What are the health benefits of coconut oil on cholesterol and why would you want to include this oil in your diet?

Virgin coconut oil is an excellent source of medium chain triglycerides and it also contains the building blocks for a powerful anti-microbial called lauric acid.

For hundreds of years, the inhabitants of Polynesian islands included coconut oil in their daily diet and they did not suffer any ill effects from it. Coconut oil was an important dietary fat that may have played a role in reducing their risk for heart disease and cancer.

Mention coconut oil and the first thing most people think of is 'dangerous fat'. However, if you look at the history of coconut oil, you'll discover how a single research study came to the unwarranted conclusion that all saturated fats are unhealthy.

The fact is virgin coconut oil may be one of the healthiest saturated fats you can have in your diet. It doesn't contain any dangerous hydrogenated or trans-fatty acids and research now shows this healthy oil may offer the following health benefits:

• Balance your cholesterol levels.
• Reduce your risk of heart disease.
• May offer anti-oxidant protection.

Here you'll find the latest research on the health benefits of coconut oil on cholesterol and your heart.

Remember that when we talk about coconut oil we're referring to the healthy, natural virgin coconut oil and not the highly processed, regular coconut oil.

Health Benefits of Coconut Oil on Heart and Cholesterol

Did you know that eating coconut oil may result in lower rates of heart disease?

Scientists discovered coconut oil is the chief source of energy for many inhabitants of the Pukapuka and Tokelau Islands. Historically, these tropical islanders ate diets that were high in saturated fats, but low in cholesterol and sugar.

When researchers analyzed fat biopsies from these islanders, they found high levels of lauric acid (the building block for a potent anti-microbial called Monolaurin). There were low rates of heart disease and the islanders felt no harmful effects from eating a diet high in saturated fats.

Surprisingly, when some of these islanders migrated to New Zealand and stopped eating coconut oil, their total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol increased and their HDL cholesterol decreased.

Researchers believed these islanders' diet of coconut oil may have played a role in their low rates of heart disease.

Which is Better for Your Heart - Coconut Oil or Corn Oil?

These health benefits of coconut oil are supported by another study from Sri Lanka.

When researchers replaced coconut oil with corn oil in the diet of a group of Sri Lankan males, their total serum cholesterol levels decreased by 18.7% and LDL cholesterol (the unhealthy cholesterol) decreased by 23.8%.

At first glance this seems great - lowering your total cholesterol and LDL levels would bring a smile to any doctors' face.

However, the one glaring problem with this study was the corn oil also caused a drop of 41.4% in their HDL cholesterol (the healthy cholesterol) putting their HDL levels below the recommended lower limit and increasing their LDL/HDL ratio by 30% - not something your cardiologist likes to see. So it appears the coconut oil was superior to corn oil for maintaining healthier HDL/LDL ratios.

Eating Coconut Oil Benefits Healthy HDL Cholesterol

India - A study from the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Kerala found virgin coconut oil reduced total cholesterol, triglycerides, phospholipids, and LDL cholesterol.

Researchers learned another benefit of coconut oil is it increased healthy HDL cholesterol in serum and tissues. Researchers believe this positive effect is due to the biologically active polyphenols found in virgin coconut oil.

Polyphenols act as antioxidants. They protect your cells and body chemicals against damage caused by free radicals. Green tea is another excellent source of polyphenols.

Health Benefits of Coconut Oil on High Cholesterol

Germany - So what happens when we give virgin coconut oil to people with already high cholesterol levels? A study in the European Review of Nutrition and Dietetics offers some interesting results on this topic.

It turns out that eating coconut oil resulted in either no change or a decrease of 26% in cholesterol levels. When researchers mixed virgin coconut oil with 5% olive oil and 5% sunflower oil, they saw further decreases in cholesterol levels.

Furthermore, researchers learned when virgin coconut oil is fed with other fats, such as linolenic acid, it didn't cause atherosclerosis or increase the risk for heart disease.

A study of 64 healthy volunteers on a diet of coconut oil found no changes in total serum cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol from baseline values.

This research indicates that when a person with high cholesterol adds virgin coconut oil to their diet, they may see a decrease in total serum cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, whereas people with low cholesterol may experience an increase of serum total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and especially, HDL cholesterol.

In other words, one of the health benefits of coconut oil is it may 'normalize' out-of-range cholesterol levels in the body. Including this healthy oil in one's diet may actually improve blood lipid levels and may help reduce the risk for heart disease and stroke.

Please go to Page 2 of Health Benefits of Coconut Oil and learn this healthy oil may reduce your risk of cancer and help fight infectious diseases.

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