Last week, I discussed the latest on intranasal insulin and Alzheimer’s disease. In mid February, I mentioned in passing that I was asked about coconut oil as a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. Since then I have been besieged by questions about coconut oil. Bizarrely, the two articles converge. Let me try to provide a reasoned response to whether to try coconut oil as a treatment for neurological disease.

The idea of using coconut oil to treat Alzheimer’s disease gained popular attention through Alzheimer’s Disease: What if There Was a Cure: The Story of Ketones a recent book written by Dr. Mary Newport. The book is an extended case study of Dr. Newport’s husband. She was frustrated with current treatments and theorized that the problem behind Alzheimer’s disease was that brain cells were starved for glucose.
This is the same mechanism that makes intranasal insulin a potential treatment. In short, Alzheimer’s disease may be a “brain form of diabetes.” The hope is that insulin therapy may improve cognition, especially if started early enough (what constitutes “early enough” is still vague and undefined).

Dr. Newport theorized that as the brain is being deprived of its primary energy source, glucose, that ketones, an alternative energy source, could be used to fix the problem. Enter coconut oil. Coconut oil (or palm kernel oil) provides a dietary source of ketones.and may, therefore, be used to treat Alzheimer’s disease. She tried her theory with her husband. Her husband was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in his early 50s and she was disappointed with available treatments. She gave him 20 grams of coconut oil twice a day and observed remarkable improvement over the next year. One source states that “the dementia continued to reverse itself.” It bears emphasis that this is a study of one person.

The bottom line is that this is a remarkable case study. The only downside I can find is that coconut oil as found in the grocery store is a highly saturated oil – like butter. This raises concerns about heart disease and stroke. However, some supermarkets and health food stores sell virgin coconut oil which has no trans fats.

In my opinion, this is a lot of theory but with no real evidence. Although the case study suggests a direction for research, both treatment with ketones and intranasal insulin need to be explored in rigorous clinical trials before we know whether they will prove to be effective treatments for neurological disease and whether there are so far undiscovered side effects. Until then be careful of the intensive marketing campaigns. Take supplements, including coconut oil, only after consultation and evaluation by your physician.