Healthy Fats vs Unhealthy Fats

Do You Know Your Fats?!

Most people will tell you that the healthy fats are Olive Oil, Canola Oil, Safflower Oil. Have you considered Butter and Coconut Oil for healthy fats?

Coconut Oil has a treasure trove of good for you nutrients, from medium chain fatty acids which improve the symptoms of Alzheimer's to the hight level of antioxidants that can reduce the inflammation associated with arthritis. It also has lauric acid that is only found in mother's milk, it gives you great skin, hair and nails.

The American Heart Association said in a report that it was not the health food that it is said to be. What the report said was that coconut oil is unhealthy, because it contains saturated fat and will raise cholesterol levels. There are many debates going on around saturated fat, cholesterol and heart disease.

Many studies have taken place over the years. In recent years there have been studies, reviews, and clinical trials that have shown there is not a clear link between saturated fat intake and heart disease and cardiovascular death. The studies focused on saturated fats, including coconut oil, to show that it increases LDL cholesterol, but failed to mention that there are two types of LDL particles. Small dense particles and large fluffy particles. The small ones are implicated in cardiovascular disease, while the larger ones are not. Sugar affects the small dense LDL particles! Imagine that!! And saturated fat increases HDL cholesterol and is considered the good cholesterol. One way I have heard to remember it is L=lousy, H=happy!

I will do another blog on cholesterol another day! On to the benifits of coconut oil!

The saturated fat in coconut oil are medium chain fatty acids as I said before. They are easily absorbed and metabolized by the liver and turned into energy and not stored as fat. Coconut oil increases HDL (Happy) cholesterol the good for you cholesterol, reduces body weight, glucose and insulin levels.

Also with Lauric acid, the antimicrobial properties it has converts to monolaurin which is a significant anitviral, antifungal, and antimicrobial properties.

Coconut oil is also shown to help preserve insulin sensitivity in people with type 2 diabetes. 

Coconut oil is able to cross the blood brain barrier and provides an alternative fuel source (besides sugar) for brain cells. Great News for Alzheimers disease which is type 3 diabetes.

Olive Oil.