MCT Oil

What is MCT oil? You may have come across it in the Bulletproof coffee recipe and wondered what it’s all about. We love adding MCT oil to coffee because it acts like a natural energy booster that can help kickstart your day. But there’s so much more to MCT oil benefits than quick energy.

Understanding MCT oil’s potential benefits can help you optimize your wellness plan. Whether you want to know how MCT oil can benefit your workout, how it works with keto or how it can support your mental focus, we’ve got you covered. The more you know, the better you can craft a tailored approach to your health that works for your mind and body.

Get ready to learn about MCT oil and its science-backed benefits. We’ll dive into the Bulletproof approach to MCT oil and how we produce it based on strict testing standards. We’ll also share recipes that use MCT oil and common MCT oil questions and answers. Without further ado, let’s take a look at everything MCT oil has to offer.

What Is MCT Oil?

MCT is short for medium-chain triglyceride. MCT oil is a type of dietary fat that contains medium-length chains of fatty acids. Unlike long-chain triglycerides (LCTs), found in most foods, MCTs metabolize differently in the body. MCTs absorb fast and go straight to the liver, where they can be quickly converted into energy or ketones.1 MCT oil is a great source of quick fuel, especially if you’re following a keto diet.

MCT Oil Benefits

How does MCT oil support your health? Here are a few ways it can make a difference in fueling your day.

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Quick Energy

MCT oil turns into energy fast because it’s easily absorbed by the body and goes straight to the liver. There, it’s transformed into ketones, which the body and brain can use right away for a quick energy boost.2

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Brain Power

MCTs can cross the blood-brain barrier and be used as fuel by the brain. This could enhance memory and cognition, helping you optimize your mental focus.3

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Gut Health

MCT oil supports gut health. It provides readily absorbed fats that can enhance nutrient absorption. It also promotes the growth of beneficial gut bacteria. MCT oil’s antimicrobial properties also help maintain a balanced gut microbiome. This potentially reduces the risk of digestive issues and supports gut function.4

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Increased Satiety

MCT oil can help you feel full, potentially reducing how much you eat. Plus, MCTs have been shown to increase calorie expenditure and fat oxidation, which may contribute to weight loss and fat loss over time.5

In addition to these known benefits, researchers keep finding new and exciting ways that MCT oil can help your well-being. In the next section, we explore recent scientific studies that spotlight MCT oil.

The Science-Backed Benefits of MCT Oil

Learn more about the science-backed benefits of MCT oil:

A recent study found that MCT oil could improve walking balance in healthy older adults. Participants were randomly assigned to take MCT oil or a placebo for three months. The study found that people who used MCT oil had better balance than the control group.6

Another scientific study highlights how MCT oil can improve brain health.7 Researchers studied 39 participants who took MCT oil for 6 months. The researchers tested participants’ cognition, plasma ketone response and metabolic profile. The participants who took the supplement did better on memory, language and attention tests compared to the placebo. More research could determine whether MCT can help slow some neurodegenerative diseases.

Finally, MCT might help maintain or increase muscle strength in sedentary middle-aged and older adults.8 The study divided participants into groups taking different amounts of MCTs and compared them to a control. After 12 weeks, they found that all MCT groups showed increased knee extension strength compared to the control. These research findings suggest that MCT oil could be a great diet addition for people looking to stay strong as they age.

Research on MCT oil is ongoing, but we’re already convinced it can play an important role in the Bulletproof diet.

The Bulletproof Approach to MCT Oil

At Bulletproof, we value nutrient-dense foods and supplements that can help you optimize your body and mind. We believe it’s important to avoid sugars in processed foods and most grains to support mental clarity and energy levels. We prioritize healthy fats, proteins and vegetables and limit carbs. Through a keto diet, we want to help you enhance your performance.

MCT oil helps support ketosis for increased fat-burning and energy production. That’s why we love to add it to everything from smoothies to salad dressings. MCT oil and keto make a great pair.

How to use MCT oil? It has a low smoke point, meaning it can’t withstand high temperatures without breaking down and producing harmful compounds. MCT oil is best used for low-heat cooking methods at temperatures below 320°F (160°C), as a finishing oil or as an add-in supplement to drinks.

Spotlight on MCT Oil

MCT oil is a fantastic addition to the Bulletproof diet and other types of keto diets. This is because it is a beneficial fat source that rapidly converts into ketones, providing you with a quick energy boost. As you already know, we add it to Bulletproof Coffee, a staple in our diet, to help you kickstart your day.

Our MCT oil derives from coconuts, but only a small part, about 7%, of coconut oil consists of C8 fatty acids. We use these C8 fatty acids to make Brain Octane C8 MCT Oil. C8 means that the MCTs contain fatty acids with eight carbons, known as caprylic acid. Research suggests this is the most ketogenic type of fatty acid.9 This means it is converted into ketones by the liver more efficiently than other types of fatty acids, making it a great fuel source for your brain.

We produce MCT oil using strict ingredient sourcing and composition testing standards. We want to make sure you are getting the best quality supplement, with proven efficacity and safety.

Our Supplement Testing Standards

We want to help you feel your best with top-quality products that deliver. We only use pure ingredients with no GMOs, soy, gluten or artificial additives. You can trust our products to do what they say they do.

We choose ingredients based on scientific research and the latest peer-reviewed journals. We use traditional and scientifically proven ingredients and have strict sourcing standards.

Our supplements go through four layers of extensive testing carried out by third-party labs. The first step in testing supplements like MCT oil involves checking that all ingredients are present and not diluted. Then, we make sure they’re pure and don’t have any harmful contaminants in them. After that, we check if they have the right amount of active ingredients as written on the label. The last step is to make sure the supplement meets all the label specifications. This helps us make sure our supplements are safe, work well and have the correct information on the label.

Do these testing procedures take more time? Yes. But we stand by our commitment to uncompromising quality. We make informed decisions using unbiased and accurate results.

FAQs

What’s the difference between MCT oil vs. coconut oil?

MCT oil and coconut oil are both derived from coconuts, but they have some key differences. MCT oil is made by extracting medium-chain triglycerides from coconut oil. Coconut oil contains a mix of MCTs and other types of fats. MCT oil contains a higher concentration of specific types of MCTs, like caprylic and capric acid. Your body can quickly convert these into energy. Coconut oil contains more lauric acid, which is metabolized differently.

How much MCT oil per day is recommended?

If you’re new to MCT oil, start with 1 tablespoon per day. You can gradually increase your dose to 2 or more tablespoons per day,10 spread out from morning until night. If you take too much, too fast, you may experience digestive discomfort. Start small and see how you feel.

Can MCT oil improve endurance?

MCT oil can raise ketone levels. But the body may not use these ketones as well as its main energy source during endurance exercise.11 More research is needed to understand the role of MCT oil in endurance training. That said, consuming MCT oil before exercising could help give you an initial burst of energy for your workout.

What is MCT oil good for?

MCT oil is a natural energy booster because it’s easy for the body to digest and turn into fuel.12 It can help you lose weight by making you feel full and supporting fat burning.13 Plus, MCT oil can be beneficial for your brain function and focus because it can provide an alternative energy source to glucose.14 In summary, MCT oil can be helpful for energy, weight management and brain health.