MCT oil is derived from coconut oil, which is composed of 60 percent medium chain triglycerides.

Coconut oil is extracted from coconuts, but you can see it's different from other plant oils as it is a white solid at room temperature. That's because it's mostly (90%) saturated fat.

You may have heard that saturated fats are bad for your health, but coconut oil contains a special kind of saturated fat.

In fact, most (65%) of the fat in coconut oil is a mix of different “medium-chain triglycerides” (MCTs). This is not the same kind of saturated fat you find in dairy and conventional meats.

Coconut oil’s medium-length chains are easily absorbed and go straight to the liver where, unlike other fats, they’re quickly metabolized (i.e. converted) into energy as special molecules called “ketones.”

Ketones can be a great brain fuel, and have been shown to help with several brain disorders such as Alzheimer's and epilepsy.

HOW MCTS CAN HELP WITH ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE

Coconut has been called a “potential cognitive strengthener” when it comes to Alzheimer's disease, and it's all because of those ketones.

Basically, your brain uses carbohydrates as its primary fuel. However, in people with Alzheimer’s, there appears to be a reduced ability to use carbohydrates in certain parts of the brain. In fact, this change has been observed in people before they went on to develop symptoms of Alzheimer’s, so that makes it even more important for all of us.

Because ketones are one of the brain's “backup” fuels, researchers have been studying the use of ketones from MCTs as an alternative energy source for those malfunctioning brain cells.

In addition to their role as brain fuel, ketones have also been shown to help protect brain neurons from the negative effects of beta-amyloid peptide (the stuff responsible for forming the brain plaques found in Alzheimer’s patients), which can start to accumulate in the brain years before symptoms of Alzheimer’s appear.

For more insight on this topic I can highly recommend the following book;

Stop Alzheimer's Now! How to Prevent and Reverse Dementia, Parkinson's, ALS, Multiple Sclerosis, and Other Neurodegenerative Disorders.

by Bruce Fife

(Yes... that is indeed the real titel. Google it.)