I
had a friend in the brain-building business recently send me this link to an article at NaturalNews.com with the provocative headline of “Just one
dose of coconut oil can tremendously boost brain function and cognitive
performance. “ http://www.naturalnews.com/039811_coconut_Alzheimers_dementia.html
Do
I need improved cognition? Absolutely! Am I hugely suspicious of such audacious
claims? Absolutely!
According
to the article, here’s what’s at the crux of the argument for the benefits of
coconut:
“High
triglyceride blood readings are red flags for obesity, diabetes, and heart
health issues. Most dietary fats contain long chain triglycerides (LCT), which
are not easily metabolized and can be stored as fatty deposits in one's body.
Long
chain triglycerides contain chains with 14 to 18 carbon atoms. But coconut oil
contains medium chain triglycerides (MCT) with shorter chains of 5 to 12 carbon
atoms, which are easily metabolized by the liver to produce ketone bodies that
can replace glucose as metabolic fuel.
As
we age, the brain's ability to metabolize glucose for energy wanes, especially
for those who have a metabolic disorder or insulin resistance. But MCT-created
ketones can be used as cellular fuel in the brain when glucose is not
available.”
Not
being a scientist, that explanation didn’t help me at all. But the article went
on to say that: “As
far back as 2004, a study published in the journal Neurobiology of Aging
determined that coconut oil MCTs improved cognitive function among older folks
with memory problems and even Alzheimer's disease.
They took 20 subjects and randomly fed them coconut oil or placebos on different days. Some of the Alzheimer's group demonstrated improved scoring on a special Alzheimer's cognitive rating scale, and all of them demonstrated better paragraph recall shortly after taking each dose of coconut oil.
This wasn't a long term study. They got immediate positive cognitive and memory results from single doses of coconut oil compared to placebos.”
Yea!
Should we all go out and coat our food with coconut oil?
Maybe
not. I also found this Journal of the
American Academy of physician Assistants article that states "A few
people have reported that coconut oil helped ... but there's never been any
clinical testing of coconut oil for Alzheimer's, and there's no scientific
evidence that it helps.” See http://www.jaapa.com/can-coconut-oil-replace-caprylidene-for-alzheimer-disease/article/251425/
As
always, with food-based claims regarding brain function, I retreat to Barbara
Strauch and her nifty book entitled The
Secret Life of the Grown-up Brain: The Surprising Talents of the Middle-Aged
Mind in which she describes the difficulty of using food to impact brain
function.
Does
the JAAPA article mean that coconut oil can’t help or is dangerous?
Nope.
And, just to be sure, I am starting to use of bit of coconut oil myself.
Image
credit: <a
href='http://www.123rf.com/photo_12756963_coconut-oil-on-a-bamboo-mat.html'>ckellyphoto
/ 123RF Stock Photo</a>
