MCT for Health

Do not expect me to answer the question in the title with certainty. You probably understand that the body is very complex and nothing is that simple; moreover, each of us is different, and when something works for one person it may not work for someone else. So let’s get back to reality, we will look at two studies and I will try to comment on the observed results in my own way. Take it as you wish—believe it or not, that is up to you. The answer to the basic question “What is good and what is bad?” may not be easy at all. Is easy and rapid fat storage good or bad? Recently it has become increasingly clear that easy and rapid storage of fat in adipose tissue is a sign of good metabolism and does not lead to obesity . Obesity is determined by overeating, the easy availability of overly tasty and overly digestible food, and insufficient satiety signaling. The ability to quickly store these surpluses without damaging metabolism determines the health of adipose tissue; unhealthy adipose t...

You probably already know this. Oxidative stress of any kind triggers the activity of enzymes called phospholipases, especially iPLA2γ, which releases oxidized polyunsaturated fats from the mitochondrial membrane . This is how cells monitor their condition and oxidative stress, and the released oxidized products derived from omega-6 linoleic acid (LA/ARA, e.g., 4-HNE) serve as signals for many processes. For example, they can also trigger chronic inflammation by activating aldose reductase (AR) and the polyol pathway . Elevated glucose levels (HG), when the enzyme ALDH2 functions insufficiently and 4-HNE molecules are attached to it, become problematic and instead of correcting oxidative stress they deepen it further. The missing ALDH2 activity can be restored using H2S (NaHS was used here) or by activating the CSE enzyme (e.g., by restricting methionine and cysteine in the diet ). I have many posts about this here; most of them concern liver cells or pancreatic cells, and therefore a...

You probably suspect that fats only begin to be stored once a signal for their storage appears in the body. But what exactly is that signal? Do we know? In an earlier post, I already searched for the answer to this question, and I believe I found it . It involved the formation of triglycerides in the liver and their export throughout the body in the form of VLDL particles. For the formation and export of fats from the liver, oxidative stress is required—specifically hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)—and oleic acid (OA). This time, we will look at fat storage in adipose tissue, in subcutaneous (SWAT) and organ (visceral, EWAT) fat. It might seem that storing fat is easy. That it does not matter which fats are available. After all, it should be enough to raise insulin levels and fat will store itself, right? But it really does not work that easily. Without oleic acid, you will not store any fats! Truly! And moreover, the association with insulin levels also somehow does not work (mice, 3 days on ...