5 – Coconut oil for dementia?
Is there any evidence for coconut oil and dementia?
To date, the strongest evidence for the potential use of coconut oil for treating dementia is anecdotal. When Dr Mary Newport’s husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, she researched the condition and came to the understanding that it was a kind of diabetes of the brain. According to Dr Newport, the brain’s ability to utilize glucose starts to go before the plaques and tangles of neurons characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease become apparent.
The brain’s primary source of energy is glucose, and brain cells have difficulty metabolizing glucose in Alzheimer’s disease. The ketones produced when coconut oil is digested could provide an alternative fuel source for nourishing the brain.1✅ JOURNAL REFERENCE
DOI: 10.1186/1471-2202-9-S2-S16 Ketones are produced when fat is converted into energy.
Dr Newport added a little more than two tablespoons of coconut oil to her husband’s oatmeal for breakfast every day. After 37 days, his gait had improved, he showed more facial animation, and there was an improvement in a cognitive test in which the individual draws a clock face.2✅ JOURNAL REFERENCE
PMID: 25301680
Dr Newport’s study is supported by another study that assessed the cognitive impact of coconut oil enriched Mediterranean diet in which 44 Alzheimer’s disease patients received either a coconut oil enriched Mediterranean diet daily or a placebo diet for 21 days. The individuals receiving the coconut oil experienced significant improvements in certain cognitive functions.3✅ JOURNAL REFERENCE
DOI: 10.3233/JAD-180184
Image Source: Dr Axe
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