In 2012, news about coconut oil benefiting those with Alzheimer’s disease started making it into mainstream media.
That’s not terribly surprising, as big news about the failure of drugs to treat Alzheimer’s also made headlines about the same time.
Drug companies Medivation and Pfizer admitted the new drug they were developing for Alzheimer’s, dimebon, not only did not help patients in trials, but made patients worse! The expensive drug had already reached phase III trials.
(See story on ABC News)
So as the development of this drug has now been abandoned, and so many other potential drugs have also failed, many have begun to look at the role of diet in Alzheimer’s and focus on prevention.
**This may also be helpful for those on Levothyroxine (Synthroid) for hypothyroidism (which has an FDA black box warning). Studies show subsequent development of dementia of the Alzheimer type with synthetic Thyroid medication use.
Studies That Confirm Coconut Oil’s Value
These are 2 peer-reviewed, published studies that confirm extra-virgin coconut oil helps reduce aging and neurodegeneration. (1,2)
Refined coconut oil will not work the same as certain key components are missing.
Also, in a 2004 study published in the Journal of Neurobiology of Aging, they found that the Medium Chain Fatty Acids (MCFA’s) found in extra-virgin coconut oil improved the memory problems in their older subjects. Across all the patients there was a marked improvement in their recall ability after taking this fatty acid. As the MCFA’s are absorbed easily in the body and can be accessed in the brain without the use of insulin, they are able to fuel brain cells more efficiently. (3)
There is currently another trial in the U.S. looking at the effects of extra-virgin coconut oil on Alzheimer’s Disease. It was started at the University of Florida’s Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute. They have a study currently in progress where they have enrolled 65 individuals with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s to measure the effects of coconut oil, versus a placebo, on the disease.
According to researchers, extra-virgin coconut oil is a source of food that the body can easily convert into ketones. Canadian researcher, Stephen Cunnane studies brain metabolism at Universite de Sherbrooke. His question: How do you revive aging or diseased brain cells in the elderly and those with Alzheimer’s? Using PET scans, he found that ketones are indeed an alternative brain fuel.
To learn more about the ketogenic diet, insulin resistance, extra-virgin coconut oil, and treating Alzheimer’s disease, watch this very informative round table discussion with 5 medical doctors.
People all across America and around the world are not waiting for the results of research trials, however. Many people with Alzheimer’s disease are already seeing a moderate to huge improvement, and in some cases a prolonged reversal, of the disease after starting with extra-virgin coconut oil.
I don’t believe coconut oil is a total cure-all or permanent fix, but it can and does in many cases, help give a better life to a loved one and make life easier to manage for caregivers.
Exciting & Hopeful Alzheimer’s Testimonies
But Dr. Mary Newport’s efforts to get the medical community to take notice and conduct trials was met with not simply a lack of interest, but even some hostility, as she tried to present her case study at the annual conference of the Alzheimer’s Association in 2007. Watch this persistent doctor as she continues to work in behalf of her husband and others.
She has nothing to gain and is selling nothing:
1.) One of the most widely published reports recently was from neonatologist Dr. Mary Newport as reported by the St. Petersburg Times. Dr. Newport’s own husband had been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s, and she was watching her husband deteriorate rapidly. After using drugs that slowed down the effects of Alzheimer’s, she looked into clinical drug trials and found one based on MCTs (medium chain triglycerides) that not only slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s, but offered improvement. Not being able to get her husband into one of these trials, she began to give him extra-virgin coconut oil (because of their high level of MCTs), and saw improvement in his condition within the first several days, “lifting the fog.” By the fifth day, there was a tremendous improvement even being noticed by his doctors during testing.
“He would face the day bubbly, more like his old self,” his wife said. More than five months later, his tremors subsided, the visual disturbances that prevented him from reading disappeared, and he became more social and interested in those around him.
You can read Dr. Newport’s entire case study here and her book, Alzheimer’s Disease: What If There Was a Cure? The Story of Ketones.
How Much Coconut Oil Do I Take?
Start small with just a teaspoon twice a day and work up. My husband and I gradually got up to 3 TBSP a day. I personally love my coconut oil slathered on hot toast like butter with a little honey, in my oatmeal, or as a hidden addition to smoothies but there are many ways to use coconut oil in cooking and baking. (See the end of this post)
Once you have it in your cabinet, then go wild – let loose and experiment! Use extra-virgin coconut oil as a replacement for all processed cooking oils, including margarine, butter (yes, even in cakes and cookies!) and vegetable oil.
If you decide to add this super-food to your diet to promote brain health and prevent dementia, I have even shared a post for some of our favorite extra-virgin coconut oil-based recipes.
What Kind of Coconut Oil?
For best results, experts suggest organic, cold-pressed, non-hydrogenated, extra-virgin coconut oil. Coconut oil is a heart-healthy oil that is free of cholesterol and trans-fats, and provides many benefits in addition to improving brain health.
Frequently Asked Questions on Coconut Oil
Wonderful FREE Coconut Recipes. This includes some of my favorite recipes.
More Alzheimer’s Resources:
• Coconut Oil Lifts Brain Fog and Stops Memory Loss for 65 Year Old Women
• Coconut Oil Reverses the Effects of Alzheimer’s in 50 Year Old Woman
• Film to be Made of Father’s Recovery from Alzheimer’s with Coconut Oil
• Woman with Dementia Sees Improved Memory and Better Conversation Skills after Starting Coconut Oil
• Canadian Man Swears by Coconut Oil as Alzheimer’s Remedy
• Woman with End-stage Alzheimer’s Sees Improvement in One Week after Starting Coconut Oil
• Coconut Oil Reverses Dementia in 100 Year Old Woman
• Coconut Oil Gave my Grandma Back to Us!
***For the Full Spike Protein Protocol to protect from transmission from the “V” and to help those who took the “V”, go here.
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Medical Disclaimer: I am no longer a practicing medical professional, and I am not doctor. I am a mother. I do seek scientific confirmation of the safety and effectiveness of the herbs and remedies I use. Using remedies is a personal decision. Nothing I say on this blog is intended to treat or prevent disease. Consult your own doctor.
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Kathy
Do you just put in cooking or do you take so much of it per day?
Jacqueline
Kathy, I added ideas and dosage near the end of the post. There is a link to MANY recipes and ideas, too. I also mention how my husband and I take it. You can also take it this way: (This especially works well before meals if you want to lose weight with it)
Coconut oil naturally solidifies at 76F so it is best to liquify it in hot water before consuming.
Twenty minutes before mealtime is the best time to take your coconut oil as it will significantly reduce appetite and help you to feel full more quickly and be satisfied with smaller portions.
To liquify, mix 1-2 TBSP of coconut oil in a mug and add hot water or herbal tea (NOT bulletproof coffee!). Stir to melt and drink. Use the following guidelines to determine how much oil to consume before each meal:
90-130 lbs, use 1 TBSP coconut oil before each meal for a total of 3 TBL per day.
131-180 lbs, use 1.5 TBSP coconut oil before each meal for a total of 4.5 TBL per day.
Over 180 lbs, use 2 TBSP coconut oil before each meal for a total of 6 TBL per day.
Alternatively, you can simply eat the coconut oil and let it liquify in your mouth for a few seconds before swallowing.
I hope that helps!!
gena
Not trying to be funny – could you mix it with hot chocolate, like Swiss Miss? I am 5’9″ and weigh about 134. I am considered almost underweight already and do not need to lose weight. Would I add one or 1 1/2 TBSP? I am not sure what “bulletproof coffee” means, but if you like regular coffee, could you try taking it with that. Or would it make the coffee taste greasy? I usually drink one cup of coffee in the morning and one in the afternoon, with just enough milk to take away the bitterness and no sugar. I probably could get it down with the coffee if I tried really hard not to think about it. I don’t drink hot chocolate much but could if I have to. Also almost never drink tea at all, and especially not herbal tea or green tea.
gena
Was reading the recipes and found both coconut cream mixed with coffee and a recipe for hot cocoa (not Swiss Miss) with coconut oil. Wow, will definitely try both of those, with slight modifications. THANK YOU, again.
Jacqueline
Yay!! You found something you can do, Gena! Stay blessed!
Jacqueline
My hubby likes it in hot water and coffee. He thinks it makes it feel silky and creamy, but then, he’s not you. Give it a try and let me know what you think 🙂 Praying you find the perfect way for you 😀
gena
I was so relieved to find you can take it by using it in other things. The first article I read about taking coconut oil had just mentioned how the user loved to just take it straight, and I tried that and almost threw up. I cannot down anything that tastes so much like grease or at least has the consistency of grease. I have had similar problems taking olive oil for other purposes, just some things I cannot gag down. I had had a friend tell me to take oregano oil when I was possibly exposed to the flu, but said it had to be diluted in another oil and she recommended olive oil. Again, I almost threw up. (I am that way about most liquid medicines and suspensions as well, guess it must be mental. I once tried Pepto and it reached the middle of my throat and I puked everything all the way down to my toenails.) I think I might be able to handle it on toast, or mixed in smoothies. I had pretty much given up on trying it again if I had to take a spoon full of slick, greasy yucky stuff. Not sure if I could eat enough toast in one day to be able to use 3 tablespoons of it though. And guess that would get really old really quick.
BTW – I’m 68 years old and from what my mother had told me, have been this way my entire life. She used to tell me when I was little and had to take cough syrup she would have to chase me, and hold me down with what she claimed was a half-nelson in order to get me to take it. this is not an “attribute” of old age.
Jacqueline
Oh, dear, Gena 😀 I am so glad, too, that there are other ways!! I’d love to do a recipe post, but know I may not get to it in a while..in the post near the bottom is a very cool link: “How to Use Coconut Oil. This includes some of my very favorite recipes.”
I think it will make you very happy, my friend! (hugs!)
gena
BTW – I have always been very sensitive to smells and tastes and often can smell things through the taste and taste things through the smell. When I had been very little I had smelled some lemon pledge furniture polish mother had, and from that day on anything that is made with artificial lemon flavor tastes to me like it is flavored with lemon pledge. And another time I remember was once when I took a mouthful of chocolate milk, which had apparently spoiled, and had immediately told Mother that it tasted exactly like the stock barn at the stockshow and rodeo smells like. I have never drunk it since. It has been over 60 years since I smelled that lemon pledge and I still can taste it if I try to eat something with artificial lemon flavor. One reason I don’t like many cooked veggies, I think, is from smelling them as they cook. The taste I get from the smell is often so bad I have no interest in eating them. And the smell is the reason I cannot make myself even try any type of whiskey. Nothing that smells like that is getting past my lips. Might be nuts, but that is the total truth.
Charlotte Moore
I use it in muffins, quick breads, and some GF recipes. I actually can take a spoonful by mouth if it has the coconut taste. I keep both kinds. I don’t much want to cook an egg or green beans with the one that taste like coconut. HA!! I need to get more of it in our body.
Jacqueline
I’m proud of you, Charlotte! You go, my friend!
We’re taking 1 1/2 TBSP in just a half cup of hot water with a touch of honey. It’s almost the easiest way for us besides use in cooking and the golden paste…so many ways! 😀
Janice Wald
Hi Jacqueline,
I don’t care if it’s controversial. If it will help Alzheimer’s patience, I’m for it.
Thanks for bringing your post to the Blogger’s Pit Stop.
Janice, Pit Stop Crew
Janice Wald
I mean patients
Pat in CO
HOW LONG WAS IT BEFORE YOU NOTICED ANY IMPROVEMENT
Jacqueline
Hi, Pat in CO!
Well, I don’t eat/cook with coconut oil because I had Alzheimer’s, but because I didn’t want to go further in the direction I was noticing…
The increase in clear thinking was fairly quick, actually, – 2-3 weeks.
We were concurrently doing a lot of things like detoxing heavy metals and toxins from my exposure in the OR. I watched my body and noticed my improved reasoning ability more – my ability to converse with little forgetting of names and dates, etc.
These different things were all done in close proximity, so I can’t tell what was the greatest effect. It spurred me to share the research in the post.
I hope that helps! Try it and give it some time b/c each one of us is different. Factor in the fact that I was also detoxing metals around that time…I do continue to consume coconut oil, btw!
Ruth
Your “HOw to use Coconut Oil” link is useless – goes to https://globalsanitizers.com/
Jacqueline
Thank you for letting me know, Ruth!
It is fixed now! 😀
Blessings,
Jacqueline