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Food Qual Safet
    
Coconut oil: what do we really know about it so far?
Renan da Silva Lima and Jane Mara Block
Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, Brazil
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Abstract  
In recent years, coconut oil has emerged as a potential ‘miracle’ food. Some media vehicles and health specialists assure that this fat is capable of promoting health benefits, such as weight reduction, cholesterol lowering, prevention of cardiovascular diseases, and anti-inflammatory effect, among others. These claims are used to market the product and boost its sales by coconut oil companies. However, governmental regulatory agencies in many countries are still sceptical about the benefits obtained by the consumption of coconut oil due to its high-saturated fatty acid content. In light of such controversy, this review focused on analysing the published literature on the alleged health claims, in order to investigate if there is enough scientific evidence to support them. It was verified that the metabolism of lauric acid, the major fatty acid in coconut oil, remains unclear. Many studies reported that the product was not efficient in weight loss. Also, it has been reported that the consumption of coconut oil increased low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, consequently increasing the risk of cardiovascular diseases. In general, the studies present conflicting results and there is a lack of long-term human-based clinical trials. Therefore, as a saturated fat, coconut oil should be consumed with moderation and the health allegations should not be used to market the product, once they are not scientifically proven so far.


Key wordslauric acid      saturated fatty acids      medium-chain triglycerides      LDL cholesterol      cardiovascular diseases     
Received: 13 November 2018      Published: 22 April 2019
Corresponding Authors: Jane Mara Block, Department of Food Science and Technology, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Av. Admar Gonzaga, 1346, Florianópolis, SC, 88034-001, Brazil.     E-mail: janeblock@gmail.com
Cite this article:

Renan da Silva Lima, Jane Mara Block. Coconut oil: what do we really know about it so far?. Food Qual Safet, 2019, 3(2): 61-72.

URL:

http://www.zjujournals.com/fqs/10.1093/fqsafe/fyz004     OR     http://www.zjujournals.com/fqs/Y2019/V3/I2/61


我们对椰子油的了解至今应何去何从?

近年来,椰子油已成为潜在的“奇迹”食品。一些媒体和健康专家明确指出该脂肪具有健康益处,例如减轻体重、降低胆固醇、预防心血管疾病和抗炎作用等。这些宣称用于推销产品并提高椰子油公司的销售额。然而,许多国家的政府监管机构仍对由于其高饱和脂肪酸含量而消费椰子油所获得的益处持怀疑态度。鉴于此类争议,本文重点是分析已发表的关于椰子油健康声明的文献,以调查是否有足够的科学证据支持这些声明。经证实,月桂酸(椰子油中的主要脂肪酸)的代谢仍不清楚。许多研究报道该产品在减肥方面效果不明显。此外,据报道,椰子油的摄入增加了低密度脂蛋白胆固醇,从而增加了心血管疾病的风险。总的来说,这些研究结果相互矛盾,缺乏长期的人体临床试验。因此,作为一种饱和脂肪,椰子油应适量食用,到目前为止尚未经科学证实,不应使用健康宣称来推销产品。

关键词: 月桂酸,  饱和脂肪酸,  中链甘油三酯,  低密度脂蛋白胆固醇,  心血管疾病 
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