Yes you know you have a bad product when the
> only way you can make it look good is to compare
> it to diets rich in butter. Yes it made bad
> cholesterol go up, but not as bad as butter, but
> how much is that really saying. That was all the
> science we had for ten years, but four new studies
> have recently come out, a population study and
> three clinical trials. The population was Filipino
> women, and although those that ate the most
> coconut oil had the worst levels of bad
> cholesterol, they were also more overweight, which
> alone can raise your cholesterol. When the fact
> that the coconut oil eaters were eating a lot more
> calories, and were more overweight, etc. was
> factored out the rise in cholesterol lost
> statistical significance. To really control for
> factors, though, you've got to put it to the test.
> The first clinical trial involved giving people 2
> tablespoons of coconut oil a day for 3 months and
> their bad cholesterol went up but not
> significantly. But during this time they were all
> forced to lose weight be being placed on a
> calorie-restricted diet. When you lose weight your
> LDL should drop naturally; the fact that it didn't
> on the coconut oil suggests an adverse effect. A
> most encouraging study was this one, an
> open-label, meaning not blinded, no control group,
> pilot study in which 2 tablespoons for coconut oil
> a day for a month added to their regular diet did
> not worsen their cholesterol, though when tested
> in a better designed study—a randomized
> crossover trial coconut oil did significantly
> worsen bad cholesterol, hence Walt Willett's
> recommendation from Harvard, if you are going to
> use it use it sparingly. Now look, if you're
> eating so healthy that your LDL cholesterol is
> under 60 or 70, then I don't see coconut oil as a
> problem. Unlike saturated animal fats, coconut oil
> doesn't cause that spike inflammation immediately
> after consumption of animal foods, which makes
> sense because as you'll remember it may be the
> dead bacterial endotoxins in animal products
> ferried into the body by saturated fat that are to
> blame. So in this study when people were given
> chocolate cake made out of flax seed oil or
> coconut oil we didn't see much change in
> inflammatory gene expression, but the cod liver
> oil cake seemed worse.

The rest of this is BS, too. Granted, I use the best raw centrifuged coconut oil, and of course, as usual for these studies, we have no idea the condition of the oil they tested, but my lipid panel lab work after eating a diet of an average of 62% raw vegan fat a day, including lots of coconut oil, was VASTLY better than my lipid panel after eating lfhc raw vegan for 11 months.

It's high time Dr. Grieger stopped calling his site nutrition facts. Fact is it isn't.