Coconut oil - studies showing no benefit

[Bongleur]

Says that the changes in LCL-C and HDL-C are not beneficial. Also that "lauric acid is more similar to how long-chain saturated fatty acids are handled than MCFA."

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2764429

April 8, 2020
Coconut Oil’s Health Halo a Mirage, Clinical Trials Suggest
Jennifer Abbasi
JAMA. Published online April 8, 2020. doi:10.1001/jama.2020.5186

 

[Amethyst]

Well, that's a shock! What will they come up with next - acai berries don't cure cancer? Carbohydrates are not poison, but necessary nutrients? Gluten is actually safe?

 

[Winemaker]

Everything in moderation.

 

[mystang52]

Well, that's a shock! What will they come up with next - acai berries don't cure cancer? Carbohydrates are not poison, but necessary nutrients? Gluten is actually safe?

Everything in moderation.

Years ago I stopped tracking what miracle diets and supplements would supposedly do the trick for whatever ailment or condition might afflict someone. Diet and exercise, as in "everything in moderation," remains true for most people (I can understand why diabetics, for example, would have to be more stringent). My body, and my diet, are far from perfect but I've been in reasonably good shape for 20+ years. It took the first 45 for me to figure out how to do it.

 

[Markola]

Years ago I stopped tracking what miracle diets and supplements would supposedly do the trick for whatever ailment or condition might afflict someone. Diet and exercise, as in "everything in moderation," remains true for most people (I can understand why diabetics, for example, would have to be more stringent). My body, and my diet, are far from perfect but I've been in reasonably good shape for 20+ years. It took the first 45 for me to figure out how to do it.

Nutrition science is probably the least credible of the sciences, probably because every-body is so different. Some things strongly affect one person and do not bother the person standing next to him/her, e.g gluten, soy, dairy, red meat, shellfish, fat, carbs, etc. Our industrial society wants to treat us like automobiles or computers. Change a bit of code here or there and the entire human race benefits. And our well intentioned moralism wants to spread the word so that everyone else does what works for us. Combine that mix with powerful marketing and what do we get? Cure-all fads. One week our global problem is too much fat, the next it’s too many carbohydrates, the next it’s not enough anti-oxidants, after that, we’re all dying of gluten, no one is getting enough vitamin D and/or C, red wine is good/bad/indifferent for you, lately it’s “inflammation”, whatever that is. I love Michael Pollan but he’s decided to go after coffee. Drives me crazy.

 

[davebarnes]

“Chocolate (dark chocolate, of course!!), as many of you know, is one of the four basic food groups, along with pizza, bacon, and beer.”
You will notice that coconut oil is not on this list.

 

[Sittinginthesun]

I'll take olive oil over coconut oil any day. I did use some coconut oil to caramelize onions for a curry yesterday but only to try to use up a small jar that is nearing its best before date.

 

[audreyh1]

Studies that use LDL-C as the marker for heart disease risk aren’t useful, IMO.

I also prefer olive oil.

 

[MichaelB]

What happens if we put some lime in the coconut?

 

[braumeister]

From the opening paragraph of the cited article:

coconut oil increases low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C)—the “bad” kind that ups cardiovascular disease risk

A concept that has been (IMHO) completely outmoded for many years, although it's still the mainstream view.

 

[BoodaGazelle]

Amethyst. Your witty reply reminded me of two things: 1) the book ¨The Experts Speak¨and 2) the Woody Allen movie Sleeper, where in the futures, the doctors are all smoking and tell him that they have health benefits.

 

[CaptTom]

Well, that's a shock! What will they come up with next - acai berries don't cure cancer? Carbohydrates are not poison, but necessary nutrients? Gluten is actually safe?

The anti-gluten movement may be losing steam. I can't buy gluten anywhere. Not on Amazon, not in any store. Even Bob's Red Mill web site says "out of stock." I'm running low, and can only make enough pizza dough for a few more pizza nights. There's really no point in making it, if I can't toss it in the air to stretch it! Maybe I'll find some "bread machine flour," which is really just a socially acceptable name for high-gluten flour.

 

[euro]

From the opening paragraph of the cited article:


A concept that has been (IMHO) completely outmoded for many years, although it's still the mainstream view.

Sad, but very true!

 

[copyright1997reloaded]

I'm running low, and can only make enough pizza dough for a few more pizza nights.

Not as good as good old fashioned wheat gluten, but you could try using xanthan gum or guar gum.

 

[Rianne]

I don't eat coconut oil, I put it on my skin.

 

[MRG]

Been cutting saturated fats and coconut oil is mostly sat fat. I don't use much of it other than for homemade edibles. That's only 20 grams in one bar so its not much over a week.

I'm using avocado oil for cooking given its over 500° smoke point is great for searing meat. A little olive oil is great for salads...

 

[Gumby]

I don't eat coconut oil, I put it on my skin.

I put it in my soap (25% coconut oil, 25% palm oil and 50% olive oil)

 

[Rianne]

I put it in my soap (25% coconut oil, 25% palm oil and 50% olive oil)

Sounds good, my Dr. highly recommends CC oil. Palm oil gives me pause because of environmental issues. I wish palm trees took up less land.

 

[RobbieB]

Coconut oil is good for popping corn.

 

[audreyh1]

Coconut oil is good for popping corn.

I would definitely prefer the flavor over palm oil, but popcorn is off limits for me.

 

[Amethyst]

There are always exceptions; if we happen to be one, we generally have to take extra care. Celiacs and gluten; diabetics and carbohydrates; the list goes on. I get annoyed when such exceptions are extrapolated to, well, everybody, and then take on the glow of a religious revelation.

The religious fervor around coconut oil was especially offensive to me because it was clearly targeted at the desperate and not-too-bright. A claim that I saw more than once was "My husband's Alzheimers got better after I started putting a teaspoon of coconut oil in his oatmeal every day." What a horrible thing (the nonsensical claim) to do to a suffering wife, just to get a bit of her money away from her.

Right this very minute, Vitamin C has become scarce (not that I ever took it, but I noticed the empty shelves and then looked it up) because someone, somewhere said it might be effective against COVID-19. I see that the earliest I could get Vit C on Amazon is May.

Years ago I stopped tracking what miracle diets and supplements would supposedly do the trick for whatever ailment or condition might afflict someone. Diet and exercise, as in "everything in moderation," remains true for most people (I can understand why diabetics, for example, would have to be more stringent).

 

[CaptTom]

There are always exceptions; if we happen to be one, we generally have to take extra care. Celiacs and gluten; diabetics and carbohydrates; the list goes on. I get annoyed when such exceptions are extrapolated to, well, everybody, and then take on the glow of a religious revelation.

As long as it's a harmless affectation, like avoiding gluten, I don't really care. It starts to get weird when they become, as you say, religious about it.

But when it impacts the decision-making process around medical care, or even general health, that's another story. It's frustrating to watch loved ones die (as I have) because they chose to believe some lunatic fringe pseudo-medicinal BS instead of listening to real doctors.

 

[braumeister]

As long as it's a harmless affectation, like avoiding gluten, I don't really care. It starts to get weird when they become, as you say, religious about it.

But when it impacts the decision-making process around medical care, or even general health, that's another story. It's frustrating to watch loved ones die (as I have) because they chose to believe some lunatic fringe pseudo-medicinal BS instead of listening to real doctors.

Well put.
Steve Jobs should be the poster child for this. Practically unlimited wealth and access to the world's best doctors, yet he thought he knew better. Until he realized too late that he didn't.

 

[Amethyst]

I'd be tempted to try most anything if I were desperately ill. But not to the exclusion of tested medical treatments (if there are any).

Remember the story "Death Be Not Proud"? We had to read it in school; for months afterward I would feel my scalp to be sure no lump was forming! The boy had an incurable brain tumor. The thing that stands out for me after many decades was the section where his well-educated, wealthy, desperate parents tried unconventional treatments for him, including, as I recall, a vegetarian diet. Even at age 11, I could see myself in their place, ready to try anything if it offered the slightest chance.

But they only did this after all the regular treatments had been tried, and were probably doing more harm than good.

Well put.
Steve Jobs should be the poster child for this. Practically unlimited wealth and access to the world's best doctors, yet he thought he knew better. Until he realized too late that he didn't.

 

[Tekward]

What happens if we put some lime in the coconut?

OK, I laughed.