Organic Coconut Oil vs. Palm/Kernel Oil (MCT OIL)

It’s no secret that organic coconut oil is a great source of healthy fats with endless uses in cooking, health supplementation, and beauty products. But did you know that MCT oil is a similar but concentrated oil with many of the same benefits and more?

MCTs or Medium Chain Triglycerides (of Medium Chain Fatty Acids) are fatty acids of a certain length, as the name suggests. MCT oil is an oil made up of one or more of these medium chain triglycerides and it is translucent and tasteless liquid at room temperature.

Medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) are made up of medium-chain fatty acids. The “medium” refers to the length of their chemical structure. 

What are the Benefits of MCTs?

MCT oil has become a popular health supplement, and for good reason! Here are four of the top benefits you can experience by incorporating MCT oil into your routine:

1. Rev Up Your Metabolism and Weight Loss: MCT oil can help you feel fuller for longer, boost your metabolism, and may even increase your body’s ability to burn fat.

   
   

2. Unleash Your Inner Athlete: Looking to enhance your workouts? MCT oil can provide a sustained energy boost, helping you power through even the toughest training sessions.

   
   

3. Sharpen Your Mind: MCT oil may improve cognitive function, mental clarity, and even protect against neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s and dementia.

   
   

4. Promote Digestive Wellness: MCT oil can support a healthy digestive system by reducing inflammation and promoting the growth of good gut bacteria.

   
   

The Science

Unlike almost all other foods, MCTs do not require energy to be absorbed, stored or used in the body, making them an almost perfect source of natural energy. MCTs don’t need bile salts to be digested and can pass directly from the digestive system to the bloodstream without being modified by digestion like long chain fats.

This makes them easier to digest and utilize than long chain fatty acids. Because MCTs are so easy to absorb, they are used medicinally for people with digestive and malabsorption issues. They’re also an ideal source of healthy fats for people with a sluggish liver or a missing gallbladder.

Types of MCT:

• C8- Caprylic Acid: It has potent anti-microbial properties (way more potent than lauric acid) to help you maintain a healthy gut, and it is the fastest to metabolize in the brain. Your liver does not need to process this rare type of MCT. This is the rarest form of MCT.
  
  
• C10- Capric Acid: This is the second rarest form of MCT. It takes longer than the C8 to pass through the liver and turn into energy but it is more affordable than C8.
  
  
• C12- Lauric Acid: C12 requires more time in the liver rather than getting converted into energy like the MCTs stated above.
  
  Many MCT companies imply that lauric acid is the same as monolaurin, an extremely potent antimicrobial that is derived from lauric acid. They are not the same. This is the biggest issue in the industry. Consumers are all too often tricked into thinking they are getting this amazing MCT oil when in reality, it’s just a ton of isolated lauric acid or even worse, palm oil.
  
  
• Palm Oil: The palm oil industry is responsible for the deforestation for large parts of the rainforest. Thousands of acres of rainforest are being destroyed to make room for palm production. This has also driven many animals out of their natural habitats and greatly threatens species like the orangutan and Sumatran tiger, which are both in danger of extinction.
  
  The large-scale production of palm crops in these areas has also driven native people from their homes and destroyed their sources of income, as many of them rely on the rainforest for food or their livelihoods.
  

Take Away

When looking for health products that contain MCT oil, choose ones that contain MCT derived from coconut (if not allergic) and not palm. In addition, if you care about environmental issues , as we do, there are negative aspects of coconut crops, while palm oil has a much more destructive history.

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References

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21262136

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC90807/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palm_oil