MCT Oil: what it is and what it is used for

The Enecta products:

they are not medicines;
they are obtained from hemp varieties registered in the Common European Register and in compliance with the other requirements provided by law 242/2016;
they have been duly notified in the European Cosmetic Products Notification Portal (CPNP).

Our blog articles are for informational purposes only and are not intended to qualify our products as medicines or to attribute therapeutic properties to them.

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The MCT oil or coconut oil is one of the carrier oils we use to deliver our hemp extracts, but what exactly is this oil and what are its characteristics? We tell you about it in this article.

What is MCT oil?

MCT oil is an oil made up of medium-chain triglycerides that in turn are made up of glycerol and three medium-chain fatty acid molecules.

Medium-chain fatty acids contain from 6 to 12 carbon atoms, and the most well-known are:

Caprylic Acid (C8)
Capric acid (C10)
Lauric acid (C12)

These fatty acids also belong to the category saturated fatty acids because they do not have double bonds in the chemical structure, with some advantages and disadvantages.

Compared to long-chain triglycerides, MCTs provide fewer calories, namely 8.4 kcal/g, but quick, immediate energy because they are rapidly absorbed and metabolized. This unique property of MCT oil makes it a ideal choice for health-conscious consumers and for some pathologies.

The metabolism, digestion, and absorption of MCTs are different from those of long-chain triglycerides, such as essential fatty acids.

In fact, after hydrolysis and the release of fatty acids, the latter are transported directly through the bloodstream of the hepatic portal vein to the liver where they undergo a β-oxidation process that leads to the formation of ketone bodies. Ketone bodies act as a rapid energy source for the body.

So medium-chain fatty acids do not reach the lymphatic system for the resynthesis of the triglyceride molecule that is not stored as adipose tissue as fat favoring weight loss.

MCT triglycerides are naturally found in thecoconut oil, in palm kernel oil and to a much lesser extent in bovine milk fat but are also synthetically produced through esterification and interesterification reactions starting from glycerol and medium-chain fatty acids.

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MCT Oil: what is it for and how can it be useful?

MCT oil was launched on the market as an exceptional source of energy for various types of clinical nutrition such as fat malabsorption, atherosclerosis, obesity, parenteral nutrition, etc... and has also been used in formulations for infants.

is known to have good physiological and functional characteristics that help treat various health disorders.

Thanks to their numerous benefits, MCTs are used as functional or nutraceutical oils in various food and pharmaceutical formulations.

Among the various functions, benefits, and uses of medium-chain fatty acids, we remember:

not being stored, they can be used for promote weight loss and control obesity

they have a high satiety value, which prevents excessive food consumption

serve as source of quick energy for sportspeople, athletes and also for those who have an inability to metabolize sugar due to old age

the consumption in the diet is related to theincrease in psychological health and to the memory enhancement

a recent study on rats has shown that a diet rich in MCT can reduce anxiety and lead to an improvement in social behavior in rats (Hollis et al. 2018; Ashton et al. 2021). These effects are closely related to the metabolism that produces a ketone body, namely β-hydroxybutyrate. The increased formation of this ketone body results in such positive effects

they can be used in the epilepsy management. The ketone bodies generated after the metabolism of MCTs can pass through the blood-brain barrier and are transported to brain cells, showing good results in reducing epileptic seizures compared to the ketone bodies generated from glucose metabolism

mixed together with other oils and phytosterols can help in the cholesterol level regulation

added to the essential fatty acids, they can be used for patients with cardiovascular problems, obesity, cancer, and inflammation

they are also effective results against SARS Coronavirus-2 because it is able to modify the lipid metabolism in the virus. The virus replicates rapidly, and this replication requires energy that is extracted from long-chain fatty acids. Long-chain fatty acids are also necessary for the attachment of the virus envelope to the host cell. MCTs reduce the formation of long-chain fatty acids, making them unavailable to the viruses, leading to their death.

is believed that medium-chain fatty acids have antimicrobial properties; they destroy the bacterial colony in the intestinal tract by lowering the pH. Recent research has reported that a 3% MCT supplement results in a decrease in total coliform bacteria present in the rectum and colon.

Does MCT oil have contraindications?

The use of MCT oil must be weighted especially if used for therapeutic purposes; it is necessary to follow the instructions of professionals who prescribe appropriate therapy based on the issue, evaluating case by case.

The MCT oil has been an area of interest for food scientists' research, but there is a lack of knowledge about the dosage and negative effects on the human body.

Safety and toxicity remain an unexplored area. There is a study reported in the literature that shows synthetic lipids with 30% medium-chain fatty acids can help reduce weight without any negative effect on the bodies of mice. There are some reports available in the literature demonstrating the effect of MCT oil on increasing high-density lipoproteins HDL (good cholesterol), but the research does not provide evidence of the effect of these fatty acids on low-density lipoprotein LDL (bad cholesterol) levels and total cholesterol levels.

MCT oil cannot be used in the daily diet as a single substitute for traditional cooking oil because it lacks polyunsaturated fatty acids, especially the essential ones: alpha-linolenic acid (omega 3) and linoleic acid (omega 6).

must be mixed in a certain amount with other oils edible and therefore can be used for cooking and even frying food because otherwise it produces a greater amount of smoke when heated due to the presence of medium-chain fatty acids and easily forms foam.

This problem could be overcome by designing a synthetic oil with a combination of medium-chain fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids bound to a single glycerol molecule.

What is the difference between coconut oil and MCT oil?

Thecoconut oil is of natural origin, derived from the pressing of dried copra (also called endosperm or pulp) of the fruit of the coconut plant.

The oil obtained from coconut contains about 46-54% lauric acid, 5-10% caprylic acid, and 5-8% capric acid in the form of triglycerides.

So MCTs (medium-chain triglycerides) are the main component of coconut oil.

With fractional distillation, triglycerides can be separated from each other, thus obtaining preparations containing a single triglyceride or a mix of them, with concentration varying according to market needs.

The MCT oil instead can be either of natural origin, derived by distillation from coconut oil or palm kernel oil, but also of synthetic nature, produced through an esterification or interesterification reaction starting from glycerol and medium-chain fatty acids.

Despite this significant difference in origin, synthetic MCT oil can be of excellent quality, also available in pharma grade compliant with the European and Italian Pharmacopoeia, suitable for the production of medicines.

MCT oil in Enecta products

The MCT oil we use to carry our hemp extract reflects the most high quality levels available on the market, we purchase it directly from certified and verified Italian suppliers whom we select with great care.

We use natural MCTs derived from coconut oil both for the CBDay line, dedicated to sSupport the body in case of stress and anxiety, which for the CBNight line, dedicated to improve the quality and quantity of our sleep and to regulate the circadian rhythm thanks also to the presence of melatonin and other natural extracts.