Supplements

Can MCT Powder Help You Lose Weight?

Written by Dr. Chad Walding, DPT

Updated on July 12, 2024

MCTs are a type of fatty acid known as medium-chain triglycerides. While long-chain triglycerides are much more abundant in our food supply, MCTs can be found in foods like coconut oil, palm oil, and some dairy products.

The primary difference between medium-chain fatty acids and long-chain fatty acids is how they’re absorbed and utilized by your body.

While long-chain fatty acids have to take a trip through your lymphatic system before arriving at your liver to be converted to fuel or stored energy, MCTs get to skip the lymph and go straight to your liver. Here, they’re readily broken down and converted to fuel that you can use immediately (1).

Aside from their rapid absorption and breakdown, MCTs also provide several other benefits that can have a profound impact on your health. Research shows that metabolic health, in particular, is one area in which MCTs shine.

So, if you’re one who’s interested in maintaining a healthy weight, lean in close…

Because MCTs may just be the help you’ve been looking for.

Table Of Contents

MCTs For Metabolic Health

One of the most challenging health conditions we face in the United States is metabolic syndrome. It’s estimated to affect around 25-35% of the population (2).

Metabolic syndrome is characterized by a cluster of conditions, including (3):

  • Belly fat
  • High blood pressure (i.e. hypertension)
  • High blood sugar (i.e. insulin resistance)
  • High triglycerides
  • Irregular blood lipids such as low HDL cholesterol

Each of these factors can be dangerous on its own, but when clustered together, they can significantly increase your risk for diabetes, stroke, and heart disease.

While unhealthy eating habits and a sedentary routine can be contributing factors to metabolic syndrome, you have the power to flip those factors in your favor….

How?

By upgrading your diet, exercising regularly, and supplementing with MCT powder.

MCTs, in particular, have a powerful influence on your metabolic health...

6 Ways MCTs May Make Weight Loss Easier

There are 6 science-backed ways that MCTs can enhance metabolic health and help you maintain your weight…

1. Can Help Regulate Your Blood Sugar

Maintaining a stable blood sugar level is important for keeping your cravings at bay and your energy levels even.

If you’re living with diabetes, however, your blood sugar level is even more important.

One of the primary complications associated with diabetes is insulin resistance. Insulin is the hormone that's responsible for shuttling blood sugar into your cells to be used as energy or stored. When your cells become resistant to insulin, they can no longer respond to its signals—resulting in elevated blood sugar.

Research shows that including MCTs in your diet can improve insulin sensitivity and help your body metabolize glucose. While most research has been conducted on subjects with diabetes, this benefit seems to carry over even to people who are not diabetic (4, 5, 6)!

2. Promote a Healthy Metabolic Rate

Your metabolic rate is the rate at which you burn energy, which most of us think of as burning calories.

Everyone’s metabolic rate is different. Yours may depend on your age, sex, exercise habits, and physical makeup. For example, when a body gains more muscle mass, its metabolic rate increases because muscle demands more energy than fat tissue does.

A high metabolic rate—what we often praise as a fast metabolism—is optimal for burning calories and losing weight.

Don’t have a high metabolism? Don’t worry…

Research shows that MCTs can increase your daily calorie burn by increasing your metabolic rate. The best part? This amped-up burn appears to come from stored fat in the body (7, 8). Say goodbye to unwanted belly fat and hello to extra energy.

If you’re wondering how MCTs do this, here’s your answer…

Studies indicate that one of the ways MCTs help speed up your metabolism is by increasing the number of mitochondria in your skeletal muscles (muscles that make up 30 to 40% of your total body mass).

Muscle is a very energy-hungry tissue, and mitochondria are little energy powerhouses that live in your cells. Thus, MCT’s ability to enhance those tiny powerhouses across the body may be one of the keys to its metabolism-boosting magic (9).

Another potential reason for MCT’s calorie-burning effect is its ability to activate your sympathetic nervous system (10). The sympathetic nervous system is famous for its association with fight-or-flight responses, but this system also plays a role in your energy state, metabolism, and food intake.

3. May Aid Your Workouts

When you take MCTs, your body has more energy to expend—and that means your next workout will be a chart-topper.

Thanks to MCTs boosting your mitochondrial function, your muscles have access to more energy, and they can tap into that energy faster. The result is increased endurance and overall exercise performance that will have you thriving at the gym, on the tennis court, or on your morning walk (11, 9).

MCT may even help improve your post-workout recovery time…

When your body follows its usual routine of breaking down glucose for energy during exercise, it can create lactic acid buildup. Meaning: Your muscles will feel sore and weak. Since MCTs help your body target fat as its fuel source instead of glucose, you’ll bypass the lactic acid buildup and speed up your recovery (11).

4. Help Regulate Cholesterol Levels

While more research is needed, early studies on animal models indicate that MCTs may positively impact your cholesterol levels.

In a study conducted on mice, researchers found that MCTs reduced the reabsorption of bile acids in the small intestine. This is significant since cholesterol is one of the primary components of bile acid.

Typically, bile acids either leave the body or are reabsorbed in the small intestine to be recycled. By blocking some of the reabsorption, MCTs help excess cholesterol leave the body (12).

In another study, researchers gave a group of overweight participants a mixture of MCT oil, phytosterols, and flaxseed oil for 29 days. A second group received a placebo. The researchers found that after the trial, the MCT group showed a drop in LDL cholesterol (the “bad” cholesterol) by nearly 14%. While this study doesn’t account for the confounding factors of phytosterols and flaxseed oil, it offers an exciting step for future research (16).

5. May Help Kick Cravings

Few things will throw off well-intentioned weight loss plans faster than snack cravings.

We’ve all been there.

While it would be great if our snack cravings leaned toward the fresh veggie variety, the reality is that when in snacking mode, most of us crave unhealthy treats.

Enter: MCTs.

When you consume MCTs, they produce ketones, which are immediate sources of energy. Ketones have a different effect than the body’s other energy sources, like glucose (13).

One of the benefits of ketones is that they have a filling (satiating) effect because of their influence on two hormones: Cholecystokinin and ghrelin.

Ghrelin is known as your “hunger hormone,” as it stimulates the desire to eat. Research shows that ketones suppress ghrelin, and as a result, curb perceived hunger (14).

Cholecystokinin is a hormone that makes you feel full. When you have ketones in your blood, your body has an easier time sustaining levels of cholecystokinin, which translates to you feeling full (15).

6. Can Help Weight Management

Since you already know that MCTs make an impact on your metabolic rate, hunger, exercise endurance, and blood sugar, it’s probably no surprise to mention that MCTs can help you hit your weight loss goals too.

Long-term clinical trials show that MCTs result in less body fat accumulation over time, which can likely be attributed to MCT’s other adjacent health perks (1).

With so many powerful health benefits packed into one little scoop, safe weight loss is the cherry on top.

The Bottom Line

If you’re aiming for a high metabolism and maintained weight, MCTs are a fantastic addition to your daily routine.

And they benefit more than just your waistline: metabolic health plays a key role in the prevention of some of the most pervasive diseases in the United States, including cardiovascular disease, stroke, and diabetes.

The easiest way to add more MCTs into your life is in powder form. You can add MCTs to your morning coffee or tea, mix them into water, or add them to smoothies—whatever works for you. Before you know it, you’ll be on the fast track to a faster metabolism and vibrant new energy.

Dr. Chad Walding
Article by

Dr. Chad Walding

Dr. Chad Walding is the Co-Founder and Chief Culture Officer at NativePath. He is a Doctor of Physical Therapy with a passion for helping people eat, move, and live in harmony with their natural state.

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NativePath has strict sourcing guidelines and relies on peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical associations. We avoid using tertiary references.

    Medical Disclaimer

    This content is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of such advice or treatment from a personal physician. All readers/viewers of this content are advised to consult their doctors or qualified health professionals regarding specific health questions. Neither Dr. Chad Walding nor the publisher of this content takes responsibility for possible health consequences of any person or persons reading or following the information in this educational content. All viewers of this content, especially those taking prescription or over-the-counter medications, should consult their physicians before beginning any nutrition, supplement, or lifestyle program.

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