Quite frankly, it seems a bit counter-intuitive that fatty acids could actually help weight loss. However, it is, in fact,, coconut oil encourages loss of body fat and I’m going to tell you how. Let’s start by going over some of the basics that you likely learned in University-level biochemistry, if you took it, but may have have forgotten. Oils and fats are composed of fatty acids. There are really two different ways to define fats. The first method is based on saturation, and is probably the one, if any, you are most familiar with. Most of you would likely be acquainted with saturated or unsaturated fats and oils. The second method to characterize a fatty acid is based on size (length) of the fatty acid. There are SCFA (short chain fatty acids), medium chain fatty acids (MCFA), and long chain fatty acids (LCFA). SCFA (short chain fatty acids) contain fewer than six carbon atoms, medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) have between 6 to 12, and long chain fatty acids (LCFA) have fourteen or more carbon atoms. The reason lipids are classified based on the length of their carbon tail is because the size of the carbon chain affects the physical and chemical properties of the fatty acid.

Most of the oils, fats, lipids that you eat come from either plants or animals, all of which are composed of long chain fatty acids (LCFA). In fact, approximately ninety-eight percent of the dietary oils that humans ingest consists of LCFA. The oil taken from coconuts is quite unique because it is mostly composed of MCFA (medium chain fatty acids), with lauric acid constituting approximately 47% of coconut oil. Here is where it gets important: medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) are metabolized quite differently from LCFA (long chain fatty acids). First, I’ll explain how most dietary fats consisting of long chain fatty acids are digested and metabolized. Then I’ll inform you how MCFA (medium chain fatty acids contained within coconut oil are metabolized and digested, pointing out the significance and the major differences.

Long chain fatty acids (LCFA) found in animal and plant fats are not easily taken up by the GI tract and need bile salts and pancreatic enzymes to to metabolize them so that they can be taken up by the intestine. Next, the LCFA (long chain fatty acids) are packaged into chylomicrons, which are proteins called lipoproteins that transport lipids throughout the body. The lipoproteins are transported throughout the lymphatic system then circulate through the bloodstream, where they deliver lipid components to a number of tissues, including cardiac, skeletal tissue, and adipose. After the lipoproteins have uploaded their oil components to these tissues, the left over lipoproteins are transported to the liver, where they are brought into the mitochondria of liver tissues, using the carnitine palmitoyl transferase (CPT) machinery, and are finally oxidized for energy uses (Life Sciences 62 (14): 1203-1215). This is how all unsaturated fat, cholesterol, and saturated fatty acids is made up of long chain fatty acids (all of your dietary fat) is transported throughout the body.

In contrast, MCFA (medium chain fatty acids) found in coconut oil are taken up by the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract) with ease, they do not need any pancreatic enzymes to degrade them, which means less work for your pancreas. Next, MCFA (medium chain fatty acids) are transported to the portal blood stream, directly to the liver, where they go directly into mitochondria without the use of the carnitine palmitoyl transferase, and are immediately oxidized for energy. Medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) from coconut oil do not get packaged into lipoproteins, and do not get transported to a variety of tissues and are not stored as body fat, they go directly to the liver and are metabolized for energy (Life Sciences 62 (14): 1203-1215). The bottom line is that medium chain fatty acids from coconut oil produces energy to the exclusion of all else, whereas, long chain fatty acids found in all other dietary fats produce some energy, but mostly body fat.

Because the medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) found in coconut oils are easily and rapidly transported into the mitochondria, unlike LCFA (long chain fatty acids), they are immediately used for the production of energy, resulting in a surge of energy and thermogenesis, which, subsequently, increases metabolism. Several animal studies and clinical studies have proven that ingestion of coconut oil increases the speed of the metabolism and decreases bodyfat both in studies done on animals, and humans. Rats that were fed a diet consisting of medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) had less subcutaneous fat, a visible reduction in overall body adipose tissue, increased metabolism and increased thermogenesis (Lipids 22 (6): 442-444). The burst of energy that is produced by medium chain fatty acids is also critical for athletic endurance. Researchers tested the physical endurance of mice that were fed medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) vs. those fed a diet consisting primarily in long chain fatty acids for 6 weeks. The mice were subjected to a swimming endurance test, where they had to swim, every other day. The mice that were fed medium chain fatty acids continually performed better than the rest and demonstrated a much higher level of physical endurance (Journal of Nutrition 125 (3):531-9). This research performed in mice provide us with demonstrable evidence that medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) increase metabolism and promote the reduction in body fat while providing a surge of energy that increases physical endurance, in a manner that doesn’t make you fat. Yes, this surge in energy means you feel less lethargic, and can help you feel less tired.

A ton of studies have demonstrated that coconut oil (as stated earlier, a MCFA) clearly demonstrates an effect in women and men very analogous to what has been shown in other studies involving animal models: it increases metabolism and decreases overall body fat. For example, healthy men and women were administered either medium chains fats or long chain fats in addition to a diet similar in protein, carbohydrate, and fat content for 12 weeks. Throughout the 12 weeks, individuals that took medium chain fatty acids had significantly less body weight and, specifically, body fat (The Journal of Nutrition 131 (11): 2853-2859). Studies have also shown that ingestion of MCFA (medium chain fatty acids) also increase the oxidation of LCFA (long chain fatty acids) that are already in your body, tucked away in your lovehandles (International Journal of Obesity and Related Metabolic Disorders: Journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity 24 (9): 1158-1166). Similar to the studies done in animals, medium chain fatty acids also increase production of energy by increasing thermogenesis, which speeds up metabolism in humans as well (Metabolism: Clinical and Experimental 38 (7): 641-648). In another study, people with high levels of circulating triglycerides were given medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) for eight weeks. In addition to decreasing body fat, their triglyceride levels were lowered by 14.5% (European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 63 (7): 879-886).

So just a quick refresher for those of you that lost focus: Coconut oil, a source of medium chain fatty acids, is metabolized by a altogether different process than long chain fatty acids altogether, this process expedites its use as energy instead of storing it away as adipose tissue. Because the body has to preferentially burn the fat off, it ramps up the metabolism by increasing thermogenesis. This ramping up of the metabolism then proceeds to not only burn off the medium chain fatty acids, but long chain fatty acids pre-existing the consumption of the medium chain fatty acids as well as well. These effects have been demonstrated both in animal studies, and more importantly, human studies as well.

To reap the medium chain fatty acids benefits you simply need to change the type of oil you ordinarily cook with to coconut oil.

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