Coconut oil, MCT oil and feelings of fullness in people
What it found
In people, coconut oil did not make them feel as full or eat less at lunch compared to MCT oil.
Both oils led to less food eaten over the whole day than regular vegetable oil.
What they found
Studies in people
Food eaten at lunch
People ate less food at the sandwich lunch after the MCT oil smoothie. Coconut oil and vegetable oil did not reduce the amount eaten at this meal compared to each other.
Fullness after breakfast
Over the three hours after breakfast, people felt fuller when they had MCT oil. Coconut oil did not increase feelings of fullness any more than the vegetable oil control.
Total daily food intake
Across the whole day, people ate an average of 428 kcal more after the vegetable oil breakfast than after MCT oil. They also ate 280 kcal more after vegetable oil than after coconut oil. There was no difference in total daily calories between coconut oil and MCT oil.
Taste of the drinks
Participants rated the coconut oil smoothie as less pleasant to drink than the MCT oil smoothie.
Upset stomachs
Five people reported feeling sick after drinking the MCT oil smoothie. No one reported side effects from the coconut oil or vegetable oil drinks.
What the authors conclude
- They conclude that coconut oil does not have the same effects on hunger and food intake as MCT oil.
- They note that while coconut oil reduced total daily food intake, the 26g dose used is likely more than someone would normally consume in a day.
- The authors call for further research using smaller amounts of coconut oil in overweight and obese individuals.
How it was done
Many media articles suggest coconut oil helps with weight loss in the same way as MCT oil. The authors wanted to test if coconut oil really has the same effect on hunger and food intake as pure MCT oil.
Twenty-four healthy men and women took part in a randomised trial across three separate days. After fasting overnight, they drank a smoothie containing 205 kcal of either coconut oil, MCT oil or vegetable oil. Three hours later they ate sandwiches until comfortably full, and kept a food diary for the rest of the day.
What it can’t tell you
- This study only looked at single test days, so it cannot show what happens to weight or appetite over weeks or months.
- The researchers excluded people with obesity, so the results might not apply to them.
- Because five people felt sick after the MCT oil, their nausea may have influenced how much they ate, making it harder to separate the oil's true effect on hunger.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Oxford Brookes University, UK
The paper
- Title
- Coconut oil has less satiating properties than medium chain triglyceride oil
- Type
- Randomised controlled trial
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Cite
- Kinsella R, Maher T, Clegg ME (2017). Coconut oil has less satiating properties than medium chain triglyceride oil. Physiology & behavior. doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2017.07.007Free full textPubMed 28689741DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error