Hi hackers,

I was wondering if there's a connection between the composition of dietary fatty acids and sebum production.

According to this study (http://www.nature.com/jid/journal/v83/n2/abs/5614792a.html) it seems that...

"...the Delta6-desaturase that produces the monounsaturated fatty acids of human sebum requires a substrate having a straight chain of at least 12 carbon atoms extending from the carboxyl group."

In my experience, when my only source of fat is coconut oil, my skin (and scalp) is getting very dry. But coconut oil contains a lot of C:12 (lauric acid).

Can there be a connection? Anyone experienced similar effects?

UPDATE:

After some research it seems that linoleic acid (yes right that's a PUFA!) is a precursor of the main sebum constituents. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2835893/)

"...making it reasonable to assume that linoleic acid is directly involved in the sebaceous lipid synthesis."

Since coconut oil doesn't contain much of it, this could explain the dry skin/scalp. Hence, going completely without PUFA seems not to be a reasonable idea...