There’s a fairly common interest in what effect do coconut and coconut oil have on cholesterol and functioning of arterial system. Coconut product sellers often cite studies claiming that there’s no negative effect, based on general population diet. However, closer examination reveals that population observed consumed other foods that provide cardiovascular health benefits, like fruits and nuts. Furthermore, the observed population had a diet rich in coconut, but not necessarily coconut oil. Further studies for conclusive results are needed.
Key Takeaways:
- Coconut oil proponents also try to argue that coconut oil has MCTs, medium-chain triglycerides, which are shorter-chain saturated fats that aren’t as bad as the longer-chain saturated fats in meat.
- It’s actually quite “a common misconception” that the saturated fat in coconut oil is comprised of mainly MCTs.
- The beef industry, for example, loves to argue that beef fat contains stearic acid, a type of saturated fat that doesn’t raise cholesterol.
“Coconut oil proponents pointing to these studies is like the high fructose corn syrup lobby pointing to studies of healthy populations who eat corn on the cob or the sugar industry pointing to studies on fruit consumption and saying you can eat all the refined sugar you want.”
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