Coconut oil used to treat dementia

A doctor in the US has begun to offer a natural coconut oil treatment that he believes slows down and can even reverse the effects of dementia.

Dr JG Moellendorf has utilised research conducted by Dr RL Veech to demonstrate that coconut oil can effectively treat neurodegenerative diseases.

Some scientists believe that Alzheimer's and other types of dementia act like diabetes on the brain, starving it of glucose. When the body runs out of glucose, it begins to use ketones to provide energy.

Dr Veech discovered that the liver can convert medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) into ketones for use immediately, rather than being stored in the body. He found that 66 per cent of coconut oil is MCTs and demonstrated that it increases blood flow to the brain by 39 per cent.

Another doctor, Mary Newport, discovered Dr Veech's research and began administering coconut oil to her husband, who has severe Alzheimer's.

She said: "Instead of being very sluggish, not talking very much in the morning, he would come out in the morning with energy, talkative, and joking, and he could find his water and his utensils."

Coconut oil treatment is now available from the Moellendorf Chiropractic Office and Dr Moellendorf speculates that the treatment could benefit patients with other neurological conditions, such as Parkinson's.

Find out about dementia care and support services at Barchester care homes.