How Does Coconut oil Affect Lower Cholesterol?

coconut oil for cholesterol

Confusion abounds when the question arises whether coconut oil is good for cholesterol. The latest AHA (American Heart Association) review tells that coconut oil raises blood cholesterol, both the HDL and the LDL kind. Since coconut oil is rich in saturated fat, it increases cholesterol.

One tablespoon of coconut oil has almost 12 grams of saturated fat. We get lauric acid and myristic acids within the saturated fat of the coconut oil. According to Natalie Digate Muth, lauric acid, one form of saturated fat, increases HDL cholesterol, the ‘good’ cholesterol. HDL cholesterol helps to reduce the risk of heart diseases.

A study made by “Clinical Biochemistry” in 2004 reveals that coconut oil decreases LDL, the ‘bad’ cholesterol in rats. This research can be found at (www.livestrong.com/article/317502-will-coconut-oil-increase-my-bad-cholesterol/). Thus, coconut is good for you as well as your cholesterol.

What Does Coconut oil do to Cholesterol?

90% of the fatty acids in coconut oil are in saturated form. These saturated fats are harmless to our body. Coconut oil contains medium chain fatty acids, which are metabolized differently. This oil increases blood cholesterol levels. How? Coconut oil contains the saturated fats, which enhance good HDL cholesterol in your body and convert bad LDL cholesterol to a harmless form. Compared to soybeans oil, coconut oil reduces LDL cholesterol and increases HDL cholesterol. This, in turn, helps to reduce heart diseases.

What Type of Cholesterol is in Coconut oil?

Naturally, coconut oil is free from cholesterol. The saturated fats in coconut oil enhance good HDL (high density lipoprotein) and decrease LDL (low density lipoprotein) cholesterol levels in blood. On the other hand, coconut oil contains medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) like myristic acid, lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid.

What is The Percentage of Cholesterol in Coconut oil?

We know that coconut oil itself has no cholesterol. The percentage of saturated fatty acids in coconut oil is 82.5%. Coconut oil contains the following fatty acids-

  • Lauric acid- 48%
  • Myristic acid- 16%
  • Capric acid- 5%
  • Caprylic acid- 7%
  • Palmitic acid- 10%
  • Decanoic acid- 8%

Is Coconut oil Good for Cholesterol?

Yes, coconut oil is really good for cholesterol. We know, cholesterol is of two types- good HDL and bad LDL cholesterol. Coconut oil raises the level of good HDL cholesterol and lowers the level of bad LDL cholesterol in blood. HDL cholesterol reduces the risk of heart disease. Thus, we may say that intake of coconut oil reduces the heart disease.

How to use Coconut oil to Lower Cholesterol?

In fact, coconut oil raises cholesterol while coconut water reduces cholesterol level in blood. Coconut oil is consumed with vegetables that help to protect heart.

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup of coconut water
  • 2 tbsp of coconut oil
  • Vegetables like beans, cabbage, tomato, capsicum, carrot, beat etc.
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • ½ tbsp raw honey
  • ½ tbsp vinegar

Preparation time: 20 minutes.

Procedure:

  • Add vinegar to vegetables and mix it.
  • Boil vegetables with coconut water
  • Fry boiled vegetables in coconut oil
  • Add a little amount of salt
  • Cook it
  • Add lemon juice to it
  • Put off the gas oven
  • Add honey to it
  • The recipe is ready to eat.

How it works: As this food contains both coconut oil and coconut water, it is a healthy dish which will help to lower bad cholesterol and raise good cholesterol.

Repetitions: twice a week.

Best time to eat: during breakfast.

Thus we may conclude that coconut oil is beneficial to our body as well as cholesterol. Whether over consumption of coconut oil is good or bad for our health is yet to be proved. However, keep in mind; its effects depend on the type of food we consume with coconut oil. Digestive system varies from person to person, depends on how much meal a person consumes per day. Therefore, listen to your body, understand your body’s needs and consume coconut oil as per your body’s needs. Then, no doubt, coconut oil will be beneficial to your cholesterol.

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