It is amazing how much can be done to prevent, slow down, or even reverse the
symptoms of disease not by using pharmaceutical medicine, but by eating a healthy
diet. An exciting development in our understanding of eating for brain health came
about in 2008, when Dr. Mary Newport began to publicize the use of coconut oil in
treating Alzheimer's disease.
Dr. Newport came upon this idea from reading literature about Alzheimer's research,
and she began to give coconut oil to her husband, Steve, who was suffering from
early-onset symptoms of Alzheimer's disease in his fifties. Within a matter of
weeks, Steve began to show an improvement in his ability to think, remember
things, and find the right word he was looking for in conversations. He was
still badly handicapped by his condition -- he did not return to his
pre-Alzheimer's self who was able to hold down a job as an accountant -- but his
improvement was enough to make his and his wife's quality of life much better
than it had been before he started consuming coconut oil. Dr. Newport began
advising others to consume coconut oil as well to help treat Alzheimer's, and
many other family members of people suffering from dementia reported that their
loved ones were thinking more clearly after only a short period of the coconut
oil regimen.
What is behind coconut oil and how does it help the brain? If you look at the label
of a jar of coconut oil it will say that all of the calories come from fat and
most of them from saturated fat, but don't let that scare you off. About 60% of
the fat in coconut oil is medium chain fatty acids (MCFA). MCFA's are special
because they produce ketone bodies when they are metabolized. Ketone bodies are
an energy source that the body and the brain can use instead of glucose (simple
carbohydrate sugar). Unless you consume MCFA's, your body can only produce
ketone bodies if you have been fasting or starving for several days, or if you
are on a very low-carbohydrate diet.
Studies have shown that people with Alzheimer's can have insulin resistance in their
neurons (nerve cells) in their brains. Cells that are insulin resistant are not
able to take in energy from glucose, which is normally the source of energy for
our brains. In a sense, having Alzheimer's can be like having diabetes of the
brain, because some brain cells are insulin resistant. If your brain is
deprived of an energy source, you will have short-term symptoms such as "brain
fog" or slow or confused thinking. If your brain is deprived of an energy source
over the long term, you will have brain cells die, and your cognitive abilities
will be severely and permanently impaired.
If you consume coconut oil, you are providing your brain with a new energy
source--ketone bodies--that it can use in addition to glucose. This is a fairly
new area of research, and a large number of studies have not been done yet, but
all the evidence we have seen so far indicates that MCFA's (which coconut oil is
a rich source of) greatly improve brain health. They may be helpful with other
conditions that also involve insulin insensitivity in some nerve cells,
including Parkinson's and multiple sclerosis. Also, coconut oil can reduce the
symptoms of "brain fog" or impaired cognition that can result from hypoglycemia
(low blood sugar). Are you familiar with the feeling of mental sluggishness that
comes and hour or so after a heavy meal? That sluggishness can come about in
part because blood sugar spikes high after consuming a high-carbohydrate meal,
and shortly thereafter one's level of blood sugar dips down to lower than its
regular level. When this happens, your brain is not getting the same steady
supply of glucose as fuel that it is used to. By consuming coconut oil, you can
give your brain another source of energy (ketone bodies) to use whenever the
neurons are not easily able to access glucose.
Coconut oil is an excellent health food, for the body as well as the brain. It improves
cholesterol ratios, and it has antiviral and antifungal properties as well.
Some people believe that coconut oil raises cholesterol, but this is only the
case with refined coconut oils that are hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated.
Any hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fat is bad for you. You should only
consume virgin coconut oil, which means that it is not refined and has not been
hydrogenated. You can cook with it as you would with any other cooking oil, or
use it as you would use butter -- melted over cooked vegetables, or substitute
it in recipes that call for butter or vegetable oil.
Certified organic virgin coconut oil is available from www.allstarhealth.com. There are
a great number of companies offering virgin or extra-virgin (there really is no difference
between virgin and extra-virgin when it comes to coconut oil) coconut oil that are
excellent, high quality products. I recommend the coconut oil that comes from NOW
Foods because it is the best value among the high quality coconut oils.
Also, Dr. Newport’s book is available here at amazon.com:
symptoms of disease not by using pharmaceutical medicine, but by eating a healthy
diet. An exciting development in our understanding of eating for brain health came
about in 2008, when Dr. Mary Newport began to publicize the use of coconut oil in
treating Alzheimer's disease.
Dr. Newport came upon this idea from reading literature about Alzheimer's research,
and she began to give coconut oil to her husband, Steve, who was suffering from
early-onset symptoms of Alzheimer's disease in his fifties. Within a matter of
weeks, Steve began to show an improvement in his ability to think, remember
things, and find the right word he was looking for in conversations. He was
still badly handicapped by his condition -- he did not return to his
pre-Alzheimer's self who was able to hold down a job as an accountant -- but his
improvement was enough to make his and his wife's quality of life much better
than it had been before he started consuming coconut oil. Dr. Newport began
advising others to consume coconut oil as well to help treat Alzheimer's, and
many other family members of people suffering from dementia reported that their
loved ones were thinking more clearly after only a short period of the coconut
oil regimen.
What is behind coconut oil and how does it help the brain? If you look at the label
of a jar of coconut oil it will say that all of the calories come from fat and
most of them from saturated fat, but don't let that scare you off. About 60% of
the fat in coconut oil is medium chain fatty acids (MCFA). MCFA's are special
because they produce ketone bodies when they are metabolized. Ketone bodies are
an energy source that the body and the brain can use instead of glucose (simple
carbohydrate sugar). Unless you consume MCFA's, your body can only produce
ketone bodies if you have been fasting or starving for several days, or if you
are on a very low-carbohydrate diet.
Studies have shown that people with Alzheimer's can have insulin resistance in their
neurons (nerve cells) in their brains. Cells that are insulin resistant are not
able to take in energy from glucose, which is normally the source of energy for
our brains. In a sense, having Alzheimer's can be like having diabetes of the
brain, because some brain cells are insulin resistant. If your brain is
deprived of an energy source, you will have short-term symptoms such as "brain
fog" or slow or confused thinking. If your brain is deprived of an energy source
over the long term, you will have brain cells die, and your cognitive abilities
will be severely and permanently impaired.
If you consume coconut oil, you are providing your brain with a new energy
source--ketone bodies--that it can use in addition to glucose. This is a fairly
new area of research, and a large number of studies have not been done yet, but
all the evidence we have seen so far indicates that MCFA's (which coconut oil is
a rich source of) greatly improve brain health. They may be helpful with other
conditions that also involve insulin insensitivity in some nerve cells,
including Parkinson's and multiple sclerosis. Also, coconut oil can reduce the
symptoms of "brain fog" or impaired cognition that can result from hypoglycemia
(low blood sugar). Are you familiar with the feeling of mental sluggishness that
comes and hour or so after a heavy meal? That sluggishness can come about in
part because blood sugar spikes high after consuming a high-carbohydrate meal,
and shortly thereafter one's level of blood sugar dips down to lower than its
regular level. When this happens, your brain is not getting the same steady
supply of glucose as fuel that it is used to. By consuming coconut oil, you can
give your brain another source of energy (ketone bodies) to use whenever the
neurons are not easily able to access glucose.
Coconut oil is an excellent health food, for the body as well as the brain. It improves
cholesterol ratios, and it has antiviral and antifungal properties as well.
Some people believe that coconut oil raises cholesterol, but this is only the
case with refined coconut oils that are hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated.
Any hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated fat is bad for you. You should only
consume virgin coconut oil, which means that it is not refined and has not been
hydrogenated. You can cook with it as you would with any other cooking oil, or
use it as you would use butter -- melted over cooked vegetables, or substitute
it in recipes that call for butter or vegetable oil.
Certified organic virgin coconut oil is available from www.allstarhealth.com. There are
a great number of companies offering virgin or extra-virgin (there really is no difference
between virgin and extra-virgin when it comes to coconut oil) coconut oil that are
excellent, high quality products. I recommend the coconut oil that comes from NOW
Foods because it is the best value among the high quality coconut oils.
Also, Dr. Newport’s book is available here at amazon.com:
If you found this article interesting, you might also enjoy these articles about
the role of carbohydrates and fats in a brain-healthy diet.
Happy eating, and here's to your brain health!
the role of carbohydrates and fats in a brain-healthy diet.
Happy eating, and here's to your brain health!
