The Many Benefits of MCT Oil

[Lurch]

This stuff is amazing. I can now tolerate 1/2 tsp 2x a day with food.
I plan to work up to 1 to 2 TBS per day, in food.
I'm 72 now, and it seems to do me a lot of good.
Start slow on it, like 1/2 tsp a day in food, and work up slowly over 1-2 weeks.
Otherwise it can cause loose bowels
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As a clean fuel, they can improve your body’s mitochondrial function, which contributes to reducing your risks for diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, atherosclerosis, autoimmune diseases, epilepsy, and neurodegenerative diseases. In this article, we’re going to learn what is MCT oil, the differences between MCT oil vs. coconut oil and more ways that MCT oil can benefit you.

MCT Oil Benefits

MCT oils are extremely easy for the body to break down and convert into usable energy. Their easy absorption into the body makes them an excellent therapy for people that have malabsorption issues or who are missing their gallbladder. They also have many other health benefits when taken on a regular basis. Here are some great benefits you can gain by consuming MCT oils on a daily basis.

1. Improved Cognition

One of the MCT Oil benefits is increased protection against neurological diseases like Alzheimer's.
A superior brain fuel, MCTs convert to important ketones shortly after ingesting them. With just 20 grams of MCT, it can offer protection against degenerative neurological diseases like dementia and Alzheimer’s.

The ketones provide the brain with energy and protect its neural pathways, which help to reduce the symptoms of Alzheimer’s, dementia and other neurodegenerative conditions. According to the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF), they believe that using MCT oils can improve memory function and reduce the symptoms of depression and anxiety.(..)

2. Improves Energy
MCTs are an excellent way to improve your energy without suffering from any of the side effects that other stimulants like caffeine can produce. The liver processes them easily, so they absorb quickly into the body and provide rapid and sustained energy without the need to increase the amount of food you eat. The quick absorption by the body makes it the perfect kind of energy that is perfect for athletes and bodybuilders.

3. MCT Oil for Weight Loss
MCT oils raise your metabolic rate and help increase your feeling of satiation when you use them in part with a healthy diet. Compared to other kinds of fats and oils, MCTs appear to have positive effects on fat burning, which can result in a reduction in weight. When used as a dietary supplement, MCTs have exhibited the ability to suppress the depositing of fat throughout the cells in the body through improved thermogenesis and fat oxidation.

MCTs, help you burn more body fat and produce more ketones, which provide you with effects that are similar to those gained from a ketogenic diet, without having to decrease the number of net carbohydrates that you consume.(..)

4. Heart Health
In 2010, The Journal of Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods published a study that suggests that MCTs can help decrease your risk of developing metabolic syndrome. Doctors include metabolic syndrome with a cluster of metabolic disorders including abdominal obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and reduced fasting glucose levels. Their ability to help decrease your odds of becoming obese reduces the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, due in part to MCT oils anti-inflammatory properties, easy digestion, satiating effects, and transformation into energy.

5. Improves Mood

Your brain mainly consists of fatty acids, making it necessary to consume a steady supply of these fatty acids through your diet for you to think clearly, feel your best, stay sharp and perform well at your job.

Feeding your brain cells isn’t the only benefit, but it also improves the health of your gut, which connects to cognitive functioning. MCTs improve the bacterial health of the gut, growth, performance, and the digestion of essential nutrients like proteins and fiber, helping to reduce symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress.(..)

6. Improves Digestion

Balancing bacteria in the gut is another great benefit of MCT oils, one that provides a positive effect on energy expenditure, digestive symptoms, and the body’s ability to better absorb the vitamins and minerals found in the foods you eat every day.

The MCTs can assist in killing a wide variety of pathogenic strains, viruses, and bacteria that are responsible for numerous digestive issues like constipation, candida, food poisoning, diarrhea, and stomach aches, among others.

7. Improves Nutrient Absorption

The healthy fats found in MCT oils are essential for the body to absorb fat-soluble nutrients, which are in many of the foods that you eat every day. To utilize the nutrients, you consume through your diet; you also have to eat enough source of healthy fat to aid in their absorption into your body. Nutrients like beta-carotene, vitamin E, vitamin A, lutein, phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium can be more easily absorbed by the body when you consume enough healthy fats with your diet.(..)

8. Antiviral and Antibacterial

The antiviral properties of MCT oils are directly related to the medium chain fatty acids that you find in the oil. Medium chain fatty acids work amazingly and are unique in that you only find them in a few places in nature.

Both bacteria and viruses have an outer coating, like skin, protecting their DNA from foreign invaders. This skin is malleable, and fluid like and is made up of a fatty substance. The rest of the organism, including its DNA, resides within the fatty, skin-like material. This fatty acid is attracted to the fatty acids found in MCT oil, allowing for easy absorption into the organism. The medium chain fatty acids that are the framework of MCT oils are much smaller than those of the organism, which works to break the pathogen’s casing apart, eventually killing the organism.(..)

9. Antifungal

The MCT oils in coconut oil have many antifungal and antimicrobial properties. The medium-chain fatty acids have shown to be effective in disrupting bacterial, viral, and fungal cell membranes, which lead to the cell’s death.

10. Enhances Immune System

Studies suggest that MCT oil kills the microorganisms that invade the body and contribute to chronic inflammation of the intestines. MCT improves the immune system, which defends your body against numerous illnesses and conditions. Because of MCT oil’s quick absorption rate, it protects against inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn’s disease, Celiac disease, and IBS. Consuming healthy fats is essential for your immune system to function properly.

11. Balances Blood Sugar Levels

When consumed regularly, MCT oils help balance blood sugar levels, the main symptom of Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes. They achieve this by
preventing fat from depositing in your cells and blocking sugars from accumulating in your muscles and energy stores.
MCT oils can assist those with Diabetes and those at risk of developing the disease by helping control obesity, optimizing digestion, and increasing metabolism.

12. Increase physical endurance
What is MCT oil? MCT oil, or medium chain triglycerides, are used by your body as fuel.
The fatty acids in MCT oil increase your energy on a cellular level. Increased cellular energy can improve your endurance by sparing the glucose in your body and increasing your body’s glycogen stores.

Increased glycogen stores last longer and help delay the fatigue felt by your body after extended activity.

13. Hormone Support
For those struggling with hormone imbalance, MCT oils may be what you need. You need to consume enough healthy fats to create and maintain the proper levels of hormones in your body. Hormones are responsible for helping your mood, increasing your metabolism, and preventing depression and other hormonal disorders. High in healthy fatty acids, MCTs contribute to balanced hormones and improve the body’s insulin sensitivity. Improved insulin sensitivity can be beneficial in maintaining a healthy weight.

14. Hair and Nail Health
The fatty acids found in MCT oils are ideal for providing a natural moisturizer for both hair and nails. Using it on your scalp can help to treat dandruff, which is essentially a fungus that results in an imbalance of fatty acid in the skin.

Getting enough fatty acids, like those found in MCT oil, in your diet can lead to having a healthier scalp.

15. Brain Health
Your brain needs a constant stream of energy to function properly. However, since it is not able to store the energy it needs, it relies on getting its energy from your blood glucose. When your blood glucose levels get low, your liver jumps into action, breaking down stored body fat to produce essential ketones.

There are two ways in which you can provide these necessary ketones that your brain needs to function. You can eat a high fat, low carbohydrate diet, or you can consume MCT oils on a daily basis. MCT oils’, medium chain fatty acids, help to raise the blood levels of the ketones so they can easily cross the blood-brain barrier, providing your brain with instant energy.

16. Lower Cholesterol
The regular use of MCT oils is linked to lower levels of cholesterol. When consumed with a low-calorie diet, studies have shown that MCT oils can reduce the levels of LDL cholesterol and increase the levels of HDL cholesterol in the body, compared to consuming other types of oils, like soybean oil.

The improvements in both cholesterol and antioxidants have been shown to help reduce the risk of heart disease over the long term.

https://lionheartagrotech.com/16-stunning-benefits-of-mct-oil/[/size]

[Humboldt]

I wish you all the best, but this stuff?

https://legionathletics.com/mct-oil

I'm seeing articles both good and bad about it, more bad.

[Easto]

This is the first I'm hearing about this stuff. Way too many things that it says it helps with to be believable.

[YeOldeStonecat]

My wife uses it in her "bullet coffee". Has used it for a few years, sorta slowed down with in more recently as she's gone full carnivore.

[Lurch]

I wish you all the best, but this stuff?

https://legionathletics.com/mct-oil

I'm seeing articles both good and bad about it, more bad.

Nonsense. Where are you looking for information? Even WebMD and USA Today websites speak well of MCT oil.

I got 361,000 results on how MCT oil improves mood, and I'm willing to bet, 9 out of 10 of them speak favorably about MCT oil.

That guy doesn't want you to buy MCT oil, so you'll buy his supplements instead. Did you miss that?
I looked at his website, and TBHWY, I don't think he deserves to be taken seriously. I had never heard of him, and I won't go to his website again, because I can list MANY famous health care people that advocate MCT oil.

Yeah, don't buy MCT oil, buy my supplements instead.

That's the difference between you and I.
I googled "how MCT oil improves mood and cognition" and you probably googled something like "MCT oil is a scam" because you don't have an optimistic attitude and I do. You don't get it how there are things that can improve cognition and do prevent and reverse neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. You'd rather sit on your butt and do nothing.

So go to his website and buy some stuff. Forget the 361,000 results I got.
Follow "Mike Mathews".
Instead of trying to absorb new information I presented, you got mad and dug up some BS about a very beneficial supplement.
With your attitude, there isn't any supplement to turn that around. Wow.

Your negative attitudes amaze me.

[Lurch]

This is the first I'm hearing about this stuff. Way too many things that it says it helps with to be believable.

You don't have to believe anything but I'll tell you, there are MANY health care people that say these same things about MCT oil, and they aren't marketing MCT oil either. So take it for what you will.

[Lurch]

I've been known to reverse some serious health issues with supplements, but hey, if you think you know more than me about natural health, I'm posting in the wrong place.

[Philip]

Hey Lurch, all good, please don't get offended by people being skeptical. I don't know much about MCT oil either, other than that it's in coconut oil, so what, interesting read.

[Debbie]

Just delete this post.

I made a mistake of posting this here.
I've been known to reverse some serious health issues with supplements, but hey, if you think you know more than me about natural health, I'm posting in the wrong place.

If you are benefitting from it, go for it. I have been mocked regarding the supplements I take for my immune system. I used to get bronchitis every year. I have done my research. I have not been sick in over 3 years as a result of taking my supplements. That is my proof.

[Lurch]

Hey Lurch, all good, please don't get offended by people being skeptical. I don't know much about MCT oil either, other than that it's in coconut oil, so what, interesting read.

Sounds good, thank you.
These oils are powerful, and are anti viral and can help people with some nasty pathogens like Covid 19.

[Lurch]

If you are benefitting from it, go for it. I have been mocked regarding the supplements I take for my immune system. I used to get bronchitis every year. I have done my research. I have not been sick in over 3 years as a result of taking my supplements. That is my proof.

That's wonderful. Glad to hear it.
If not for a whole foods diet and supplements, I'd be in rough shape.

[Lurch]

For years I've known about coconut oil reversing or improving Alzheimer's, and MCT oil is derived from coconut oil, which makes it even more powerful.

I'm now on a facebook forum called The Copper Revolution, where they have alternative views on copper nutrition. They claim copper isn't toxic at all.
People there start on 2 mg copper 3x a day, and work up to 10, then 20 and 30 mg of copper per day, with companion nutrients like zinc and vitamin C.

It's just another opinion. There are all kinds of views on copper. I've seen them, so no need to copy and paste them here.

MCT oil isn't for everybody, but for some people it can be amazing. The same goes with any supplement. If you happen to need it, the benefits are helpful.
Some things can create a detox reaction if you take too much too soon, and that's probably why they don't like MCT oil at the website he posted above, because they took too much too soon, and the MCT went into their guts and raised hell by killing off a lot of unfriendly bacteria, which gave them a headache, fatigue, nausea, etc. Then they declared that MCT oil is bad stuff. Sometimes people need to do other things when rebuilding their gut flora, and MCT oil is just too powerful of a weapon to use at that time. I feel glad and proud in a way, that I'm finally able to tolerate MCT oil. When MCT oil goes in your gut, the bad bacteria can no longer survive, so they die and the good bacteria are not affected.

I still have the same 17 ounce bottle of MCT oil I bought at Walmart about 2 years ago. It expires in Oct 2023. It used to make me get food cravings if I just took 1/4 tsp 2 or 3x a week. That's how sensitive I was to it, but I tried some again about 2 weeks ago and noticed it doesn't cause food cravings any more for some reason. It may be because I'm taking copper, or some other reason. It can be a huge help to certain people. It improved my cognition and seems to reduce my anxiety.. But it's hard to say if it's the copper or the MCT. I think it's both. MCT oil changes the gut flora. We all have bad bacteria in our GI tracts, and MCT oil removes a lot of it, which changes the gut flora in a good way. Coconut oil does too, to a lesser degree.

[Humboldt]

Nonsense.

That's the difference between you and I.

You'd rather sit on your butt and do nothing.

Instead of trying to absorb new information I presented, you got mad and dug up some BS about a very beneficial supplement.
With your attitude, there isn't any supplement to turn that around. Wow.

Your negative attitudes amaze me.

Really?

Got mad and dug up BS?

Negative attitude?

I opened with wishing you the best, then said I found positive and negative reviews and posted a single negative one to show why I was skeptical.

Instead of a conversation I got accusations.

All for whole foods, homeopathy, home remedies, etc... (Hi Debbie!)

I wasn't mocking or condescending or "mad", so yeah, "your negative attitudes amaze me" too.

Best of luck.

[Lurch]

Really?

Got mad and dug up BS?

Negative attitude?

I opened with wishing you the best, then said I found positive and negative reviews and posted a single negative one to show why I was skeptical.

Instead of a conversation I got accusations.

All for whole foods, homeopathy, home remedies, etc... (Hi Debbie!)

I wasn't mocking or condescending or "mad", so yeah, "your negative attitudes amaze me" too.

Best of luck.

I was amazed you were able to dig up dirt about it, TBHWY, given that there is so much positive info online about it.
That guy is very skeptical, claiming "charlatans are all over the place", yet seems to know little to nothing about MCT oil and lots about "scientific evidence" and has a "scientific review board" of several people I've never heard of. They don't understand the benefits of a very powerful natural medicine, or how to use it. Many things he says about MCT oil are not true.

I evidently posted something many of you had little to no knowledge of. I did it for the benefit of older people here.
Hopefully you will now learn that there are many people who will benefit from MCT oil, you will live long and well, and will not get cognitive decline in your older years.

I've learned that it's not your HDL or LDL that are too important, it's your CRR for cardiac risk ratio.
A CRR of 3.5 or under is good.

Mine was 3.35 recently, which I think means I have a 50% less chance of the average American of having cardiovascular problems.

How do you calculate cardiac risk ratio?
Your total-cholesterol-to-HDL ratio can be figured out by dividing your total cholesterol number by your HDL cholesterol number. Together, these numbers provide more information about your coronary heart disease risk than knowing only 1 of the numbers. In general: The higher the ratio, the higher the risk.

Total cholesterol divided by HDL = CRR

[Lurch]

Many people have bad bacteria in their GI tract that they're oblivious to, from taking antibiotics, from eating processed foods, sugar, HFCS, and other things.
When they take something powerful like MCT oil, all hell breaks loose, and they aren't ready for the aftermath.
So it's good to have your GI flora ducks all in line before you attempt to take MCT oil.
It helps to be well versed in colon health, fiber, and the elimination channels as well.
If not, and you take MCT oil anyway, and it causes some detox symptoms you don't want to deal with, don't blame the MCT oil, blame your own poor gut health.

[Easto]

Lurch, if you've found something that works for you then there's no way that I can say in good faith that it's ineffectual. But it does appear you're taking our remarks way too personally.

My point is more along the lines that this is the first time I'm ever hearing about MCT and I'm hearing about it on SG. In the past 20 years I can honestly say that I've never read about it, had a physician recommend it or have been told that it was something I should be looking into. I've never seen anything on the nightly news with reports that this is something to take seriously. I will admit that I don't treat my body like a temple. If anyone could benefit from a daily multi-vitamin it would be me. But when I see a post/report about some new compound that I should be taking and the list of benefits range from weight loss to hormone support I tend to view with a suspicious eye.

[Lurch]

Lurch, if you've found something that works for you then there's no way that I can say in good faith that it's ineffectual. But it does appear you're taking our remarks way too personally.

My point is more along the lines that this is the first time I'm ever hearing about MCT and I'm hearing about it on SG. In the past 20 years I can honestly say that I've never read about it, had a physician recommend it or have been told that it was something I should be looking into. I've never seen anything on the nightly news with reports that this is something to take seriously. I will admit that I don't treat my body like a temple. If anyone could benefit from a daily multi-vitamin it would be me. But when I see a post/report about some new compound that I should be taking and the list of benefits range from weight loss to hormone support I tend to view with a suspicious eye.

I hear you on that. I shouldn't assume most people here are diet fanatics like I've been for 40 years.
I had to change my diet drastically in the early 80s because I had big problems with the foods I had been eating, like sugar, bread, ice cream, soda, beer, etc.
For many years I could only tolerate foods like meat, fish, eggs, yogurt, nuts, seeds, and certain vegetables (which is just about all I eat now, plus fruit and beans). It was either eat that or starve, or eat something that made me feel unwell.
I was married in the 70s to a lovely, loving wife, and I let her slip away from me in 1977. She's wayyyy smarter than me. Her sister was valedictorian of her class of 1969 and their aunt, their dad's sister was valedictorian in the class in 1949 at the same high school. Many of their family were really smart. It took me 5 years to do high school with ADHD. Mercury from 18 fillings made me depressed and confused, and I decided to go my own way, which I realized a year or two later was a huge mistake. I never found love again after that, and I don't even think I deserve it for the way I broke off with my wife. She remarried and had a daughter. If I told you how I did it, you might all dislike me. I bought her an audio system after we broke up (which she refused to accept - she wanted me, not an audio system), and the guy at Radio Shack told me I was a "nice guy" for doing that, but I really wasn't. She gave to me and never asked for a thing in return, besides me being in her life, and then one morning about 6:45 am after she made me breakfast, before I went to work, I dropped the bomb on her and told her we were going to spilt up. That was in early January 1977, in the dead of winter.

So I keep eating healthy foods, hoping I will someday be reunited with her, or hoping for something new to come into my life, not religion.
In the meantime, I have 3 house cats that love me.

Some supplements may help a little, some a lot, but none of them can turn back time.
You have to try them on and see how they make you feel for a few weeks.
Taking control of your gut flora can be life changing.