March 28, 2024
Medium Chain Triglycerides - or MCTs are a great type of fat to use for weight loss

Medium-chain triglycerides (also called MCT) are a kind of fat that has been shown is a few studies to help with loss through the burning of more calories and the way that they are able to burn calories more efficiently.

I was reading an article by Silicon Valley investor Dave Asprey where he talked about the rejuvenation he felt from drinking Yak butter tea after a really tough session of mountain climbing.

medium chain triglyceridesNow, I have never had Yak butter tea but I have been looking into the biological effects of medium-chain triglycerides, so the first thing to understand is the difference between short chain, medium chain, and long chain triglycerides.

Dietary fats are made up of three fatty acids attached to a glycerol backbone. These fatty acids consist of chains of carbon and hydrogen.

The way that we designate the difference between short, medium and long chain triglycerides is by the number of carbon atoms that makes this fat cell longer or shorter.

You can have as few as one and as many as 18 carbon atoms (sorry for the crazy cellular biology) 🙂

Here are the three types of Triglycerides

Short-chain Triglycerides – Milk products are the biggest form that we think of when we think of short term triglycerides. These milk products are digested in the stomach.

Medium-chain Triglycerides – Most of the most exciting dietary fats are medium chain Triglycerides, these include Coconut oil, butter, and palm kernel oil,

Long-chain Triglycerides – Most fats and oils in our diet are long-chain Triglycerides and these are broken down in your intestines and need bile to be broken down

Why Take MCTs?

There are a few reasons why MCTs are good and lots of diets and research are showing that it is super good no matter that it is fat and has been demonized for so long.

A growing body of evidence indicates that Alzheimer’s disease (AD), its precursor, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and other conditions that interfere with cognitive function, can be added to the list of “diseases of civilization” that largely result from diets and lifestyles…via Medium-Chain Triglycerides: Offering Up Brain-Boosting Ketones …

Also there is a lot of fat loss reasearch going on

The saturated fat found in coconut oil is a particular type of fat known as MCTs (medium-chain triglycerides). MCTs are metabolized in the body differently from other saturated fats. …via Coconut Oil for Weight Loss? | Jonny Bowden

 

Where can you get These MCTs

MCT rich foods are of course Coconut oil, palm kernel oil (not palm oil), Full fat milk (cow, goat, or sheep), and Ghee

  • One cup of whole milk has 0.55 gram of MCTs
  • 1 tablespoon of palm kernel oil 7.4 grams of MCTs
  • 1 tablespoon of coconut oil 7.9 grams of MCTs
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