The Surprising Benefits of Lauric Acid for Your Skin and Health

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsHow the Body Uses Lauric AcidHealth BenefitsLauric Acid for SkinUsing Lauric Acid Safely

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

How the Body Uses Lauric Acid

Health Benefits

Lauric Acid for Skin

Using Lauric Acid Safely

Lauric acid is asaturated fatty acidfound in vegetable fats, primarily coconut, coconut milk, and coconut oil. The plant compound is not found alone in nature and can only be extracted from the natural plants that contain it. A common dietary source of lauric acid is coconuts.

How Lauric Acid Benefits Your Health

Using lauric acid for the skin is gaining popularity, especially incoconut oil. Though lauric acid is an active compound, little research has determined whether it is the lauric acid alone or a combination of it and other properties incoconut oil that can help with skin conditions.

Psoriasis

Lauric acid contains anti-inflammatory properties. Becausepsoriasisis an inflammatory condition, coconut oil may have a positive effect on it. However, more research is necessary to prove or disprove the use of lauric acid for psoriasis.

One study looked at the benefit of using coconut oil as a pretreatment undergoing light therapy and saw no significant difference between the coconut oil group and the control group.

Acne

Putting Coconut Oil on AcneThough coconut oil does contain lauric acid, researchers in the study used diluted lauric acid, not coconut oil, to determine its effect on the skin. That said, some other research has found that coconut oil could benefit inflammatory acne.It’s important to avoid using coconut oil on acne without getting the go-ahead from a dermatologist.

Putting Coconut Oil on Acne

Though coconut oil does contain lauric acid, researchers in the study used diluted lauric acid, not coconut oil, to determine its effect on the skin. That said, some other research has found that coconut oil could benefit inflammatory acne.It’s important to avoid using coconut oil on acne without getting the go-ahead from a dermatologist.

How to Safely Use It

To reap the internal benefits, you must consume lauric acid through food, mainly coconuts or coconut oil. You can use coconut oil in various foods, such as baked goods and sautéed vegetables.

How Much Coconut Oil Is Too Much?Though consuming coconut oil daily to get more lauric acid in your diet is generally considered safe, it is classified as a saturated fat, so you should consume no more than 2 tablespoons per day, or 1 if you have/are at risk of developing heart disease.

How Much Coconut Oil Is Too Much?

Though consuming coconut oil daily to get more lauric acid in your diet is generally considered safe, it is classified as a saturated fat, so you should consume no more than 2 tablespoons per day, or 1 if you have/are at risk of developing heart disease.

Summary

When it comes to skin diseases or conditions, lauric acid may be beneficial due to its antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory effects. However, research on the topic is still scarce. Because of that, you should always speak to a healthcare provider before applying coconut oil or products with lauric acid to your skin conditions.

7 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Cancer Institute.Introduction to the lymphatic system.National Center for Biotechnology Information.PubChem: compound summary: lauric acid.Dayrit F.The properties of lauric acid and their significance in coconut oil.Journal of American Oil Chemists’ Society.15 November 2014; 92(11):1-15. doi:10.1007/s11746-014-2562-7Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital.Ask a dietitian: Is coconut oil good for me?Jones VA, Patel PM, Wilson C, et al.Complementary and alternative medicine treatments for common skin diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis.JAAD Int.2020 Dec 26;2:76-93. doi:10.1016/j.jdin.2020.11.001Huang WC, Tsai TH, Chuang LT, et al.Anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties of capric acid againstPropionibacterium acnes: a comparative study with lauric acid.J Dermatol Sci.2014 Mar;73(3):232-40. doi:10.1016/j.jdermsci.2013.10.010American Heart Association.Saturated fat.

7 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.National Cancer Institute.Introduction to the lymphatic system.National Center for Biotechnology Information.PubChem: compound summary: lauric acid.Dayrit F.The properties of lauric acid and their significance in coconut oil.Journal of American Oil Chemists’ Society.15 November 2014; 92(11):1-15. doi:10.1007/s11746-014-2562-7Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital.Ask a dietitian: Is coconut oil good for me?Jones VA, Patel PM, Wilson C, et al.Complementary and alternative medicine treatments for common skin diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis.JAAD Int.2020 Dec 26;2:76-93. doi:10.1016/j.jdin.2020.11.001Huang WC, Tsai TH, Chuang LT, et al.Anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties of capric acid againstPropionibacterium acnes: a comparative study with lauric acid.J Dermatol Sci.2014 Mar;73(3):232-40. doi:10.1016/j.jdermsci.2013.10.010American Heart Association.Saturated fat.

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

National Cancer Institute.Introduction to the lymphatic system.National Center for Biotechnology Information.PubChem: compound summary: lauric acid.Dayrit F.The properties of lauric acid and their significance in coconut oil.Journal of American Oil Chemists’ Society.15 November 2014; 92(11):1-15. doi:10.1007/s11746-014-2562-7Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital.Ask a dietitian: Is coconut oil good for me?Jones VA, Patel PM, Wilson C, et al.Complementary and alternative medicine treatments for common skin diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis.JAAD Int.2020 Dec 26;2:76-93. doi:10.1016/j.jdin.2020.11.001Huang WC, Tsai TH, Chuang LT, et al.Anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties of capric acid againstPropionibacterium acnes: a comparative study with lauric acid.J Dermatol Sci.2014 Mar;73(3):232-40. doi:10.1016/j.jdermsci.2013.10.010American Heart Association.Saturated fat.

National Cancer Institute.Introduction to the lymphatic system.

National Center for Biotechnology Information.PubChem: compound summary: lauric acid.

Dayrit F.The properties of lauric acid and their significance in coconut oil.Journal of American Oil Chemists’ Society.15 November 2014; 92(11):1-15. doi:10.1007/s11746-014-2562-7

Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital.Ask a dietitian: Is coconut oil good for me?

Jones VA, Patel PM, Wilson C, et al.Complementary and alternative medicine treatments for common skin diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis.JAAD Int.2020 Dec 26;2:76-93. doi:10.1016/j.jdin.2020.11.001

Huang WC, Tsai TH, Chuang LT, et al.Anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties of capric acid againstPropionibacterium acnes: a comparative study with lauric acid.J Dermatol Sci.2014 Mar;73(3):232-40. doi:10.1016/j.jdermsci.2013.10.010

American Heart Association.Saturated fat.

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