7 Reasons You Should Eat Coconut Oil For Weight Loss
Can you lose weight using coconut, or is it just a myth? After all, coconut oil is linked with dozens of health claims, from lowering blood sugar levels, promoting fat burning to reducing seizures, and raising good cholesterol HDL.
As it turns out, weight loss is also on the long list of health benefits associated with coconut oil. However, this substance is not or may not be a magic bullet that will shoot your calorie levels down in just a couple of days. Coconut oil might be the most challenging weight loss solution you have ever thought of, and as another matter of fact, it doesn’t function separately; you need to use it along with other foods or snacks.
Nevertheless, there is no denying the potency of this superfood. One of the secrets of successful and sustainable weight loss is maintaining a steady blood sugar level, and for that purpose, you need coconut oil. But that is not the only reason to use this prevalent food for your weight loss.
Coconut oil weight loss
Here are seven compelling reasons you should incorporate coconut oil in your weight loss journey.
1. It contains omega 3 fatty acids.
One of the substances found in coconut oil is omega-3 fatty acids, which has a myriad of health benefits associated with weight loss, but more on that later.
The majority of cooking oils on the market have omega-6 fatty acids, which is not healthy. Too much consumption of omega-6 has been found to increase blood pressure, which can interfere with sustaining your body weight.
A recent study showed that we don’t consume enough omega-3, which is healthy and can reduce the risk of blood pressure, cancer, and heart disease.
Coconut oil contains plenty of omega-3 fatty acids.
2. It promotes metabolism
Another positive effect of coconut oil that directly helps in weight loss is its ability to promote metabolism. An increase in metabolic rate means an increased fat-burn rate. Coconut oil is also a medium-chain triglyceride (MCT), which can help you lose weight faster when combined with the keto diet. As MCT oil, coconut oil can also lower LDL (bad) cholesterol in your body while improving the levels of HDL (good) cholesterol.
A study conducted by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that MCT oil can burn up to three times more calories in just 6 hours than long-chain triglycerides (LCT) fats.
3. It doesn’t transform into fat after eating.
Most vegetable oils tend to turn to fat after you consume them. These oils include the likes of corn and soy. But this is not the case with coconut oil since it has medium-chain triglycerides or MCT, meaning it is easy to burn into fuel without turning to fat.
These other oils (the ones with long-chain triglycerides (LCT), must be stored in the body as fat before they are broken down for fuel.
You can eat as much coconut oil as you wish, and you will not get any fatter. You will either maintain your weight or lose a few pounds every week. But this cannot be said of other cooking oils.
4. Increases natural energy
As you may know, you need to expend more calories than you consume for you to lose weight. And one of the most common and highly effective ways to burn calories is exercising. By doing physical activities such as kettlebell swings and yoga, you can quickly burn thousands of calories in a few minutes.
But exercising is not for everyone, and most people will skip a workout with the first thought in their mind. However, coconut oil can give a natural energy enhancement that will allow you to work out for more extended periods without getting tired.
These are not just empty words. This claim is backed by science as a study from a couple of years ago found that consuming coconut oil can boost energy and stamina.
5. It creates a sensation of fullness.
If you are always feeling angry and need to indulge in snacks between meals, it must be hard to lose that extra weight. While snacking is not bad, many weight-loss experts recommend avoiding them if you could.
Adding coconut oil to your diet will help you feel full for long periods, thus eliminating the need for snacks. Since this is MCT oil, the components found in coconut oil help prevent that powerful mid-morning snacking.
Just stir a spoonful of coconut oil into your oatmeal to not only give it additional flavor but also supply your body with medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs). Alternatively, you can slather coconut oil on your eggs or mix it with your morning coffee. Another option is to add coconut oil to your smoothie or replace butter on your toast with coconut oil. Tap into your inner creative self, and you will find the possibilities are endless.
6. It helps burn belly fat.
The belly fat is usually the most stubborn of all the fats because it usually resists almost all exercise forms. Moreover, it is pretty dangerous health-wise as it has been associated with cancer, heart conditions, and diabetes.
Instead of grueling exercises at the gym or running for miles in the morning (this is not to say you should stop exercising or jogging), you can use coconut oil to blast that belly fat. After consuming coconut oil, you need to walk for 50 minutes every day, and your belly fat will start reducing.
7. Increase thyroid activity
Situated in your neck, the thyroid is a ductless gland responsible for producing hormones that regulate the metabolic rate. Research has shown that underactive thyroid can lead to weight gain, while active thyroid can have an opposite impact: weight loss. Coconut oil is more stable compared to other LCFA oils. Thus it doesn’t put too much stress on the thyroid.
Coconut oil conclusion
Though coconut oil provides our body with numerous benefits, including what we have discussed today – weight loss – it is essential to regulate its consumption, mostly if you also eat other types of oils. With that in mind, rather than adding coconut oil to your diet, consider replacing some of the oils or fats you are currently consuming with coconut oil. Some of these unhealthy fats can be found in soybean oil, butter, canola oil, and olive oil.
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