coconut oil?

slemons

Hi,
I had another topic on this but it wasnt getting much attention at all...

Does anyone know why coconut oil is supposed to be so good for you?
It seems to be 70% saturated fat...

I read a study recently that said virtually every animal fed coconut oil, lost body fat.
That doesnt make sense with such a high saturated content

Any comments on it?

How does it compare to cod liver oil?

Thanks

rubadub

Check this thread out
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055238028

EileenG

One of the biggest nutrition myths is that eating fat makes you fat, and cutting out the fat makes you thin. In fact, competitive bodybuilders nearly all do some form of high fat diet while cutting bodyfat before competitions. And eating a high carb diet is a very good way to put on bodyfat. It's how farmers fatten up animals before slaughter.

Coconut oil has medium chain triglycerides, which have the unusual property of being a fat but behaving like a carb. They tend to give quick energy and resist being stored as bodyfat.

One of the big componants of coconut oil is lauric acid, which is also present in large amounts in human breast milk.

_Nuno_

Saturated fats are not anymore fattening than any other fats. The main problem with them was that they were a few decades ago very inconvenient to all the industries trying to sell hydrogenated vegetable oils, so a supposed link to earth disease was essentially made up in order to push people away from palm oil and coconut oil and to instead margarine and hydrogenated vegetable oils. Or so the conspiracy theory goes.

I only use coconut oil for cooking.

As a side note, the European distributor of tropical traditions coconut oil for europe is based in Ireland.

rubadub

_Nuno_ wrote: »

Saturated fats are not anymore fattening than any other fats.

Which is why the WW points system seems very odd, since you can have 2 plates of food one being 10 points and the other 20 points, yet both having the same calories.

EileenG

WW system of points really annoys me, as it just gives really high points to all fats, and totally fails to differenciate between salmon and doughnuts. Even fish oil capsules are a couple of points.

I worked it out once, and 1000 calories of eggs, salmon, spinach, broccoli, mushrooms and avocado were almost twice as many points as 1000 calories of Frosties, low fat pasta ready meal and burger and chips.

slemons

EileenG wrote: »

One of the biggest nutrition myths is that eating fat makes you fat, and cutting out the fat makes you thin. In fact, competitive bodybuilders nearly all do some form of high fat diet while cutting bodyfat before competitions. And eating a high carb diet is a very good way to put on bodyfat. It's how farmers fatten up animals before slaughter.

Coconut oil has medium chain triglycerides, which have the unusual property of being a fat but behaving like a carb. They tend to give quick energy and resist being stored as bodyfat.

One of the big componants of coconut oil is lauric acid, which is also present in large amounts in human breast milk.

Very interesting...
Because they're medium chain are they more soluble that other fats so they get absorbed along with glucose and into the Krebs cycle?

Or something like that?
Are fish oils like this aswell?

EileenG

Fish oil is wonderful. Recent studies show that it tends to encourage your body to burn more fat and store less. Plus all the health benefits.

toggle

Coconut oil is also very good for people suffering from hypothyroidism.


http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2004/08/11/thyroid-health.aspx

104494431

Sorry to drag up an old thread.

I used to suffer from hyperthyroidism. When you say that coconut oil is good for hypothyroidism do you mean that it increases thyroid function in some way?

Basically can you be more specific, thanks.

toggle

104494431 wrote: »

Sorry to drag up an old thread.

I used to suffer from hyperthyroidism. When you say that coconut oil is good for hypothyroidism do you mean that it increases thyroid function in some way?

Basically can you be more specific, thanks.

According to the article..

Coconut oil is saturated and very stable (unrefined coconut oil has a shelf life of about three to five years at room temperature), the body is not burdened with oxidative stress as it is with the vegetable oils.

the liver is the main place where damage occurs from oxidized and rancid oils that cause cell membrane damage, and since the liver is where much of the conversion of T4 to T3 takes place, eliminating long chain fatty acids from the diet and replacing them with medium chain fatty acids found in coconut oil can, in time, help in rebuilding cell membranes and increasing enzyme production that will assist in promoting the conversion of T4 to T3 hormones. Coconut oil can also raise basal body temperatures while increasing metabolism.


Coconut oil will help thyroid function because there is a better conversion of T4 to T3 in the liver. and also by increasing metabolism most people using coconut oil will have the added benefit of losing weight.

Mensch

Another great thing about coconut oil - or any whole-food naturally rich in saturated fat - is that it promotes the production of key bodybuilding hormones, which in turn promotes the production of bad-ass muscle :cool: