In the body, MCTs convert easily into energy; therefore, very little MCT Oil is stored as Fat, because it is used for energy.
This is how MCTs help you burn Fat and lose weight.
In a study published in the journal Obesity Research in 2003, scientists at McGill University carried out a randomized controlled trial to compare the effects of medium-chain Triglycerides and long-chain Triglycerides on body Fat, energy expenditure, appetite, and other aspects of weight loss in overweight men.23
They recruited twenty-four overweight men and put them on different diets for twenty-eight days.
They switched the diets after a period of time so they could analyze the differences in the same people—this is called a crossover design.
One group ate a diet rich in medium-chain Triglycerides, like coconut Oil.
The other group ate a diet rich in long-chain Triglycerides, like olive Oil.
Then the participants switched diets midway through the study.
When the study was over, the researchers found that men on the MCT diet lost more body Fat (especially belly Fat).
The MCT Oil boosted energy expenditure and Fat oxidation, or burning—in other words, their metabolism was faster.
They were also less hungry than those who ate the olive Oil diet.
Another small study carried out at the University of Rochester Medical Center and published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition looked at what happened when a group of men consumed meals with either MCTs or LCTs.24
The test meals contained either 45 grams of MCT or 45 grams of LCT in the form of corn Oil, and the scientists measured the subjects’ metabolic rates both before the meals and up to six hours after.
They measured oxygen consumption (which is an indirect measurement of metabolism—the more oxygen you can burn per minute, the more calories you can burn and the faster your metabolism) and found that oxygen consumption after the meal rich in MCTs increased by 12 percent—about triple the increase seen after the LCT meal.
They also found that blood levels of Triglycerides soared by 68 percent after the LCT meal with corn Oil, but there was no increase in Triglycerides after the MCT meal.
The authors state, “This study also raises the possibility that replacing LCT with MCT over long periods of time could produce weight loss in the absence of reduced energy intake.”
Eat more [MCT fats], weigh less.
Sounds good to me!
Lots of other studies support the benefits of MCT Oils.
MCT Oils are good for many reasons.
They get absorbed directly from the gut to the Liver and burned quickly, while Omega-6 Fats from seed, bean, or grain Oils—like corn, soy, sunflower, and canola—are transported into the lymphatic system, not the blood, which allows them to be taken up in your Fat tissues.
That is why MCT Oils boost your metabolism and help you burn more calories, reduce Fat storage, and cut your appetite.
They are like superfuel for your cells.
Studies show they cause you to burn about 460 extra calories a day for men and about 190 extra calories for women (sorry, ladies).
They also affect your hormones differently than other Fats do, helping you feel full.
In another study, consumption of MCTs reduced body Fat and Triglycerides more than Omega-6 vegetable Oils.
After eight weeks, the experiment showed that the group having
the MCT had greater reductions in their
- weight,
body Fat percentage, and
levels of subcutaneous Fat and
a 15 percent drop in Triglycerides and LDL, or bad Cholesterol (even though the MCT is a Saturated Fat),
despite no differences in exercise levels or daily consumption of total calories, Protein, Fat, and Carbs.
That’s right: no fewer calories, but
more weight loss.
The researchers attributed this to increased metabolism and Fat burning.
