Coconut Oil & Altzheimer's

When I first began researching the use/safety of coconut oil, one of the first articles I ran across was Dr Mary Newport's 'What if there was a cure for Altzheimer's' - written last year, about a month after she & her husband Steven (only 58, but diag. with Altz.) began using coconut oil & his dementia began decreasing! Since my own mother had dementia, I've been interested in avoiding it - & that article tipped the balance to my 'coconut oil switch!'

Mary's blog gives updates on Steven's progress - a year later, he continues to improve, is happy, & recently got 'bored' - so he's now volunteering at the hospital where Mary works! They have settled on a combo of coconut oil (together, they consume a gallon a month!) & MCT oil, as the MCT oil is faster acting & raises his ketone levels more, but the coconut oil is better at sustaining his mental clarity.

Altzheimer's is being called by some 'Type III diabetes' as there's a connection between how sugars are processed by the liver & brain.

In her most recent blog entry, Mary writes: "A St. Petersburg Times reporter contact me a few days ago, who is doing a story about Axona (the prescription MCT oil) and came across the MCT/CO information on the internet. He wants to do a story about the coconut oil and MCT oil along with the story about Axona and wants to talk with some other folks who have had some results with CO or MCT oil. If anyone would like to have some input, his name is Steve Nohlgren and his email address is Nohlgren@sptimes.com ."

In an earlier post, Mary writes about a a report on BBC News that eating curry once or twice weekly "may fight dementia." Dr Newport comments that the assumption is that the curcumin in the curry makes the difference - but curry is usually made with coconut milk, which contains medium chain fatty acids (from the oil), which will be converted in the liver to ketones.
She ends with the comment: "If there is not enough curcumin in curry to make a difference maybe this other ingredient will!" I just picked up an Indian cookbook w/ lots of curry recipes - most gluten free :) when I was at Borders on the weekend, & look forward to trying them.

If you or a loved one is concerned about your memory - you might consider tring coconut in its many forms!! It's on the federal gov's 'GRAS' (Generally recognized as safe) list, suitable for people of all ages, as MCT oil is used for hospitalized infants & elders!

A fellow on the Yahoo 'coconut oil forum' also suggested checking into a product made from jellyfish that addresses 'calcium binding proteins' for brain health!
Intresting - watching a short video interview on the site, I noticed the researcher presenting the info had the round face & neck that I associate with a sluggish thyroid - wonder if the folks at Quincy Bioscience are aware of the benies of coconut?? :)