A Look at the Connection Between Coconut and Cholesterol

If you are fond of Thai food then you may also be worried about the effects of coconut and cholesterol. This is because it is widely believed that coconut milk is rich in cholesterol. There is however no clear indication whether coconut is indeed healthy or even unhealthy.

Those who study and know nutrition caution us against the misinformation that is being spread about coconut and cholesterol. In this regard, ordinary persons as well as medical fraternities and also the media are all clueless about the truth of the matter. A lot of the disinformation being spread can be ascribed to the motives of the American oil industry that frowns on the consumption of tropical oils such as coconut oil.

Thais tend to consume plenty of coconut oil in large amounts but when these people underwent tests to find out the effect of coconut oil on their cholesterol levels, no alarming facts came to light. The reason why nothing was found was because almost fifty percent of fatty acids contained in coconut fat are nothing but lauric acid which is something that is also present in the milk from mothers.

Lauric acid provides a number of health benefits and one such benefit is that it helps to transform itself into an antiviral, antibacterial, antiprotozoal monoglyceride called monolaurin that will normally easily destroy viruses such as those that cause influenza, HIV and herpes.

Many studies are being conducted to establish the effects of coconut consumption on cholesterol levels. Not even one study has been able to find anything seriously wrong with those who consume coconut oil in significant amounts. On the contrary, studies have shown that nothing goes wrong with the serum cholesterol levels even after consuming a lot of coconut oil.

Many people have the wrong idea about coconut and cholesterol. They actually believe that coconut is not good because it is a saturated fat that is bad for their health. Though it is indeed a saturated fat, it must be remembered that not all saturated fats are bad and so in the case of coconut oil, the saturated fat from it is in fact loaded with good cholesterol.

More than two thirds of the coconut oil fat is nothing worse than medium chain fatty acids. These medium chain fatty acids can easily be assimilated in the body and so are not dangerous.

In fact, eating coconut oil offers you a chance to enjoy many health benefits. This is because of its high amount of lauric acid content which among other things helps to ward off heart diseases.