Last week, I discussed how coconut oil benefits heart health through its lauric acid, the medium chain triglycerides (MCTs). These very same fatty acids were unjustly condemned twenty years ago for being “harmful” saturated fats, after a research was performed on partially hydrogenated coconut oil, which is associated with dangerous cardiovascular plaque. However when the pure coconut oil became a favorite by vegans and vegetarians, researchers started probing into the fat and realized that partially hydrogenated coconut oil was the one implicated and not virgin coconut oil.

Not only virgin coconut oil was exonerated from causing heart disease, but it was also found to have beneficial effects on the brain of Alzheimer’s disease patients. The first to use the oil on patients and experience its effectiveness first hand was Dr. Mary Newport. After realizing that the limitations of Alzheimer’s drugs (Namenda, Exelon, and Aricept) given to her 53-year-old husband and how his condition worsened, she decided to take a different approach, the natural one.

In quest to find a cure for her husband’s Alzheimer’s, she discovered through her research that certain individuals’ brain cells had difficulty utilizing glucose, the fuel that produces energy in the brain. Without glucose to feed the brain, neurons begin to atrophy and die. She found that another type of fuel neurons can use is the chemical that is called ketone. When the body and brain are unable to find glucose from sugar and carbohydrates, the body begins to produce ketones instead to utilize for energy.

Humans need carbohydrates in reasonable amounts for the body and brain to function. When carbs are unavailable to the cells or cells are insulin-resistant, they will not benefit from glucose. Dr. Newport discovered through her research that medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) in coconut or palm oil get converted to ketones, which can be used by the body and brain, becoming a good substitute for glucose to fuel the brain. Ketones also become an alternative to glucose in order to stop the atrophy of neurons, preserving the brain from Alzheimer’s without the need for drugs.

Allow me first to describe what happens to the brain when it is afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease.

Some years back, research found that amyloid-beta (AB) plaque in the brain caused Alzheimer’s, a disease that destroys the brain and its function. Later studies showed that oligomers develop long before the AB plaque appears in the brain. It was also found that Alzheimer’s drugs, which are meant to destroy AB, are not effective on oligomers, because each type has different molecular structure; thus the core problem is not addressed.

When Dr. Newport found no effectiveness from the drugs her husband was taking, she turned to her research. She noticed that when the neurons had difficulty receiving glucose, they eventually died. However when she tried coconut oil, it created ketones, which were used in the brain as energy. She found that the body turned MCTs to ketones when metabolized and their good effect on the neurons lasted for eight hours. Not only it helped her husband Alzheimer’s condition but also made some of the symptoms regress.

Dr. Newport began giving coconut oil twice a day to her husband to help his condition. After two weeks of use, he began to respond and show improvement in his drawing skills. After a month, his drawings became even clearer. After two months, he started showing awareness and began expressing simple emotions as well as making himself understood. Soon, he was able to focus more and execute chores. As he continued with coconut oil, his condition improved significantly. He resumed physical activity and returned to running. He was able to comprehend what he was reading and retrieve his short-term and longterm memories. His brain scan showed that the atrophy came to a stop and mental deterioration ended. Coconut oil’s good effects lasted for eight hours with every dose, whereas the drug’s effect only made it to three hours.

Dr. Mary Newport was a pioneer in treating Alzheimer’s with virgin coconut oil. Coconut oil has been shown to become a promising cure for this condition, where nothing else seemed to help. The brains of the aging and Alzheimer’s patients were once thought to be doomed.

In 2004, an unprecedented study, which came out in the scientific journal of Neurobiology of Aging, showed that the primary fatty component found in coconut oil, medium chain triglycerides (MCTs), not only reduced the deterioration of cognitive performance in the aging, but also enhanced their memory and mental abilities.

Twenty individuals with Alzheimer’s disease or declining cognitive abilities were involved in the study. Some were given emulsified MCTs and the others placebo. What was observed in four of the subjects, who were given the emulsified MCT, is that they significantly improved their cognitive performances on the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Subscale (ADAS-cog) and it was noted that: “Higher ketone value were associated with greater improvement in paragraph recall with MCTs treatment relative to placebo across all subjects.”

The mystery of a single dose of 40ml, or 2.7 tablespoons of MCTs, seemed to address the metabolic needs of the brain. It is believed that it is due to the way MCTs are composed and act in the brain. Because glucose is the primary fuel for brain energy, with insulin resistance and a slow metabolism (hypometabolism), the brain’s structure and activity are disrupted. MCTs supply the brain with alternative fuel (ketone bodies) instead of the conventional glucose in order to fuel metabolic functions inside the brain, thus enhancing cognitive processes. By easily getting metabolized by the liver, MCTs in larger amounts trigger the elevation of ketone bodies, which enhance brain performance and body functions.

The alternative energy from MCTs could become a natural drug for many related conditions as well as diabetes Type 2. Testimonials show that coconut oil can also help control epileptic attacks, which are brain-related disorders. It is worth the try and the oil should not harm.

People believe that due to its fatty acids, coconut oil leads to weight gain. I will explain to you that it is not a fact. Because MCTs are smaller in size than other fats, they do not accumulate in adipose (fatty) tissue. Long-chain triglycerides (LCTs) having 14 and 18 carbons and MCTs come with 5 and 12 carbons. MCTs are also more bioavailable and easily utilized by the body.

While vegetable oils, polyunsaturated fatty acids, like canola, soy, and corn oils turn rancid very easily with heat and exposure and convert into harmful pro-inflammatory trans fats, coconut oil’s saturated fatty acids (MCTs) remain stable and resistant to rancidity by heat and cooking. The oil is a healthy fat for stir-frying and cooking including baking (cakes, biscuit…). Some bloggers claim that the oil does well in frying, succeeding in making crispy corn chips.

In Part 7, I shall explore the other aspects of virgin coconut oil. I shall discuss its different benefits discovered through research and also ones, which were handed over to us through traditions of the communities, which come from coconut’s natural habitat and appreciate this gift of Nature. You will be amazed by the many benefits that come from this “good” fat.

References:

Coconut Water Nutrition Facts

http://coconutoil.com/AlzheimersDiseaseDrMaryNewport.pdf

http://coconutoil.com/coconut-oil-alzheimers/

D O Ogbolu, A A Oni, O A Daini, A P Oloko. In vitro antimicrobial properties of coconut oil on Candida species in Ibadan, Nigeria. J Med Food. 2007 Jun;20(2):384-7. PMID: 17651080

[viii] Graciela E Hurtado de Catalfo, Maria J T de Alaniz, Carlos A Marra, Dietary lipids modify redox homeostasis and steroidogenic status in rat testis. Phytother Res. 2010 Feb;24(2):163-8. PMID: 18549927

[ix] Maria de Lourdes Arruzazabala, Vivian Molina, Rosa Mas, Daisy Carbajal, David Marrero, Victor Gonzalez, Eduardo Rodriguez. Effects of coconut oil on testosterone-induced prostatic hyperplasia in Sprague-Dawley rats. J Pharm Pharmacol. 2007 Jul:59(7):995-9. PMID: 1763719

N.B.:

Individuals with medical conditions or on medication should consult their physicians when they decide to introduce anything new in their diet even if it is natural.

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