Assessment of Virgin Coconut Oil in a Balanced Diet on Indicators of Cardiovascular Health in Non-Obese Volunteers: A Human Metabolic Study

Background and aims: Consumption of coconut oil is implicated in cardiovascular disease risk. On the contrary, virgin coconut oil (VCO) is believed to offer better health benefits, however, the evidence to support such claims is lacking, particularly in humans. Therefore, this study aimed at assessing the impact of VCO in a balanced diet on HDL-C and some of the anthropometric and biochemical parameters associated with human cardiovascular health before and after the feeding experiment. Methods: In a crossover observational study, apparently healthy non-obese male volunteers (n = 22) aged between 28 and 50years with a mean body weight of 67.5 kg were inducted into a two-arm controlled feeding experiment one after another for eight weeks with a six-week washout period. In the first arm, the diets were prepared with VCO, whereas peanut oil was used in the second arm (similar to 35g/day) as the control. Results: Compared to baseline, the consumption of VCO did not affect HDL-C and anthropometric measures at the end of the 8th week, whereas plasma total cholesterol (TC) and LDL-C levels (Means +/- standard error; 172 +/- 5.6 mg/dL versus 186 +/- 5.9 mg/dL and 113 +/- 4.29 mg/dL versus 126 +/- 4.17 mg/dL respectively) increased significantly. However, plasma triglycerides and some of the cardiovascular risk markers (namely, vascular celladhesion molecules, serum amyloid proteins and C-reactive protein) remained unaltered. Further, most of the changes in the VCO arm were comparable to the peanut oil regimen. Conclusion: The consumption of VCO in a balanced diet displayed neutral effects on most parameters related to cardiovascular risk. However, the rise in TC and LDL-C must be tested in a larger sample size over longer periods.