Add coconut, cut fat

The Times of India ^ | 9 August, 2010. | The Times of India

[James C. Bennett]

A diet rich in coconut oil keeps fat away and also protects against insulin resistance, a new study shows.

The study also helps explain how people who incorporate medium chain fatty acids found in coconut oil into their diets can lose body fat. Obesity and insulin resistance are major factors leading to the development of Type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance is an impaired ability of cells to respond to insulin.

Nigel Turner and Jiming Ye from Sydney's Garvan Institute of Medical Research compared fat metabolism and insulin resistance in mice fed coconut oil and lard based diets.

"The medium chain fatty acids like those found in coconut oil are interesting to us because they behave very differently to the fats normally found in our diets," said study leader Turner.

"Unlike the long chain fatty acids contained in animal fats, medium chain fatty acids are small enough to enter mitochondria - the cells' energy burning powerhouses - directly where they can then be converted to energy."

"Unfortunately the downside to eating medium chain fatty acids is that they can lead to fat build up in the liver, an important fact to be taken into consideration by anyone considering using them as a weight loss therapy."

Fat storage is determined by the balance between how much fat is taken in by cells and how much of this fat is burned for energy. When people eat a high fat diet, their bodies attempt to compensate by increasing their capacity to oxidise fat, said a Garvan release.

"Obese humans usually eat 40-50 percent of their calories as fat. Our mice were fed 45 percent of their calories as fat," Turner said.

[SeaHawkFan]

Wal-Mart. It’s great for cooking and great for making popcorn.

It’s also a fantastic lubricant.

[HIDEK6]

Where the heck do you get coconut oil?

The local Food Lion has it. Right next to the vegetable oil.

[donna]

“You know, the Center for Science in the Public Interest, this wacko bunch of leftist kooks, statists, nannies, these are the people that banned coconut oil from your popcorn in movie theaters...”
- Rush Limbaugh

[rhema]

Where the heck do you get coconut oil? Mounds bars?

There's gotta be coconut oil in these, too. Just the diet news I'd been waiting for.

[FrdmLvr]

Thanks for the tip. I get mine at the health food store, and I imagine Walmart is cheaper. I also drink “So Delicious” vanilla coconut milk in my whey protein shakes every day.

[raybbr]

Oh, oh. Coconuts must be falling in price. It seems that someone wants to drive the price up.

[Domandred]

So is this yet another healthy oil that stores charge four times as much for half the size?

I’ll pass. I’ll think about it when the recession is over.

[christianhomeschoolmommaof3]

I buy mine at Walmart.

[CaptainK]

You can get it at health food stores. Whole Foods also sells it.

And stick to the Extra Virgin coconut oil. It's first pressed so it's the purest.

[maryz]

The Walmart I go to usually has one brand with the cooking oils and another brand with the vitamins/nutritional supplements. Our Rite-Aid carries it in its vitamin/nutritional supplement section. Market Basket carries it with the more exotic cooking oils.

[varina davis]

Pina Coladas.

[cll]

Piña Colada recipe included:

[Liz]

Careful of those deelish macaroons.

A blogger shared her story: "My husband brought home delicious macaroons and I pigged out. "The next day I was in so much pain I passed out and had to be taken to the emergency room. My bowels were bound. They pumped my stomach, starved me, put an IV in me, threatened surgery and kept me for five days. I escaped surgery, but what an experience! Now I know first hand---macaroons can have a dangerous constipating effect."

[radiohead]

I do everything you do with coconut oil except use it in smoothies. Hadn’t thought of that. I know people use young coconut in smoothies, but I haven’t been able to get any, but coconut oil, yeah, I got that.

I use very little oil in cooking (like none, most of the time), but generally choose coconut oil when I do use it. I don’t eat meat anymore, but lemme tell you, a nice chicken breast sauteed in coconut oil is just fantastic; wonderful aroma and taste. I still make chicken for my son this way.

He’s 33, still gets carded and the college girls around here think he’s one of them. I turned 57 recently and still don’t have a wrinkle. I can’t contribute it all to coconut oil, but good oils like avocado and coconut can help with a lot in the body and how the body looks.

[earglasses]

For anyone who wishes to try your favorite, Nutiva, it’s available for order online at http://www.mynaturalmarket.com/coconut-oil.html?ad=gppc_omega_coconut_oil&gclid=CJHkusb-rKMCFQYBbAod5wqr6Q

As for the folks touting the product sold at Walmart, beware of processed coconut oils. They do NOT provide the nutritional benefits that virgin coconut oils do. Quite the opposite.

[Anitius Severinus Boethius]

Nah, it’s about $3 for a quart at Walmart. About the same price as canola oil. Has a great low heat cooking point.

[arbee4bush]

Num—will be sipping on those full of that great Coconut cream in 3 weeks on our western Caribbean cruise on the RC Oasis. So ready.

[paulycy]

Does it taste like coconut?

Yeeck.

[Allegra]

I almost licked the screen trying to taste those.

[Varda]

Look in the oils or natural foods section of your grocery store. The kind we use comes in jars. We’ve been making popcorn and fried chicken with this for a couple of years. Food really tastes great with this stuff.