Coconut Oil: Healthy or Harmful?
Published on October 4, 2017 by Dr. Caitlin Gordon
Don’t panic about the American Heart Association’s (AHA) 2017 statement on coconut oil– this is the same organization that put out the junk science of the nineties saying everyone should be eating margarine and bread and avoiding fat. It led to an obesity and diabetes epidemic, which, ironically, is the true culprit behind heart disease.
We need to be very skeptical of a medical organization that recommends something as backward as cooking with vegetable oils for health. Heated vegetable oils are proven to cause oxidative stress (aging) in the body. Consumption of processed vegetable oils contributes to the unhealthy imbalance of omega 3s to 6s, an important factor in heart disease.
Coconut oil may raise cholesterol, but it raises both good (HDL) and bad (LDL) cholesterol, rendering its effect basically neutral. What is most relevant here is that the link between cholesterol and heart disease remains unproven. In fact, higher cholesterol numbers are associated with decreased risk of many neurological disorders.
Coconut oil also has some bonafide benefits of its own, not enjoyed by other fats with a high saturated fat content. Research indicates the lauric acid in coconut oil may help balance blood sugar and burn fat. Obesity and all forms of insulin resistance from metabolic syndrome to diabetes are known causes of heart disease.
Bottom line: coconut oil should be used in moderation like all foods. Use coconut oil mainly on vegetables or protein, and avoid combining it with carbs/sweets where it may be more inflammatory.
For more detailed explanations and recommendations of what cooking oils to use–check out The Dirt on Oils–why olive oil isn’t the healthiest cooking oil.
Also, this, because humor is so necessary.
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