For the past few years, there’s been a craze over coconut oil, with many dubbing it the ultimate multi-tasker and natural beauty staple. You can use it for everything from a makeup remover, moisturizer, shaving balm, to even cooking with it as a healthy alternative to butter and other cooking oils.
However, The Dietary Fats and Cardiovascular Disease advisory of the American Heart Association found that coconut oil increases LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol), explaining that 82 percent of its composition is saturated fats. In comparison, it’s 19 percent more saturated fats than butter and 32 percent more than pork lard.
Marie-Pierre St-Onge, associate professor of nutritional medicine at Cornell University Medical School, shared her thoughts on why intaking coconut oil in particular isn’t good for you.
“The reason coconut oil is so popular for weight loss is partly due to my research on medium chain triglycerides,” she told TIME. “Coconut oil has a higher proportion of medium-chain triglycerides than most other fats or oils, and my research showed eating medium-chain triglycerides may increase the rate of metabolism more than eating long-chain triglycerides.”
Nevertheless, St-Onge’s research actually turns out to be a little misleading, as it’s been reported that the coconut oil she used was filled 100 percent medium-chain triglycerides, or MCT. In comparison, the coconut oil most people buy from the grocery story typically only contains 13 to 15 percent MCT.
The verdict? We’re definitely still using coconut oil in our daily beauty routine, but we’ll skip out on it in the kitchen.
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