Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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If medium-chain fatty-acids are so good for us, how come human milk is mostly made of long-chain fatty-acids? Is there a difference between children and adults in terms of nutritional needs?

It is my understanding that medium-chain fatty-acids (especially abundant in coconut oil) are easily digested and utilized as a source of energy, and thus considered a great choice in general, but especially for people with digestive, metabolic, and neurological problems.

Now, I have found this quote "The milk fats of man, dog, and guinea pig, [are] largely made up of long-chain fatty acids... The milk fats of cow, sheep, and goat, [are] rich in short-chain acids... Horse milk, ... contains large amounts of medium-chain fatty acids..." (Source: http://www.jlr.org/content/8/5/473.abstract)

Short- and medium-chain fatty acids are similarly digested: "[s]hort-chain fatty acids, just as medium-chain fatty acids, are taken up directly to the portal vein during lipid digestion, in contrast to long-chain fatty acids, which are packed into chylomicrons and enter lymphatic capillaries and enter the blood first at the subclavian vein." (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Short-chain_fatty_acid)

How is it possbile that human milk has a less-than-ideal fat composition when compared to that of horse/cow/goat? Or is the hype around medium-chain fatty-acids exaggerated? Or am I getting something wrong?

flag	asked Jan 24 2011 at 10:59 Paola 1,310●1●3●9

Paul Jaminet · Answer 1 · 2011-05-27 15:43:32Z UTC

Human milk does have short- and medium-chain fatty acids. They represent almost 10% of total calories. That corresponds to about 2 tbsp/day coconut oil for an adult.

That's approximately what you would ingest if you use coconut milk or oil for all your cooking and some of your sauces.

No one would say you should get most of your calories from these fats. But a few tablespoons a day is probably healthful.

Higher doses make a diet ketogenic which can have therapeutic value in certain diseases, especially neurological disorders.

Like all macronutrients, how "good for us" something is depends on the dose. There are diminishing returns as quantity increases.

James · Answer 2 · 2011-02-01 18:12:37Z UTC

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If humans burn up MCT easily, what makes you think that enough would make it to the milk to support the baby?

answered Feb 1 2011 at 18:12

James
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TD · Answer 3 · 2011-05-26 19:40:08Z UTC

Sheep, cows, horses, and goats are born and need to be able to stand and move quickly. Dogs, guinea pigs, and human babies are born quite immobile. Evolution most likely determined the fatty acid profile of the milk of migrating herd animals.

dveej · Answer 4 · 2011-02-01 17:16:53Z UTC

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The text in comment #1 above is from Dr. Harris' blog: www.paleonu.com.

answered Feb 1 2011 at 17:16

dveej
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In his recent blog, Dr. Harris reaches the opposite conclusion on the subject: he writes that human milk, similarly to coconut, is actually a good source of MCT. The best source of LCT, in his opinion, is ruminants' milk. And this would make more sense to me than what I personally found on the subject. But then, ironically, Dr. Harris suggests to consume more LC fatty acid (as in cow's milk) then MC fatty acid (as in human milk and coconut). paleonu.com/panu-weblog/2011/1/29/… – Paola Feb 2 2011 at 0:55

aaa · Answer 5 · 2011-03-01 21:15:56Z UTC

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"No animal drinks the milk of other animals."

yes they do, dogs and cats. wild animals do not drink milk because it is not available to them. when given choice it is possible that many other carnivores and omnivores would not object consuming milk.

and rats do not mind cow milk as well.

answered Mar 1 2011 at 21:15

aaa
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cats and dogs drink milk for the same reason they eat gluten-laden kibbles and bits. Because we give it to them, we force it! – justanotherhunt Mar 1 2011 at 21:21

score 0 · Answer 6 · 2011-05-27 03:40:33Z UTC

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not trying to say something definitive, but just wondering:

you posit that "medium-chain fatty-acids are so good for us" - is that really so? does the fact that they "are taken up directly to the portal vein during lipid digestion" signifies that they are necessarily "good" for us?

what if the body just desperately tries to get rid itself of the stuff as soon as possible?

edited May 27 2011 at 3:40

answered May 27 2011 at 3:16

gn

	thats interesting point... – Mallory May 27 2011 at 17:58
	gn, it seems to me that if the body were trying to get rid of MCTs, they would not be shunted to the brain so quickly. – bachcole Jun 21 2012 at 21:24

Jacqui · Answer 7 · 2013-01-04 17:10:37Z UTC

Having been investigating the benefits (or otherwise) of medium chain fats and in particular coconut oil you might find these links interesting.

Man made MCT's are used to treat certain illnesses, and one trial showed benefits of MCT's in a controlled study.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15674308

http://endo.endojournals.org/content/146/5/2255.full

http://www.lipidworld.com/content/2/1/10

Medium-chain fatty-acids and milk

7 Answers