Coconut Oil

Who would have ever thought that a food as simple as the coconut could provide such extremely beneficial health results?  Why do I say this?  Well, you’ll find out if you’ll read the book by Dr Mary T. Newport, M.D. The title of the book is “Alzheimer’s Disease, what if there was a cure?” Her reason for writing the book is to provide information to help people with Alzheimer’s Disease, but in this blog I’ll emphasize her thinking regarding an application of her knowledge to brain cancer.

Backup Fuel Source

You’re probably asking why I’m including information about coconut oil in my cancer blog.  Here’s the reason.  Dr Newport has done a tremendous amount of research about the effects of coconut oil on the human body.  The central theme of her book is that when we consume coconut oil our body knows what to do with it in very special ways.  One of the things it does with part of it is to create a substance called ketones.  She explains that it has been known for many, many years that ketones are, in a sense, a backup energy supply to the cells in our bodies. For young healthy people ketones may not be as important as for older people.  The reason is that as people age the cells in their bodies become progressively less able to use the normal fuel system.  She contends that in the brain, disease can begin and develop when, neurons, other brain cells, and possibly the synapses which connect brain cells, die or slip into a nonfunctional condition due to the lack of fuel. 

Coconut Oil for Brain Cancer?!

If this occurs the body can then use its backup fuel system if that type of fuel is present and available in the body.  Ketones can enter the cells in our body and provide the fuel the cells need to survive and function.  Cancer as well as other neurodegenerative diseases could be and have been shown to be helped by the use of this backup fuel system.  Unfortunately those of us who have had to deal with cancer either in their own body or afflicting a loved one and those of us who have studied some of the differences between cancer cells and healthy cells know that cancer cells survive on glucose for fuel.  What we didn’t know, unless we had studied biochemistry, is that cancer cells can only survive on glucose.  However, healthy cells can survive on either glucose or ketones. So, here’s an amazing thought! It’s even been studied already! What if a diet existed that partially starved cancer cells of their glucose but fed healthy cells with ketones. If that happened, the cancer cells would suffer the lack of fuel, but the healthy cells wouldn’t. In fact research has been done to prove that this can happen; moreover there is a case of a woman referenced in the book who had an aggressive stage 4 brain tumor called a glioblastoma who agreed to be part of this type of treatment. Within 3 months her tumor was no longer able to be found on MRI and PET scans. ( http://www.nutritionandmetabolism.com/content/7/1/33 ) Knowing this, wouldn’t it make sense to try this approach if your life depends on it, especially if you’ve tried standard of care treatments and anything else that makes sense? Who knows, it might take considerably longer than 3 months to make sure your tumor is gone for the foreseeable future or permanently, but this may be a small price to pay compared to the alternatives some people face. Or, it may buy you time to consider other alternative treatments. Due to the lack of enough data considered sufficient to prove this is a well accepted method to treat brain cancer, this may have to be considered a last resort for some people but AT LEAST IT’S A RESORT!

Other Neurodegenerative Diseases

For those unconcerned about cancer, ketones may be of great importance to those suffering from diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, ALS, Huntington’s, MS, bipolar, epilepsy, seizures, or other neurodegenerative diseases. In fact ketones have helped reverse to some degree or stabilize the condition of many people suffering from these diseases. With these brain related diseases ketones can feed living but damaged or dormant brain cells that are contributing to these diseases. In fact ketones may be able to rehabilitate damaged or dormant cells and synapses thus providing an improvement or stabilization in health. One caution here is that if a disease is advanced, additional nutrients may be necessary to allow the cells to use the ketones and repair damage.

Is Cholesterol a Consideration?

Dr Newport cautions that people with liver disease should probably not consume coconut oil until safe to do so. She also discusses the importance of cholesterol in the overall functioning of our bodies including our brain. She deals with the subject of many doctors’ concern for consuming an oil that they think may increase one’s cholesterol. To summarize her opinion and understanding, this is not even a potential problem for many people and in fact coconut oil may improve one’s cholesterol situation. Of course only a doctor can determine what effect coconut oil would have on actual cholesterol readings. She cautions that for those using statins to control cholesterol the statins may reduce cholesterol in the brain thus preventing it from carrying on its necessary functions and also prevent the creation of ketones.

What Could This All Mean for You?

So here’s the bottom line. If you have a neurodegenerative disease that is known to be killing your brain, what do you have to lose by seriously considering the use of coconut oil in your diet? You do need to make sure the coconut oil you buy is virgin, organic, and cold expressed in order for it to have the possible desired health benefits.

Here are some important websites:

Dr Newport’s website:

www.coconutketones

Dr Newport’s blog:

www.Coconutketones.blogspot.com

Dr Newport’s article

www.Tampabay.com/news/aging/article879333.ece

Other helpful websites:

www.coconutresearchcenter.com

www.charliefoundation.org

www.matthewsfriends.org

My Opinion?

I’ve read many books over the last 3 + years as I’ve tried to learn as much as I can to be able to help my son if he ever needs help again regarding his past brain cancer or others who find themselves in a fight for their lives. This is one of the best written, practical, and informative books I have read in many years. I am so happy to be able to tell others about it and have it in my own library of books addressing so many health issues especially for my own future reference and for the health of my family.

The statements contained herein have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The above information is intended for educational purposes only. This information is not intended to be used to diagnose, prescribe, or replace proper medical care. The information described herein is not intended to treat, cure, diagnose, mitigate, or prevent any disease. It is not intended to be used as a substitute for the diagnosis, treatment and advice of a qualified licensed medical professional.