Coconut Oil: In A Unique And Exclusive Category?

narouz

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I've been wondering about this for a long time.
I know that CO is a saturated fat, of course.
But from what Dr. Peat says about it, I wonder if it falls into a separate category.
Dr. Peat seems to say that adding CO to one's diet will likely lead to weight loss.
He has said this is what happened to him when he added about a tablespoon or two to his diet.
And he has alluded to studies from decades ago which found that the addition of CO to livestock diet resulted in leaner animals.

I don't think this effect would be true for other saturated fats--butter or olive oil.

I just read a poster's, "ARK", views on CO (copied from the "Peat and Weight Gain" thread:

ARK said:
Hi - This is certainly interesting. Seems to me that following RP recommendations, men seem to loose weight faster than women. Most women tend to gain weight at first while they heal. I imagine that is do to the estrogen(some men if they are overweight may also have this issue). In terms of fat intake: coconut oil should speed the metabolic rate. When I work with people that need to loose weight I always recommend coconut oil. So far every person that I have made this suggestion to has lost weight- and keeps loosing weight. The other safe fats ( butter and cream...etc) You have to be careful with. If your metabolic rate is slow seems that people tend to gain weight with these fats. I have been doing Peat for about 5/6 months now. I was low carb- 0 carb for a long time. I have not gained weight at all and I eat about a cup of sugar a day. When I see people gaining weight on Peat I think:
1- They are eating too much muscle meat without balancing out with gelatin.
2- They are eating too much sat fat ( stuck in WAPF) and not getting in the coconut oil
3- Not eating enough sugar, salt, and fruit
4 -Cortisol levels are still high
5- Thyroid isn't working yet
6- Not eating enough dairy
7- not getting enough bone broth

I have done what Ray recommends: mostly dairy and fruit and I see that the combination works. However, I think many people gain weight at first doing Peat and thats ok. The sugar helps to store the PUFA which is a good thing. Over time the body will heal and people tend to loose that early weight gain. For women it can be frustrating.... this is about healing- so stick with it!!!!

So ARK is nutritional practitioner of a Peatian stripe, and his observations would seem to support the notion that CO deserves its own category.

On the other hand, when I've posted the eminent Cliff McCrary on his wonderful site (http://co2factor.blogspot.com/), he seems to think it may be different, but not that different from other saturated fats:

AnonymousJune 23, 2012 10:32 AM

"Hey Cliff,
Do you assign a special status to Coconut Oil when considering weight loss?
From Peat, I've been under the impression that it is almost in a separate category--a fat that causes weight loss (well, he often refers to the effects upon livestock when fed coconut oil instead of PUFAs: they become leaner & healthier. I guess this may not equate to weight loss....)
-David"

cliffJune 25, 2012 7:13 PM

"You can probably get away with more coconut oil versus other fats."

So, if one wishes to lose weight while eating in a Peat way, does one eat A LOT of coconut oil? Or will it, like other saturated fats, likely result in weight gain?
 

charlie

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Narouz, a month or two ago, I was reading through the article you were referring to written by Ray Peat http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/coconut-oil.shtml. He said that he added 2 tablespoons of coconut oil on top of what he was already eating. And that he in fact did lean out. And the more he added, the more he leaned out. Well, I took that into consideration and decided to give it a shot myself. I added the 76 degree melt coconut oil on top of what I was already eating. And I did the 2 tablespoons a day just like Ray Peat. I have stopped weighing myself because I am done with the scale. But, I do notice that I seem to be a bit leaner. I saw my ex last night, and she isn't one for giving me many compliments. :lol: She said, "You are looking leaner." Well holy smokes! If she said it, and I feel it, it has to be so. I will continue my coconut oil trials and keep you posted. But, I think there really is something to it.

Wish I could add more to this on a technical scale. But that's all I got for now.

Oh and btw, Ark is a most gracious and exceptionally beautiful, woman. :mrgreen:
 

ARK

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Sweet!! With the coconut oil I recommend 2 T a day to the people that I work with that need to loose weight. I also find that for people that need to gain a little weight it helps there too. It can also be protective if someone is eating something with PUFA ( like chicken or bacon). I think that Ray doesn't really think that the coconut oil is something that is imperative. But, for many people that need to loose weight- the coconut oil can be very helpful.
 
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narouz

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Here's my sad tale.
I took 4 TABLESPOONS per day for about 3-4 months.
Did not lose weight.
In fact, gained weight.

Not blaming it on the coconut oil.

I just didn't find CO to be a magical force over-riding everything.
I still take it, but more like 1-2 TBSP.

I come from a fairly lean, athletic only-slightly-too-heavy background and Low Carb style diets.
 

Nick810

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No matter what type of unrefined/refined Coconut Oil (many brands of each) I take - I find it constipating.

It's bizarre.
 
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narouz

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ARK said:
Sweet!! With the coconut oil I recommend 2 T a day to the people that I work with that need to loose weight. I also find that for people that need to gain a little weight it helps there too. It can also be protective if someone is eating something with PUFA ( like chicken or bacon). I think that Ray doesn't really think that the coconut oil is something that is imperative. But, for many people that need to loose weight- the coconut oil can be very helpful.
(emphasis mine, bolding)

This is an interesting point (the bolded sentence), ARK.
If so, then would he wish to see it on an accurate interpretation of a "Peat Derived Diet"?
Well, I would say that Peat does "recommend" it.
So one might put it on a "Peat Recommended Diet."
(I'm sure you will consider my emphasis on the language/semantics beyond anal! :lol:)

Well then: what about the other fats Peat speaks favorably of?
-Olive oil: Peat says to restrict to under 1 teaspoon per day, so only "recommended" with qualification.
-butter: Peat has said, I think, that saturated fats from dairy may be beneficial in the sense that may help "rinse out" (I think that was how he expressed it) the PUFA stored in the tissue.
On the other hand, Peat has clearly qualified his endorsement of dairy fats within a context of weight:
if one wants/needs to lose weight, he has said to restrict dairy fats.
-beef/lamb/ruminant meat fat: same as with butter, I say.

So it's a bit dicey trying to figure out exactly how to sum up the so-called "Peat Healthy Fats."

The argument to see Coconut Oil as a Peat "recommended" fat seems fairly clear-cut to me,
whereas the arguments for the other "Peat healthy oils" is more fraught.

There's another angle, I think, floating around in what you say.
Seems almost like you're saying that Peat recommends coconut oil,
but almost like a Supplement.
But in the case of CO
its use and form are more like a food.
 
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narouz

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Nickje said:
No matter what type of unrefined/refined Coconut Oil (many brands of each) I take - I find it constipating.
It's bizarre.

How are you consuming it?
I tried taking unrefined CO straight up,
a couple of tablespoons,
by itself, on a fairly empty stomach.
I had really bad stomach pains for about 24 hours.
I can't recall if I was constipated from it.

I switched to Refined CO,
blended it up with my Peatian milkshake
...no problem.
 

Nick810

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I was just taking it solo or with a raw carrot, a couple of tbsp. Didn't go for around 1.5 days after it, and I could pretty much notice that.
 

Swandattur

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Even though this is an older thread, I thought I'd just add that limiting or probably eliminating starch should help with weight loss. I know Peat talks about the fact that starch can cause weight gain. It feeds the bacteria that produce endotoxin. It messes with insulin and blood sugar. These could lead to weight gain.
 

Mittir

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Swandattur said:
Even though this is an older thread, I thought I'd just add that limiting or probably eliminating starch should help with weight loss. I know Peat talks about the fact that starch can cause weight gain. It feeds the bacteria that produce endotoxin. It messes with insulin and blood sugar. These could lead to weight gain.

I can attest to that. When i completely removed starch from my diet, i lost 15 lbs in 3 weeks, that is 10 percent of my weight.
It was surprising. I did not loose much weight when i was eating 3 tbs of coconut oil but it improved my allergy and energy.
I did gain back some of the weight when i added some starch to my diet again. Still not ready to give up starch completely.
I am sure starch is the main factor in weight loss. RP cited a study that showed sugar increases energy expenditure by up to 50%.
 
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narouz

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Mittir said:
Swandattur said:
Even though this is an older thread, I thought I'd just add that limiting or probably eliminating starch should help with weight loss. I know Peat talks about the fact that starch can cause weight gain. It feeds the bacteria that produce endotoxin. It messes with insulin and blood sugar. These could lead to weight gain.

I can attest to that. When i completely removed starch from my diet, i lost 15 lbs in 3 weeks, that is 10 percent of my weight.
It was surprising. I did not loose much weight when i was eating 3 tbs of coconut oil but it improved my allergy and energy.
I did gain back some of the weight when i added some starch to my diet again. Still not ready to give up starch completely.
I am sure starch is the main factor in weight loss. RP cited a study that showed sugar increases energy expenditure by up to 50%.

This was my experience too.
The coconut oil, even consumed in larged amounts (3 tablespoons/day), did not seem to affect my weight.
But then I'd have to add that even near-complete starch elimination doesn't seem to affect it either. :cry:
I do think I may be a bit of a special case in terms of weight loss and Peating.
I'm hypothyroid and I'm experimenting now with taking straight T3.
Some take the view that if you're hypo and you have a lot of RT3 (more complicated than that, but...)
that high RT3 is anti-metabolic and anti-thyroid.
They think a prolonged period (like 3 months) of straight T3 can fix that....
 

Mittir

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narouz said:
This was my experience too.
The coconut oil, even consumed in larged amounts (3 tablespoons/day), did not seem to affect my weight.
But then I'd have to add that even near-complete starch elimination doesn't seem to affect it either. :cry:
I do think I may be a bit of a special case in terms of weight loss and Peating.
I'm hypothyroid and I'm experimenting now with taking straight T3.
Some take the view that if you're hypo and you have a lot of RT3 (more complicated than that, but...)
that high RT3 is anti-metabolic and anti-thyroid.
They think a prolonged period (like 3 months) of straight T3 can fix that....

Did you eat same amount of carbohydrate in the form of sugar when you switched from starch?
Sugar increases conversion of T4 to T3 and lowers reverse T3. Reverse T3 is anti thyroid , so is excess T4.
Do you know your daily sugar intake? RP suggests 180 grams at least for a person of average size.
Carb should be around 35-50 percent of your diet and that is lot of sugar.
 

gretchen

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I weighed myself over the weekend and I'm at 105-106 lbs, only a few lbs less than I was 6 weeks ago. I was able to get back in to the size 25 though, which I also wore some of the time while 15 lbs lighter. I think the 2 tablespoons of salt have helped.

But ot- I have reduced coconut oil to 1 tablespoon a day or less and am 2-3 lbs heavier than I was when I was using 3 tablespoons a day. I googled a story last summer about someone who said they significantly reduced their body fat using 9 tblspoons a day. Since I reduced I can't seem to make myself increase it, it's just too gaggy.
 
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narouz

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Mittir said:
narouz said:
This was my experience too.
The coconut oil, even consumed in larged amounts (3 tablespoons/day), did not seem to affect my weight.
But then I'd have to add that even near-complete starch elimination doesn't seem to affect it either. :cry:
I do think I may be a bit of a special case in terms of weight loss and Peating.
I'm hypothyroid and I'm experimenting now with taking straight T3.
Some take the view that if you're hypo and you have a lot of RT3 (more complicated than that, but...)
that high RT3 is anti-metabolic and anti-thyroid.
They think a prolonged period (like 3 months) of straight T3 can fix that....

Did you eat same amount of carbohydrate in the form of sugar when you switched from starch?
Sugar increases conversion of T4 to T3 and lowers reverse T3. Reverse T3 is anti thyroid , so is excess T4.
Do you know your daily sugar intake? RP suggests 180 grams at least for a person of average size.
Carb should be around 35-50 percent of your diet and that is lot of sugar.

Mittir-
I haven't carefully measured exactly how much carb in the form of sugar I eat.
But: I eat/drink a lot of it.
-I drink about half a gallon of OJ per day,
and to that I add 5 heaping tablespoons of white sugar.
-I average about 3 x 20oz lattes per day,
to which I add to each 3 heaping tablespoons of white sugar.
-Additionally, I usually have an orange or two per day.

I also have ice cream and Cokes, but that is rather intermittent and irregular.

My starch is pretty low.
I'll have a couple of masa tortillas per day, usually.
Or a potato.
I've tried strongly restricting starches almost to the point of elimination--not much effect.

I eat quite a bit of saturated fat, which Peat often calls attention to with people who wish to lose weight.
But I've tried strictly regulating that also...to little effect.
 

Mittir

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narouz said:
Mittir-
I haven't carefully measured exactly how much carb in the form of sugar I eat.
But: I eat/drink a lot of it.
-I drink about half a gallon of OJ per day,
and to that I add 5 heaping tablespoons of white sugar.
-I average about 3 x 20oz lattes per day,
to which I add to each 3 heaping tablespoons of white sugar.
-Additionally, I usually have an orange or two per day.

I also have ice cream and Cokes, but that is rather intermittent and irregular.

My starch is pretty low.
I'll have a couple of masa tortillas per day, usually.
Or a potato.
I've tried strongly restricting starches almost to the point of elimination--not much effect.

I eat quite a bit of saturated fat, which Peat often calls attention to with people who wish to lose weight.
But I've tried strictly regulating that also...to little effect.

Half a gallon OJ = 200 grams, 5 heaping tbs =75 grams
Latte 9 tbs sugar = 135 grams
That is around 410 grams of sugar.
Depending on your metabolism and size this can be above your requirement.
People with low temp and low metabolism need less calories.
You can find out your resting metabolic rate online.
That can give you a guide to how much calories you need.
 
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narouz

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Mittir said:
narouz said:
Mittir-
I haven't carefully measured exactly how much carb in the form of sugar I eat.
But: I eat/drink a lot of it.
-I drink about half a gallon of OJ per day,
and to that I add 5 heaping tablespoons of white sugar.
-I average about 3 x 20oz lattes per day,
to which I add to each 3 heaping tablespoons of white sugar.
-Additionally, I usually have an orange or two per day.

I also have ice cream and Cokes, but that is rather intermittent and irregular.

My starch is pretty low.
I'll have a couple of masa tortillas per day, usually.
Or a potato.
I've tried strongly restricting starches almost to the point of elimination--not much effect.

I eat quite a bit of saturated fat, which Peat often calls attention to with people who wish to lose weight.
But I've tried strictly regulating that also...to little effect.

Half a gallon OJ = 200 grams, 5 heaping tbs =75 grams
Latte 9 tbs sugar = 135 grams
That is around 410 grams of sugar.
Depending on your metabolism and size this can be above your requirement.
People with low temp and low metabolism need less calories.
You can find out your resting metabolic rate online.
That can give you a guide to how much calories you need.

Thanks, Mittir.
Yes, I was thinking, if anything, maybe too much.
 
J

j.

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narouz said:
I eat quite a bit of saturated fat, which Peat often calls attention to with people who wish to lose weight.
But I've tried strictly regulating that also...to little effect.

It sounds like you've done everything advised. Is your vitamin D status good as well?

You haven't reached the 3 weeks of T3-only, correct?
 
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narouz

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j. said:
narouz said:
I eat quite a bit of saturated fat, which Peat often calls attention to with people who wish to lose weight.
But I've tried strictly regulating that also...to little effect.

It sounds like you've done everything advised. Is your vitamin D status good as well?

You haven't reached the 3 weeks of T3-only, correct?

It's 3 :shock: months.
I have about 3 weeks to go.
It's a funny protocol to me, in that they say they definitely see this pretty tight timeline.
I'm not getting my hopes up,
but thought it is worth a try.
 

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