Medium-Chain Fatty Acids Travel Directly to the Liver via Capillaries and the Portal Vein
Susan I've heard that saturated fats are bad for the body and unsaturated fats are good, and that omega-3 is anti-inflammatory while omega-6 is pro-inflammatory. But why are medium-chain fats used so much in ketogenic diets?
Dr. Lee Excellent question. In "medium-chain fatty acid," "medium" refers to medium length, and "chain" refers to a chain of carbons (see Figure 5-2). So medium-chain fatty acids are fatty acids with carbon chains of medium length.
Susan What does "medium length" mean exactly? Are there short and long ones, too?
Dr. Lee Exactly. You can imagine a fatty acid as a chain of varying length. Another analogy: a fatty acid is like a bead necklace, where each bead is a carbon atom. Depending on the number of beads โ that is, carbon atoms โ fatty acids fall into three groups. Short-chain: 2 to 4 carbons. Medium-chain: 6 to 12 carbons. Long-chain: 14 or more. Medium-chain fats are abundant in coconut and palm oils.
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References marked with [number] in the text will be organized and added later.
โป Detailed sources and academic references can be checked in the book Appendix.