Coconut Oil Reduces Visceral Adipocyte Size and Improves the Metabolic Profile of Rats Fed a High-Carbohydrate Diet

This work aimed to evaluate the effects of the food supplementation with coconut oil (CO) on biometric and metabolic parameters in an animal model of obesity. Wistar rats fed a high-carbohydrate diet (HCD rats) develop metabolic disorders very similar to those found in human metabolic syndrome, including increased adiposity, insulin resistance (IR), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and dyslipidemia. Although HCD rats had normal fasting glycemia, they developed IR as revealed by Homa-IR index and, after glucose overload, exhibited higher peaks of insulinemia and glycemia. These alterations were accompanied by a higher formation of advanced glycated end products (AGEs). The supplementation with CO improved IR, reduced AGEs formation and reverted NAFLD. These effects could be due to CO action of reducing visceral adipocyte size and take place without undesirable collateral effects on lipid profile, placing CO as an adjuvant in the treatment of the metabolic syndrome.