Dr. Mary Newport has a theory that ketone bodies, which the body
makes when digesting coconut oil, may be an alternative fuel for the
brain. She believes that coconut oil may offer profound benefits in the
fight against Alzheimer’s disease. If her theory is accurate, it could
be one of the greatest natural health
discoveries in years.
discoveries in years.
The Backstory
Dr. Newport has her own personal history with Alzheimer’s. Her
husband, Steve, suffered from progressive dementia for at least five
years in his mid-50s, then had an MRI that supported a clinical
diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease. She recounts her story in a case
study. “Many days, often for several days in a row, he was in a fog;
couldn’t find a spoon or remember how to get water out of the
refrigerator… One day I would ask if a certain call came that I was
expecting and he would say ‘No.’ Two days later he would remember the
message from so-and-so from a couple of days earlier and what they
said.”
Dr. Newport noted that her husband had no short-term memory, yet
the information was still filed somewhere in his brain. She had a gut
feeling that his diet had something to do with it. He began taking
medication in hopes that it would help slow the process, but he became
depressed, lost weight, forgot how to cook, use a calculator or even
perform simple addition. Steve forgot how to perform many common tasks,
but would spend all day working in the yard or in his garage and
remained in good physical condition.
Finding Hope
A few studies about the potential use of medium chain triglycerides
or ketone bodies to not only treat but prevent Alzheimer’s disease
caught Dr. Newport’s eye. Medium chain triglycerides are also regarded
as a potential treatment for Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease,
multiple sclerosis, drug resistant epilepsy, and diabetes. Dr. Newport
explains, “Ketone bodies may help the brain recover after a loss of
oxygen in newborns through adults, may help the heart recover after an
acute attack, and may shrink cancerous tumors. Children with drug
resistant epilepsy sometimes respond to an extremely low carbohydrate
ketogenic diet.”
The body’s cells may be able to use ketone bodies as an alternative
fuel when glucose is unavailable. Ketone bodies do not normally
circulate in the body unless it has been starving for a few days, or if
one is on a very low-carb diet, such as Atkins. Dr. Newport explains,
“In Alzheimer’s disease, the neurons in certain areas of the brain are
unable to take in glucose due to insulin resistance, and slowly die off…
if these cells had access to ketone bodies, they could potentially stay
alive and continue to function.”
The Results
To make a long story short, Dr. Newport started giving a daily dose
of coconut oil to her husband, Steve. Just 60 days after he started
taking it, Dr. Newport recalls that Steve was alert and happy, talkative
and making jokes, and the tremor he’d developed was less noticeable. He
was able to concentrate on one task instead of being easily distracted.
Steve receives about 2 tablespoons of coconut oil twice a day, to make
sure that there are no periods where ketone bodies aren’t circulating.
After a year of the natural treatment, Dr. Newport says her husband
is a different person. She notes that he still has difficulty finding
some words, but he recognized relatives on a family trip, participated
actively in conversations, and his facial expressions were more
animated.
She adds, “For now, we are very pleased with where he is at and
should coconut oil stop or slow down the progress of his disease, it
will be worth every drop that he takes.”
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