These supposed health benefits range from improved heart health, weight loss, treatment of bowel diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome and Crohn’s disease, high cholesterol management, increased energy, and reduced symptoms of chronic fatigue syndrome. Sometimes the lists of potential benefits grow so long they resemble some of the miracle elixir lists promoted centuries ago.

Right now, I want to stick with potential heart-related benefits of two oils. I'll look carefully at coconut oil because it has received a lot of attention lately. Finally, I'll compare it to my favorite heavyweight among oils, olive oil.

Two main types of coconut oil are virgin and refined:

Most of the research into the health benefits of coconut oil both as a cooking oil and as an essential oil for skin care has been done using virgin coconut oil.

1. It contains antioxidants that can decrease oxidative stress. Virgin coconut oils in the diet are rich in antioxidants such as flavonoids and polyphenols, which have many potential heart-health benefits. When the heart and blood vessels are exposed to a process called oxidative stress, plaques can develop in arteries, which can lead to heart attacks. Blood vessels can stiffen and cause high blood pressure; and heart failure can develop. Antioxidants help reduce oxidative stress in the body and lower inflammation.

Polyphenols reduce blood pressure in elderly people with high blood pressure, studies find. Polyphenols have also been shown to reduce the growth of atherosclerotic plaques in arteries in animal studies. Also, in animal studies, researchers have found that polyphenols can help blood vessels relax and become less stiff , preventing the early first steps in the development of high blood pressure.

2. It can reduce total and bad cholesterol. Virgin coconut oil contains both monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. These are healthy fats that can lower cholesterol, in particular, our triglyceride levels. Virgin coconut oils also increase enzymes, such as lipoprotein lipase, that help break down fat. In addition, virgin coconut oil increases the production of bile, which aids in our body’s digestion of and removal of fats. In animals, this leads to a lowering of the bad cholesterols (LDL, VLDL), triglycerides, and total cholesterol count.

3. It helps weight loss through increased calorie burning. Virgin coconut oil contains about 60 percent to 63 percent medium-chain fatty acids, which our bodies use as efficient energy sources. Consumption of medium-chain fatty acids increases calorie burning and thus can promote weight loss. In a study of 20 obese men, those who consumed 30 milliliters of virgin coconut oil per week decreased their waist circumference on average 2.86 cm. This was a small study, but one that suggests we need a larger one to examine the best dose and find out if the early benefits of using virgin coconut oil are retained.

In Sri Lanka, isolated populations of people called Veddas or “forest people" largely live in protected forests. They observe a lifestyle similar to what would have been encountered thousands of years ago. Their diets largely consist of coconuts, fruits, yams, and occasional game shot with bows and arrows. The only constants in their diets are coconuts, which do not have seasonal variation, and the game they hunt. As a consequence, most of their dietary fat comes from coconuts, and to a lesser extent animals.

In a study of 207 Veddas, of which 39 percent smoked, only 3.8 percent developed high blood pressure. More importantly, after a number of cardiac tests were performed on Vedda patients, not one case of heart disease was found. It's also important to consider that these people live a life that is not sedentary, which also is very heart-healthy. Despite this, the lack of identifiable heart disease amongst the Veddas is truly remarkable, particularly when I consider the community in which I live, where almost every family is effected by heart disease in some way.

Even in the general Sri Lankan population, where the average person eats approximately 120 coconuts per year, heart disease is relatively uncommon (1 person out of 100,000 dies of heart disease each year).

If we could get anywhere close to these numbers in the United States, I would be out of business.

For starters, the amount of research behind the healthy heart properties of olive oil is substantially greater than that available for coconut oil. Olive oil is one of the primary components of the Mediterranean diet. In a prior column I reviewed evidence on diets to prevent heart disease over the past 50 years.

Let's break this down in a heart-healthy and heart-unhealthy analysis:

Olive oil has more "good fat," monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, than virgin coconut oil. For example, 1 tablespoon of olive oil contains 11 grams (gm) of monounsaturated fat and 1 gm of polyunsaturated fat. In comparison, a tablespoon of coconut oil contains 0.1 gm of monounsaturated fat and 0.25 gm of polyunsaturated fat. In a quick analysis, olive oil has 5 to 10 times the amount of good fat we need to consume.

Olive oil has less saturated fat than coconut oil. Saturated fat, particularly from animal products, can increase our bad cholesterol (LDL), and increase risk of developing atherosclerotic plaques and coronary artery disease.

For example, 1 tablespoon of olive oil contains 1 gm of saturated fat. In comparison, 1 tablespoon of coconut oil contains 13 gm of saturated fat. In a quick analysis, coconut oil contains more than 10 times the amount of potential bad fat compared to olive oil. This analysis is not quite as simple as the other. Saturated fats from some plant-based products are not as bad as those from animal-based products. Most of the saturated fats in coconut oil comes from lauric acid, which can increase bad cholesterol (LDL) but also good cholesterol (HDL). Because it increases both good and bad cholesterol, the risk of using coconut oil may not be as significant, or even significant at all.

With any efficient food source, the amount of calories per serving becomes important. Even healthy foods consumed in excess can become unhealthy. When is comes to calories, both olive oil and coconut oil are similar. One tablespoon of olive oil contains 120 calories, compared to 130 calories in a tablespoon of coconut oil.

For me, right now, olive oil is the best choice for heart health because:

Much more research supports the long-term benefits of olive oil in humans. This is not a true knock on coconut oil. The same may be true of coconut oil, but we just have to wait for the human data to come in to guide us.

The quantity of polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats is clearly higher in olive oil. These good fats have many heart-healthy properties, including lowering inflammation, improving cholesterol, lowering risk of heart disease, and, in animals, lowering the risk of abnormal heart rhythms.

Still, if you are a coconut oil enthusiast, there is a lot to be optimistic about. Coconut oil has a lot of potential heart-health benefits, and there have been remarkable findings in people who consume a lot of coconut.

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