COCONUT AND LDL CHOLESTEROL

Growing coconut in Malaysia (Cocos  nucifera) is the forth important after Oil Palm, Rubber and Paddy. Total area of 84,000 hectare of matured coconut are grown to produce more than 650 million nuts annually especially in Johore, Selangor, Perak and Sabah region. The usage of coconut product are vast. Coconut oil consumption leads to higher levels of LDL cholesterol compared with other vegetable oils, according to a new meta-analysis. In contrast to popular belief, coconut oil also was not linked to lower rates of inflammation, glycemia, or adiposity, leading experts to discourage its use. Scientist in Malaysia always been kind of flabbergasted by this popular culture fascination with coconut oil when it's one of the most fatty substances on the planet, and I think this study confirms some of those things we've seen play out in smaller individual studies as well. The confusion has stemmed from widespread claims that coconut oil has anti-inflammatory properties that are based on smaller studies from geographically isolated populations, she said.  In a study by Local University found that a lot of that the sort of took out of context and from what other components are available in those populations' diets. And then people are just naturally always looking for something that's marketed as being natural or different in processing, so many people think they're flocking to those things and maybe misinterpreting what healthy really product from coconut. 

Local researchers embarked on this study because of how widely coconut oil is promoted in the press as being beneficial. Claim to be given the many claims of health benefits,  one would expect there is substantial evidence from clinical trials in humans that supports these claims. From that perspective, it is surprising that this scientific support for these claims is lacking. However based on a more detailed understanding of the fatty acid composition of coconut oil and the biology of these fatty acids our findings are not surprising. As comparisons to other oils the effects of at least 2 weeks of coconut oil consumption with other non tropical vegetable oils or palm oil on cardiovascular risk factors. In total, eight trials reported on body weight, five on body fat, four on waist circumference, four on fasting plasma glucose, and five on C-reactive protein. Compared with non tropical vegetable oils, coconut oil significantly increased total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, and HDL cholesterol but not triglycerides, body measurements, glycemia, or C-reactive protein. So local still believe that the cooking oil and other product produced in Malaysia still has a high demand at par with palm oil as healthy foods.

Thanks.

By,

M Anem,

Senior Agronoomist,

Precint 11F, Putrajaya,

Federal Teritory,

Malaysia.

(21 January 2010).