University Studies, Medical Journal Reports...For the Thomas in All of Us

I am not the kind that spews out facts. I don't care what subject it is, I go by heart and gut more than rote. So, I read, I pray, I become convinced by what I've read and how the Spirit leads. With book, materials and heart in hand, I gladly share what I learn...those things of which I have become convinced because of what I have read. Writing on my computer, I am much more direct because my references often sit at my elbow and I am very concerned about standing too strongly on just my own knowledge...There is wisdom in many counselors!

But when I am standing in conversation, what you get, more than cold hard facts and numbers, is heart. The things God has chosen to write there. The ways I have learned are better for me, so if you want to look into them you may find them better for you, too.

I am not, nor do I want to be, an accomplished oral debater. I've always taken great, great comfort in Jesus' promise to be there for me if I ever have to stand in court. (Good thing, that.)

I do understand the desire for the familiar when this traditional foods 'stuff' is new to a person. And so, what we find below is a plethora...the tip of the iceberg, mind you...of conventional medical journal and university reports regarding coconut oils in particular. They may bring some comfort to the skeptical...at least about coconut oil's goodness. If you take the time to look at these studies and reports, you will find yourself at least a little amazed. Or more likely, a lot amazed.

Just because mainstream media doesn't jump on it and tell the world, doesn't mean good, or even great, documentation doesn't exist. Never make the mistake, as many of the puffed up and proud have done, of belittling a person's work because of the paper they hold or do not hold in their hand.

I know real people with no mainstream education who have raised folks from the dead. That piece of paper means nothing to the ones raised, does it? I know that's an extreme example, but to a lesser degree, we find wisdom and knowledge continuously manifested in other areas by the degree-less.This is not to rebuff education or the educated...only the educated who put themselves above others. And for that matter, the uneducated who put themselves above the educated. Either way, it's wrong. Plain and simple. In fact, I really dislike using the word 'uneducated' at all...for there is no one walking who is uneducated in all things...just as there is no one walking who is educated in all things. We get so messed up worrying about junk like that!

So, if you're looking for some evidences and the abundance of information found at the Weston A. Price Foundation doesn't cut it for you...maybe you can take a look at the info below. It may help you, or a friend, come to a better understanding. Then, maybe you'll begin to look at the truths of traditional foods and food preparation in a different light.

When we veer off the road of conventional eating, we find a paradigm experience, this seeing the whole tree of truth rather than just some mythical splinters. We've been duped for so long and in so many areas regarding our food that the truth can actually be overwhelming. Confounding, even. Take it easy. Take it slow. Baby steps. Baby steps. Baby steps.

Here are the reports...Some are written in laymen's terms, others...well, you'll see. I am especially fond of the testimony under the M.D. section written by Dr. Newport regarding Alzheimer's Disease. Prepare yourself...You may feel the urge to hold on to something.

 

Journal Reports:
 American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2010 Mar;91(3):535-46. Epub 2010 Jan 13.Meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies evaluating the association of saturated fat with cardiovascular disease. Siri-Tarino PW, Sun Q, Hu FB, Krauss RM.

Children's Hospital, Oakland Research Institute Oakland, CA, USA.

American Society for Clinical Nutrition Saturated fat prevents coronary artery disease? An American paradox, Robert H Knopp and Barbara M Retzlaff Northwest Lipid Research Clinic, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle

BMJ. 2003 Oct 4;327(7418):777-82.Dietary fat intake and risk of stroke in male US healthcare professionals: 14 year prospective cohort study.

He K, Merchant A, Rimm EB, Rosner BA, Stampfer MJ, Willett WC, Ascherio A.

Department of Nutrition, Harvard School of Public Health, 665 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA. hpkhe@channing.harvard.edu

Endocrine Practice.Results of use of metformin and replacement of starch with saturated fat in diets of patients with type 2 diabetes.

Hays JH, Gorman RT, Shakir KM.

Christiana Care Health Services, Inc., Cardiology Research, Newark, Delaware 19718, USA.

Biochim Biophys Acta.Dietary coconut oil increases conjugated linoleic acid-induced body fat loss in mice independent of essential fatty acid deficiency.

Hargrave KM, Azain MJ, Miner JL.

Department of Animal Science, C220 Animal Science, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA.

Journal of the American Dietetic Assoc. 1997 Jun;97(6):605-11.Decreased fat and nitrogen losses in patients with AIDS receiving medium-chain-triglyceride-enriched formula vs those receiving long-chain-triglyceride-containing formula.

Craig GB, Darnell BE, Weinsier RL, Saag MS, Epps L, Mullins L, Lapidus WI, Ennis DM, Akrabawi SS, Cornwell PE, Sauberlich HE.

Department of Nutrition Sciences, School of Health Related Professions, University of Alabama at Birmingham 35294, USA.

Journal of Investigative Dermatol. 2009 Oct;129(10):2480-8. Epub 2009 Apr 23.Antimicrobial property of lauric acid against Propionibacterium acnes: its therapeutic potential for inflammatory acne vulgaris.

Nakatsuji T, Kao MC, Fang JY, Zouboulis CC, Zhang L, Gallo RL, Huang CM.

Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, California, USA.

Annals of Surgery Protective effects of medium-chain triglycerides on the liver and gut in rats administered endotoxin.

Kono H, Fujii H, Asakawa M, Yamamoto M, Matsuda M, Maki A, Matsumoto Y.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12560783?dopt=Abstract

Philippine Journal of Cardiology, July-September 2003, Volume 31 Number 3:97-104 COCONUT OIL: Atherogenic or Not?(What therefore causes Atherosclerosis?)

Journal of Medicinal Food: University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria (Dept.of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology)-In vitro antimicrobial properties of coconut oil on Candida species in Ibadan, Nigeria.

Lipids

Volume 44, Number 7, 593-601, DOI: 10.1007/s11745-009-3306-6

Effects of Dietary Coconut Oil on the Biochemical and Anthropometric Profiles of Women Presenting Abdominal Obesity

Antigenotoxicity of Dietary Coconut Oil - University of the Philippines - Institute of Chemistry, College of Science; Science Diliman, Vol 4, No 1 (1992)

 Skin Pharmacol Physiol. 2010;23(6):290-7. Epub 2010 Jun 3.Effect of topical application of virgin coconut oil on skin components and antioxidant status during dermal wound healing in young rats.

Nevin KG, Rajamohan T. Department of Biochemistry, University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram, India.

Dietary fatty acids and oxidative stress in the heart mitochondria. Mitochondrion. 2011 Jan;11(1):97-103. Epub 2010 Aug 5.

Trop Doct. 1997 Oct;27(4):215-7.The role of coconut and coconut oil in coronary heart disease in Kerala, South India. Kumar PD, Department of Medicine, medical College, Kerala, South India.

J Indian Med Assoc. 1998 Oct;96(10):304-7.Choice of cooking oils--myths and realities.Sircar S, Kansra U.Department of Medicine, Safdarjang Hospital, New Delhi.

M.D.'s:

Alzheimer's Disease-A Case Study by Dr. Mary Newport

COCONUT OIL IN HEALTH AND DISEASE: ITS AND MONOLAURIN’S
POTENTIAL AS CURE FOR HIV/AIDS*
Conrado S. Dayrit, MD. FACC. FPCC. FPCP**

Links:
Research on Coconut Oil
Peer-Reviewed Research
Research on Saturated Fats
Research on Cholesterol

FAT video w/Fallon, Enig & Dr. Eades & Coconut Myth Buster #1

Still have a problem understanding fats? No wonder...Fifty years of false propaganda has every one's head spinning! The scam with trans fats is up...but the challenge remains to neutralize the 'demonization' campaign against saturated fats. Sounds crazy, doesn't it? Click above to bite off a piece of truth...then chew it for a while. What will you do with it? If you're anything like me, you'll want more info. You can go to the YouTube location of the above video and find more. Nourishing Traditions is another great resource.
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Coconut Myth Buster #1:

Coconut is admittedly a high-fat food. We all know, of course, that high-fat foods cause heart disease, right? We've been told and told and told by every 'reputable' resource that this is fact. These 'facts' were based on a hypothesis. To review elementary science, a hypothesis is a theory. An unproven theory.

As an example, think Columbus. Think "The world is flat". Think, "People are gonna think I'm nuts if I agree with ol' Chris, so I'm gonna keep my mouth shut...even if I can't figure out how it is that I see the masts on the ships coming into port before I actually see the ships..." Think of pointing fingers and an outcry of "Heretic!" when you say something isn't what the whole world says it is.

That should give you a little bit of an idea of the battle people like Mary Enig and Sally Fallon have been fighting for decades. But they won the battle over trans fats. Today, people like you and I, regular everyday people, are little by little, learning the truth. In fact, we're learning so well, that the large food corps are starting to shake in their boots. They're doing really dumb things that do no less than confirm suspicions that they're up to no good..."Like what?" you ask. Like running farmers out of business because an organic farmer's seed blows into their field. Like suing people who take pictures of their cattle 'farms', draining the average man's pocketbook long before the courtroom is ever entered. Like using scare tactics as those you will see if you dare to watch the film, "Food, Inc.".

So back to the high-fat scam.The hypothesis I speak of is called the 'lipid hypothesis' which states that there are three stages in the progression of heart disease: 1) Consumption of too much cholesterol & saturated fat w/the consequence of high cholesterol, 2) The high cholesterol produces atherosclerosis, and finally, 3) Atherosclerosis clogs up blood vessels with an end in coronary heart disease.

The problem with this hypothesis is that there is much scientific evidence, ignored evidence that has been known for over fifty years, that actually contradicts each of these stages. So this knowledge has been kept buried away from the public mind for so long that the public has had no real choice but to believe what they have been fed.

So, is it true? Do high-fat foods cause heart disease?

Studies tell us the answer is "No".

1960's:  Masai of Kenya:  Cattle herders whose diets consisted of an average of 1 gallon of full-fat, raw milk/day, (That's about 3/4 lb. butterfat!), and Dr. George Mann of Vanderbilt University who conducted the study reports that at their festivals, the Masai would eat from four to ten pounds of meat. (Sorry, but that even makes me want to gag.) But here are the points. 1) They were completely free of heart disease. 2) Blood Cholesterol was measured at 50 % lower than the average American, 3) In his study of 50 hearts and arteries from varied ages, obstruction-causing plaque was rare, and 4) No evidence of a heart attack was found in any of the hearts.

1975-1981: Framingham-Puerto Rico-Honolulu Study:  The National Institutes of Health, studied 16,000 healthy, middle-aged men from these three areas. In 1975, all they had to do was answer questions about their normal diets. In 1981, the diets were compared between the ones not having had heart attacks and those having had heart attacks. DON'T LOSE THIS NEXT FACT: Those who had fallen victim to heart attacks had consumed more polyunsaturated oils than those who had not. This is exactly opposite the suppositions made by the lipid hypothesis.

Let's look at another, bigger study.

1998: Journal of Clinical Epidemiology: A review of 27 studies of over 150,000 people. The studies were aimed at the connection between heart health and diet.

"In three groups, the patients had eaten more animal fat than the controls. In one group, they had eaten less. In all the other groups, researchers found no difference in animal fat consumption between people with heart disease and those without. What's more, in three groups the patients had eaten more vegetable oil than the controls. In only one group had patients eaten less vegetable oil than the control group."

Critics of these studies site the fact that they are older studies. (But is truth truth today and not tomorrow???) Still, for the sake of conceding to the insanity, I suppose I need to tell the further truth that there are more recent studies that confirm those studies. Following, read two such study reports:

2002: European Journal of Clinical Nutrition: Reported on a Denmark study in which researchers zeroed in on hospital patients diagnosed with heart disease. The patients were divided into three groups: two who ate generally 'healthy' diets, low in animal fats, high in whole grains, fruits, and veggies. The last group ate lots of meat, butter and even white bread. Still, they found no link between food consumption habits and coronary heart disease.
 

Butterfat protects heart health!

2004: British Journal of Nutrition: (Oh, you're going to love this!)...This report comes to us from a Swedish study. Milk fat, (butterfat), was "negatively connected with risk factors for heart disease and heart attack." Translation? Butterfat protects rather than hinders, heart health.

In short, scientific research has never supported the idea that high-fat foods cause heart attacks.

In a coconut shell: Don't be afraid of coconut's saturated fat.

"But what about cholesterol???", I heard a voice plaintively whine...
Geez, this stuff can get deep, can't it? ...Well, that will be Coconut Myth Buster #2.