Can Coconut Oil help Prevent Dementia and Alzheimer's?

How long does it take to see improvement in short term memory loss and how much coconut oil is used every day? My mother had a stroke 5 years ago that affected her STM and it is getting a lot worse..none of the usual meds dished out by docs seem to help and she doesn't tolerate them..she refuses to eat vegetables or fruit. Diet consists of bread,cheese,pasta ,chicken and soup. She is 84 and I am at wits end.. Any advice you can give me is greatly appreciated..She still lives alone but has some very bad memory days and am worried she is going to go out some day and get lost.. she refuses to move in with my sister or I..maybe I can incorporate the coconut oil somehow if it will help..
Thank you .
Deb Moffat RN

I believe that Coconut oil and curcumin (turmeric) are the two supplements that continue to receive positive recognition from both the researchers and from caregivers. I recently learned that some cooking oils such as olive oil turn toxic when heated to high temperatures so we must be careful in how we use these items. I recently purchased cold-pressed and unrefined coconut oil in a soft gel so I can now take it as I would any vitamin. I don't have any memory issues but I wanted to test it out.

Hi Michelle,

Thank you for sharing your question with the EmpowHER community! I've been hearing so much about coconut oil lately and a lot of my friends have been using it for various reasons. 

Many people use coconut oil for smoother skin and other beauty regimens, but coconut oil can also help with larger health concerns. Several studies show that coconut oil can help improve dementia and Alzheimer's. According to alzheimers.net, the healthy fats in coconut oil can help improve brain function, improve how the body uses insulin, improves thyroid function and energy levels, improves cholesterol, and improves skin and hair health.

Dr. Mary Newport, a pediatrician, recently wrote a book called "Alzheimer's Disease: What if There Was a Cure?" The book has received a lot of attention because it looks at coconut oil and the positive effects it can have on Alzheimer's. Her book talks about ketones (which are found in coconut oil) and how they can help with various neurological diseases like Alzheimer's and dementia. Dr. Newport's husband has Alzheimer's and she started feeding him more coconut oil. After he took coconut oil for a while, Dr. Newport said his short-term memory, depression, and walking and vision problems improved.

Coconut oil has not completely revived patients from their Alzheimer's or dementia, but several studies have shown improvements with short-term memory. Like with any alternative medicine, it is always important to still continue seeing a doctor for serious medical concerns like Alzheimer's and dementia.

Many more hospitals are doing more studies with coconut oil to see how it can help with Alzheimer's and dementia. It will be interesting to see if the oil can help lead to new treatments! 

Hope this helped! Please let me know if you have further questions.

Best,
Erin