The Truth About Fat: Coconut Oil and Beyond

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Hey, it's JJ Virgin. And welcome to the JJ Virgin Lifestyle show where I give you the latest cutting edge intel to help you look, feel and think better. Now it has been crazy what's been going on out there about coconut oil. So today's special guest is me. I'm a four times New York Times best selling author, I'm a certified nutritionist specialist and I'm an eater. I eat food and I for years have been quite a fan of the coconut and found out about it early on, went through all of the craziness about sat fats, trans fats. So when I saw the latest research come from the or the latest study come from American Heart Association, I guess it was really much more of a post. I realized we really need to talk about this. We need to talk about the truth about coconut. And really the truth about oils. Is coconut your friend or is it a foe? What about corn oil? American Heart association recommended it. Does that mean it's making a comeback? So what should you be using? What should you be avoiding and what do you want to use for better energy, lower your risk of heart disease and diabetes and know, just be more healthy. And I know if you're listening to the show, you're tuning in because you want those things that you can do right away to take responsibility for your health. And this is a biggie. One of the key things that I've been saying for years is one of the most powerful things you can do to impact your health and lower inflammation is to make an oil change, is to swap out the fats that you're eating. We thankfully finally recovered from the low fat craze which really hurt us. And now we've really got to work on improving that fat quality. So the first thing I'm going to tackle is what came up with the American Heart association, all these silly claims that were made and what we should take from them. And I'm going to be, I have a blog post we'll be also posting with this that has all the citations because I know it gets confusing when you see these things. It's like, what the heck is going on Here with this information. And I don't know who to believe, so I always look to the biochemistry, and then we can look for research. The challenges with research, you can, you can lie with statistics and all sorts of stuff. But one of the things you, you, you'll see is if you follow the money on this one, you'll kind of get. You'll get a better clue of where this is coming from. So the American Heart association main claim number one is saturated fats like coconut oil cause cardiovascular disease. First of all, I want you to understand there's a big difference between saturated fat and trans fat. Fats that have been damaged, they've been oxidized, they were actually created. These fats were turned into saturated fats. We call them trans fats, by pumping in hydrogen, so they'd be stable and they'd extend the product shelf life. Now, if we unprocess our diet, this is no longer an issue. So that's step one. But coconut fat, a naturally saturated fat, is very different than an artificial, artificially saturated fat, a hydrogenated fat. So the research actually shows that fats in coconut oil can actually prevent your risk for factors for heart disease and stroke. The medium chain triglycerides, this is a key part of the fat in coconut oil, increases your metabolism and makes you feel less hungry. And also MCTs help prevent both the fatty deposits and the hardening of arteries that cause heart attack and stroke. All right, American Heart association main claim number two. Coconut oil increases ldl, your bad cholesterol. Okay, so here's the real takeaway here. You know, not all LDL is harmful. And coconut oil can, can even help reduce overall cholesterol levels and triglycerides. What you've got to know is that we used to think that LDL cholesterol was bad and HDL was good. Actually, now we know that within both of those, there's fractions, there's small dense, those are bad, and there's big fluffies, those are good. So if you are increasing big, fluffy LDLs, that's actually good, not bad. So it's the harmful LDL particles or small dense that's the problem. And there's no evidence to show that coconut oil increases the harmful ldl. And again, remember, you don't want to decrease the fluffy particles of ldl. If you decrease those, you actually can increase your risk of heart disease. And research shows that MCT oils can significantly lower overall cholesterol and triglyceride levels. All right, next one. Here we go. American Heart association main claim Number three, this one's so ridiculous that I just can't even believe they're doing it. Coconut oil has no known health benefits. Now I'm recording this live on Facebook. If you just think that's the biggest bunch of hooey you ever heard, I want to see some emojis on that. Like some, you know, thumbs down and I don't know, is there. Are there poop emojis somewhere that we can put out there? Because this is. This is how I feel about this. It's just poop. So here's the deal. Coconut oil is a proven antibacterial and antifungal that can also help fight disease and aging. It's been shown to be effective at fighting bacteria, viruses, and fungal infections. It can protect your brain and slow down the molecular changes that can cause aging. And it's being studied for the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer's and other serious neurological conditions. And it also helps speed wound healing and makes your hair thicker and fluffier by preventing protein loss. So here's the conclusion. It's great for your health in a multiple, multitude of ways. It can help prevent risk factors for heart disease and stroke as well as lend a helping hand to your brain and immune system. And also it helps boost your metabolism and make you less hungry. I mean, what is not to love here? Plus, it tastes yummy. And the overall conclusion about all of this, vegetable oils, especially those highly refined and processed oils like corn oil. So pro inflammatory soybean, canola. We're going to talk canola in a minute because canola oil especially makes me crazy. Crazy, crazy. Safflower oil, sunflower oil. These shouldn't be part of your diet. These are high in omega 6s, they easily oxidize, and they're pro inflammatory and toxic oxidation products. You know, oxidized fats, damaged fats have been linked to numerous pathological conditions, including atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease. So if you have too many sixes and not enough threes, you will be pro inflammatory. It's all about the balance. Our diet should be somewhere in the four to one range of sixes to three, and we're something like 20 to one now. Totally pro inflammatory. And as you know, inflammation is at the root of all of those diseases. All right, so, so next up here, in addition, many of these are made from GMO crops, further decreasing. And by the way, that's super important because you know, where toxins and crap gets stored, it gets stored in fat. So you do not want to be consuming these From GMO crops sprayed with lots of pesticides. So they're highly processed and oftentimes are processed with chemical toxins. So now they're even more nutrient, nutrient deficient and have more toxins in them. Studies show a lower risk of heart disease with a higher intake of the studies that showed a lower risk of heart disease with a higher intake of PUFAs. This was what was claimed by the American Heart Association. We're looking at this combination of omega 3s and omega 6. When you just look at studies with omega 6, they increase the risk of heart disease. All right, so here's the big takeaway for all of us. Always choose organic, unrefined, cold pressed or expeller pressed oils. Choose oils in clear, dark, rather not clear bottles. And by the way, little note here. Don't buy like the jumbo vat of oil. Buy smaller oils and store the oil in a cool, dark place away from heat and light exposure. And always tightly close the lid after using. So sticking it out somewhere warm, buying a big old jug of something is just a recipe for disaster. These things oxidize, they get rancid. Now you have damaged fats super bad. So now let's talk about some of the best choices out there for what you should be doing. I never want to tell you what you shouldn't be doing without giving you what you should be doing.

Right?

Coconut oil. Now, extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil is good for baking, it's good for medium heat sauteing. And you've heard now all the different benefits that I just talked about. And so it can help improve hdl, it can help raise hdl, it can improve the quality and size and type of cholesterol, lowers total cholesterol to HDL ratio, reverses insulin resistance, improves cognitive function. It's an antifungal and antimicrobial microbial that contains lauric acid to boost to help with immune function. Really good Epstein Barr, by the way. And can boost metabolism. I gotta tell you, if there was a drug like this, would have some crazy patent and be a thousand dollars a dose, right? I mean, am I crazy here? That's so true. All right, gotta say this, considering my last name. Extra virgin cold pressed organic olive oil. Okay. Low heat cooking or used raw.

Really?

This is a good one for salad dressings. And this is where you want to be, really finding high quality olive oils. I know there was a huge expose about olive oil and how so many of them were just these blends, these cheap blends. So spend your money on these oils. Oh my gosh, what a difference it makes. So what's so great about olive oil besides just taking a little olive oil, lemon juice and making the easiest salad dressing ever? It's rich in monounsaturated fats, helps lower your risk of heart disease, benefits, insulin levels and blood sugar control, and is loaded with antioxidants, gentle on your digestive system, and may help prevent gallstones and soothe ulcers. Okay, Avocado oil. And I saw someone on Facebook asking about avocado oil. I have been a super fan of avocado oil. I've been using my buddy Mark Sisson's Primal Kitchen avocado oil. What's awesome about avocado oil is that it's very stable, so you can use this one at higher temps. So that means should you feel the need that you are going to saute and fry, you're going to stir fry quickly, right? We're not just like frying like crazy, then this would be the one to use. Also, what's so great about this? It's high in oleic acid, which is good for cardiovascular health. It's rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and associated with numerous health benefits including good cardiovascular function, healthier lipid profiles, healthier aging, eye health because it boosts carotenoid absorption, easier weight loss because it's satiating and lower risk of certain cancers due to the glue glutathione in it and the carotenoids. Also probably good for the liver. So I mean super, super good. And here's the cool thing. We eat as this is our first line of therapy, right? So we're eating for a reason and you get amaz nutrients from these oils. Now of course I'm a big fan of the avocado and of the coconut, but this is another way that you can use them. If you've been watching me with any of my Instagram posts, you probably know that one of my favorite dinners is to just grab some clean protein out of the freezer. I use either my butcher box or my vital choice protein. Either my grass fed beef or my wild salmon. And then I steam up some broccoli and I put grass fed ghee on it. And honestly, it's like I call it broccoli crack it is that yummy. Now you can use ghee. So ghee is clarified butter. Takes the reactive parts of dairy out. I actually cannot eat dairy. It makes me mucousy, bloaty and break out. Not liking any of those things, but I can totally do ghee so if you have an issue with food and tons with dairy, most likely ghee will be fine. Even if butter still hurts you, it's got a higher smoke point so you can use it for higher heat cooking. But what's cool about it is it's got something called conjugated linoleic acid cla. You know they've talked about this helping with belly fat. I honestly have never seen it. I saw the studies and I was like, this is a miracle. Except I never saw it work. But it is supposed to be good for cancer as a good cancer fighter and boosting immunity, so and reducing inflammation. Plus it is like yummy. I mean just so yummy when you get really good. Grass fed ghee is bright yellow. Now you on Facebook, if you know what I'm talking about with this amazing bright grass fed ghee if you've had it and that bright yellow ghee if you've had on broccoli or vegetables. Like, tell me if that's not. I'd love to see some reactions to that, like big happy faces because man, it is just incredible what it will do for you. Here's another one, and this can be a little controversial. And it's virgin unrefined red palm oil. Now here's the deal. This is actually the most popular, most known oil in the world is red palm fruit oil. But it is one where they're like smashing down rainforest. So you've got to do it from places where they have it as a sustainable source, right? So that you don't like hurt the thing. It's the orangutans that are getting like losing their housing. So make sure you get this from a sustainable source. But what's important here is it's the most beautiful red color and it's loaded with tocotrienols. It's actually nature's best source of tocotrienols. Also has CoQ10 in it and it's can be used for sauteing. It's a pretty amazing oil and one that I've been using for years. I met the Malaysian Palm Fruit Council, so I've been kind of hooked on it ever since. But every time I talk about people like the orangutans, I'm like, no, no, no, you get it from sustainable sources. Okay, here's a couple other ones. And these are some things that I like to use in my salads. I have a pantry with some different nut oils. I love macadamia nut oil. Oh my gosh. Like that is my ultimate favorite. My buddy Brie the other day over for dinner, Bria, the Betty Rocker and made her from my garden, I picked out my orchard. I picked a Meyer lemon, and then I squeezed that with a little Dijon mustard and sea salt and macadamia nut oil. I'm telling you what most amazing, amazing thing ever. So macadamia nut oil, that's where I tend to use it the most. I will use it a little bit when I'm cooking salmon, so I like to do that too. But macadamia nut oil, walnut oil is one I like to use for salad dressings. I rotate it in, in and out. And some other ones you can do that with are pecan, pistachio, and almond oil. Truthly, almond oil, like, is a great, like, moisturizer too. I love the way it smells. And one other note here is sesame oil. So this one is one that I keep around. It's higher in omega 6s. I don't use it a ton, but I like to use it. If I'm doing like an Asian stir fry fry, I'll use it in there. Or an Asian salad dressing, because I just dig that flavor. So I will use it there, but that's about the only places that I really use it. Okay, so I want to talk about one more thing because it comes up all the time, and that is about canola oil. Because canola oil makes me crazy. And I remember when I was doing Freaky Eaters, we had a gal who was hooked on french fries.

That's all she.

It was crazy how many people would submit to Freaky Eaters and they were hooked on french fries. They were never hooked on broccoli or salmon. It was always seemed to be french fries. And what was interesting with that was french fries are cooked characteristically in canola oil as if it's some kind of safe oil. But canola oil is omega 3. So I've never understood why you would ever want to do that. That's like nutso. But this is a very processed oil. It's one that I tell people to avoid because the way that they create that is they use high heat, harsh chemical solvents to refine it. And because it's high in omega 3s, that means it can easily become rancid and damaged. Fats are dangerous fats. We don't want to eat them. Alrighty. So. So that wraps it up for all of the oils. The lowdown on just breaking through those myths from the American Heart Association. I had to come in and talk about that. And, you know, here's what I'd leave you with on that, on the whole American Heart association situation. I remember being in the grocery store and I'm always in there looking for what I call food porn, right? So I'm in there and I'm like, all right, what the heck? And team, if you could text me, not slack me the questions, that would be awesome. Just text me. So what I looked at is I'm looking at cereal boxes and what the heck? Seriously. Cocoa Puffs has the American Heart association stamp of approval. So that's one of the challenges. You look here and you go, okay, what is really going on here? Could we follow the money back on this? I'm just saying, I don't know, I just find it highly suspect that you could put the American Heart association stamp on approval on things that are high sugar impact with fructose, high fructose corn syrup in them. I mean, come on, that's insane. And you know what? We vote with our dollars, people. So, like, vote for eating clean, healthy food. Unprocess your diet, pick clean oils, pick clean foods. You know, if something has your stamp of approval on it, go for that stuff. All right, thank you so much for joining me. Now after the break, I'm going to be answering a listener's questions. So stay with me.

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Alrighty. Welcome back. This is the time where I answer a listener's question. And today's question comes from Kate in Mendocino. And she says, jj, what's up with your hair? Has it always been this thick? So I just finished doing this as a Facebook live, so I was watching the questions roll through and I know, I know this seems like it has nothing to do with what we're talking about here with fats and oils, but reality it does. Because thing is, a healthy diet is going to show with your hair, on your face and with your nails. So the first thing you want to do when you want to have great hair, skin and nails is to make sure. That you're eating a healthy diet, that you're digesting your protein well. So that means not just eating it and taking time to chew, but also potentially taking digestive enzymes, like my metabolic digestive balance, to help you digest your protein. The other thing then is to make sure that you're eating a good balance of healthy fats, which we talked about in detail on this show. Super duper important. I see people putting all these moisturizers on, and I'm like, you know, you kind of got to start first with moisturizing from the inside out. And of course, then a lot of the really good rainbow of vegetables to get all of the super nutrients. But there's a couple other things. Because, yes, I've always had this thick hair. I used to call it a horse hair, like the super thick, coarse hair. And then it started to shift. I'm like, what is going? Like, it was one of those things I could always count on. My skin might have gone sideways, I might had belly bloat, but I always had great hair. Until I didn't. And I was like, hold it. What is going on here? And it wasn't diet. I knew that much. But what had happened were two things. Number one, I became hypothyroid, and one of the things that I had issues with was low iron. And I can tell now when my hair. When I need an iron shot, I take iron, but I occasionally need an iron shot. And I can actually tell with my hair because it starts to feel thin. So one of the things you want to check for is your iron levels and your thyroid when your hair starts to feel like it's thinning. And the other thing, of course, is to check on your estrogen. What's really changed everything for me is getting my thyroid dialed in and my estrogen balanced. One of the things you can start to look at for hormone balance is my estrocare. But good hormone balance, estrogen and thyroid specifically, and checking your iron levels and making sure you are iron optimized, not just iron sufficient, can make a big difference here. And again, you see your nutrition and your optimal nutrition in your hair, skin and nails. It's a great place to see it. And so the minute you see a change, start to look under the hood. All right, if you'd like to submit a question, just head over to my Facebook page at JJ Virgin Official. I love getting on Facebook lives there. So pop on over.

I'm.

I'm on there usually. I have a regular show, and then I pop on more often. I also Pop onto my Instagram account so check both those places out. Those are easy places to leave a question and we're always looking for awesome questions to feature during the show. Other thing I love to feature are the reviews on itunes and these mean the world to me. This is the gratitude portion of the show and I'm going to feature my review of the week and it is from. The usa. Says little hinges swing big doors. Five stars. That's one of my sayings. If you didn't know, it's in the miracle mindset. She says JJ understands that life is not always so black and white like good nutrition. You need good mental health, relationships and the right information to accomplish your goals. Calling this the lifestyle shows the best way to describe what she is doing here. This is a great guide to believing in yourself and doing awesome things. Not only does JJ have this podcast, but she also will answer questions on Facebook Live and messages on Facebook if you're curious about anything. She's the real deal and really does care and has so much passion for a healthier world. Thank you jj. We need more people like you. Ah, all right. I love you. Thank you so much. I super appreciate. You know, sometimes you feel like you're in a bit of a black hole. You know, that's one of the reasons why reasons I love Facebook Live so much is you can actually see people in real time and they're like, I'm going there responding. This is awesome, you know, and you can see what someone wants to know more about what they don't. So that's what I love about that. And boy, we love those reviews. So keep them coming. I super appreciate it. And if you'd like to leave a review, just pop on over to iTunes, the JJ Virgin Lifestyle Show. While you're there, share it. Thank you. I so appreciate it and thank you for joining me today. I want to remind you that all this information becomes powerful when you put into action. So I'm sure you heard a couple things that you can put into play today. So be sure you do that now, not later. Later never happens. Okey dokey. Till next time, make it a great week. Bye.

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