What Are MCT Oils?
MCT stands for Medium-Chain Triglycerides. They are typically found in coconut oil. The difference is that coconut oil also contains long-chain fatty acids and short-chain fatty acids.
All 3 chains (long, medium, and short) get metabolized differently in the body, and here is where MCT Oils and intermittent fasting make an excellent combination.
How Will The Body Use MCT Oils?
Did you know that the MCT Oils do not get stored as fat when you consume them?
They actually go straight to the liver and burn immediately or get excreted out of the body.
So taking MCT oils is basically taking the best part of the coconut oils.
But wait, a tablespoon of MCT Oil has 115 calories. Why would you even want to take them when you are fasting?
Benefits Of MCT Oils
Some of the benefits you get with MCT Oils (backed by science) are:
- Cognitive improvement
- Lower blood sugar
- Hunger suppressant
- Increase energy
- Better lipid profile
- Reduce inflammation
Besides that, the reason why it gets so much fuzz these days is that it helps you produce ketones in the body.
But if you are reading this article, you probably already knew that.
The question is, should you take them during a fast?
Will MCT Oil Break A Fast?
This is a frequently asked question, and it is an excellent question to have because the answer will actually change depending on the reason/s you are doing Intermittent Fasting.
Usually, there are 5 reasons why you would want to do intermittent fasting.
- Blood Glucose And Insulin Sensitivity
- Autophagy And Human Growth Hormone
- Weight Loss And Ketones
- Intestinal Stem Cells
- Immune Reboot
The metric used to measure if you are on a fast is usually your insulin levels. Anything that raises or spikes your insulin will technically break a fast.
So the first question would be.
Will MCT Oil Spike My Insulin?
Having 1 tablespoon of MCT Oil will raise your insulin levels because we already established it has 115 calories.
In theory, anything above 50 calories will spike insulin levels.
The exact amount will vary from person to person, but you could say that 115 calories is enough to raise your insulin.
Having said that, we mentioned 5 reasons you would want to do intermittent fasting. Not all of them are affected by the insulin spike.
MCT Oil For Weight Loss And Ketosis
If you are on a calorie deficit, you can still lose weight even though you raised your insulin in small proportions.
If you have enough fats in your body, you can still produce ketones even if you raise your insulin in small proportions.
Saying it in other words, if you take MCT Oil while fasting, and your goal is weight loss and ketones, you would technically still achieve your goals.
That is the reason why many people actually recommend it during a fast.
Combining a Keto Diet with Intermittent Fasting has many benefits in your body, and adding MCT Oils to your diet will improve the results by staying in ketosis.
How long does it take for MCT oil to put you in ketosis?
Remember that MCT oil is not a magic ingredient that will immediately push you into ketosis. It will only help you boost the results in case you are falling in and out of ketosis.
This means that you should always be eating a diet high in fat and doing at least 14 hours of fast to make sure you are able to achieve ketosis.
Will MCT Oil Stop Autophagy?
In this case, yes, because the metric for autophagy is not ketones, it is insulin, and you will be raising it with MCT oil.
So then we end up with the most important question.
Why would you miss all the other benefits if you are already doing intermittent fasting?
MCT Oil While Fasting
When is the best time to take MCT Oils while doing intermittent fasting?
1. Beginning Of Your Fast
This means you should take it with your last meal of the day.
Why the last meal?
It is a hunger suppressant, so it will help you avoid eating anything between your last meal and going to bed. At the same time, you already have food in your body. A typical problem is taking the MCT oils without having food in your body since it will send you straight to the bathroom.
This means that if you do the opposite (taking the MCT oils at the end of your fast), you would probably want to be near a bathroom. You should always have some food before taking the MCT oil.
So quick recap, take it at the beginning of your fast (last meal), not when you break your fast (first meal).
2. Before Exercising
Here we have a small dilemma since you could be exercising fasted or exercising during your feasting window.
If you are exercising during your fasted window, the recommendation would actually be not to take the MCT oil because it would break your fast and send you to the bathroom. The benefits of having 1 or 2 hours more of fasting should actually surpass having the MCT Oils. This is not backed by science; it is just an opinion.
On the other hand, if you are exercising during your feasting window, having some MCT Oil would be beneficial because you would get the extra boost in energy and metabolism.
So as always, the answer is, it depends. Just make sure to consider the timing of your exercise.
3. During Feasting Window
If for some reason you can not take it at the end of your fast, or before exercising, you can take it during your feasting window.
Just make sure not to take it during your fast even if you are doing it for weight loss and ketones. As we said before, you will actually get more benefits if you take them during your feasting window. Try to get all the benefits of intermittent fasting!
How To Take MCT Oil?
The best way to have it is to mix it with another liquid without elevating its temperature. This means you should not use it for cooking, nor should you apply it to a burning cup of coffee.
If you elevate the temperature of an MCT oil, you will be breaking it down, and it will release polar lipids. This will cause inflammation in the body, which you are actually trying to avoid at all costs.
What liquids could you mix it with?
- Water
- Coffee (warm)
- Smoothie
One of MCT Oil’s benefits is that it is tasteless and odorless, so it shouldn’t change the flavor of the drink you are having.
Adding It All Up
If you decide to take MCT Oils and you are currently doing intermittent fasting, make sure you follow these rules.
- Take it at the beginning of your fast (last meal of the day)
- If you exercise during your feasting window, take it before exercise.
- Mix it with liquids.
- Never heat it up.
