Fat is still getting a lot of attention on both sides of the aisle. Whether you’re an advocate for or against, it’s hard to argue the necessity of fat in the diet to a degree.
The low-carb community often results in a high fat diet. The trick is eating the right ones in the right amounts. That will look different for everyone, but we want to talk about a specific source at the moment.
For some reason, coconut fat has had a few harsh critics recently. However, the vast majority of this criticism has come with weak evidence to support an argument. On the flip side, it is not difficult to find scientific evidence that supports coconut oil as being a truly healthy source of fat. Regardless, there has to be a reason it’s so good for you. One of the arguments for that points to what is called Medium Chain Triglycerides (MCT).
MCT’s are “easily absorbed and metabolized by the liver, and can be converted to ketones” which means it goes to you brain easily, to be used as energy. There are different types of MCT’s and some are better than others.
All coconut oil has MCT’s. There is a process of basically diluting coconut oil to retrieve a higher MCT count which results in what’s called MCT oil. It’s essentially taking out the less-good MCT’s and leaving the better ones. Dave Asprey, renown for Bulletproof Coffee (you know, the buttered coffee everyone’s going nuts over) has taken it even a step further and condensed the oil into a higher “good” MCT count which he calls Brain Octane. You can read more about this process here if you like to get more into the science of it.
The intention behind pointing this out is to clarify some possible confusion about a high fat diet. High fat doesn’t just mean you eat any and all fat within reach. The MCT oil versus plain coconut oil serves as a great example as to why there is still a need to be specific. So when you hear of scientific studies that vaguely claim one way or the other, pay attention to the details. A high-fat diet could possibly be bad for you – if you’re eating the wrong fats in the wrong amounts. We’ll talk more in depth about specific fats later, what’s good and what’s not, and most importantly, why. The more informed you are, the better decisions you can make, and the better health you can have!
Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more on healthy fats.