Coconut Oil: It’s Health Benefits and Why It’s in My Diet

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure

I have become very interested in prevention of disease. Because I have dealt with a few more minor health issues, I have realized how much easier it would have been just to prevent it in the first place. Sometimes, once a certain weakness has developed in your body, it can be really hard to get rid of. Once your immune system is worn down, it is a long journey to rebuilding it.

I have realized how much wiser it is to try to prevent health problems, instead of a “fire control” approach to health. In my journey towards learning more how to eat in a disease preventative way, coconut oil has kept coming to the forefront. I don’t know what caught my eye first, it’s anti-fungal, antimicrobial, antioxidant elements, or it’s cancer and heart disease fighting properties. Because coconut oil has an immune boasting effect, it can help any individual trying to regain their health. It’s also nice that it actually can help you lose weight instead of gain.

Coconut oil may help prevent many illnesses

I got introduced to it’s many health benefits a few years ago. Just the fact alone that is helps build up your immune system, was enough to make me interested. Many people report that when they eat a higher amount of coconut products in their diet, they stopped catching colds and the flu. Wouldn’t that be nice!

While coconut oil (and other saturated fats) have gotten a bad rap from the politically correct health gurus, coconut oil and other coconut products has been the base of many cultures diet. And yes, they were very healthy people. I say were, because many of them have abandoned their traditional food, and are now eating more American food and paying the price with their health. For those of you who have concerns because of what politically correct dietitians say about coconut oil, I would especially advise reading some of the articles by Mary Enig (a leading expert on fats), which are linked to at the bottom of this page.

I have found Bruce Fife’s Book, The Coconut Oil Miracle, very interesting. He goes into depth how coconut oil can help prevent heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and how it helps you lose weight, and keep your skin and hair beautiful. Each of these topics are huge, and there is no way that I can thoroughly address all of them. But I found this section in the book a good summery, which I hope to will wet your appetite for more information (and more coconut oil!). I have added the formatting to aid you in reading it.

Coconut oil has been used as both a food and a medicine for centuries in many cultures throughout the world. Traditional forms of medicine use coconut oil for a wide variety of health problems, ranging from the treatment of burns and constipation to gonorrhea and influenza. Modern medical research is now confirming the effectiveness of coconut oil for many of these conditions. Research over the past several decades has demonstrated that the medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil are digested and metabolized differently from those of other fats. This difference gives the oil many health benefits obtained from no other source.

Easy to Digest (Helpful for infants, the elderly, and those with digestive issues)

Medium-chain triglycerides in coconut oil don’t require pancreatic enzymes or bile for digestion. They are easy to digest, making them ideal for infants, cystic fibrosis patients, and those who have digestive problems, including those with gall bladder disease and those who have had their gallbladders removed.

Coconut oil useful for malnutrition

Coconut oil has been recommended for use in the treatment of malnutrition because it provides a quick and easy source of nutrition without taxing the enzyme systems of the body. It also improves the absorption of minerals (particularly calcium and magnesium) B vitamins, and fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K and Beta-carotene), as well as some amino acids.

Coconut oil helpful for losing weight, getting energy and improving thyroid function

The MCFA’s in coconut oil are used by the body to produce energy, not make body fat. Coconut oil stimulates metabolism, increase energy and improves thyroid function, all of which aid in reducing unwanted body fat. For these reasons, coconut oil has gained a reputation as being the world’s only natural low-calorie fat. Researchers have recommended the oil as a means to prevent and even treat obesity.

Coconut oil is Heart Healthy

Coconut oil is heart healthy. It does not negatively affect blood cholesterol, does not promote platelet stickiness that leads to blood clot formation and does not collect in the arteries. Coconut oil posses anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties, all of which protect arteries from atherosclerosis and from heart disease. Those people around the world who consume the most coconut oil have the lowest rates of heart disease. this is true even for those populations who get as much as 50 percent of their daily calories from saturated fat, primarily from coconut oil.

Coconut oil is helpful for fighting against yeast, bacterial, fungi, and parasites

The MCFAs possess powerful antimicrobial properties that kill a variety of disease-causing bacteria, fungi, viruses and parasites, yet they do not harm friendly gut bacteria or contribute to antibiotic resistance. Coconut oil may be of great help to those with common infections such as influenza and candida as well as more serious problems like HIV.

Because of its resistance to free-radical formation and its ability to support the immune system, coconut oil may be useful in preventing or treating a wide assortment of conditions, many of which aren’t even discussed in this book. Medical research and health care workers are discovering new health benefits associated with coconut oil all the time.

Are you interested and intrigued yet? Here is a more comprehensive list of what coconut oil can help, quoted from Bruce Fife’s site, The Coconut Research Center.

Published studies in medical journals show that coconut, in one form or another, may provide a wide range of health benefits. Some of these are summarized below:

• Kills viruses that cause influenza, herpes, measles, hepatitis C, SARS, AIDS, and other illnesses.

• Kills bacteria that cause ulcers, throat infections, urinary tract infections, gum disease and cavities, pneumonia, and gonorrhea, and other diseases.

• Kills fungi and yeasts that cause candidiasis, ringworm, athlete’s foot, thrush, diaper rash, and other infections.

• Expels or kills tapeworms, lice, giardia, and other parasites.

• Provides a nutritional source of quick energy.

• Boosts energy and endurance, enhancing physical and athletic performance.

• Improves digestion and absorption of other nutrients including vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.

• Improves insulin secretion and utilization of blood glucose.

• Relieves stress on pancreas and enzyme systems of the body.

• Reduces symptoms associated with pancreatitis.

• Helps relieve symptoms and reduce health risks associated with diabetes.

• Reduces problems associated with malabsorption syndrome and cystic fibrosis.

• Improves calcium and magnesium absorption and supports the development of strong bones and teeth.

• Helps protect against osteoporosis.

• Helps relieve symptoms associated with gallbladder disease.

• Relieves symptoms associated with Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and stomach ulcers.

• Improves digestion and bowel function.

• Relieves pain and irritation caused by hemorrhoids.

• Reduces inflammation.

• Supports tissue healing and repair.

• Supports and aids immune system function.

• Helps protect the body from breast, colon, and other cancers.

• Is heart healthy; improves cholesterol ratio reducing risk of heart disease.

• Protects arteries from injury that causes atherosclerosis and thus protects against heart disease.

• Helps prevent periodontal disease and tooth decay.

• Functions as a protective antioxidant.

• Helps to protect the body from harmful free radicals that promote premature aging and degenerative disease.

• Does not deplete the body’s antioxidant reserves like other oils do.

• Improves utilization of essential fatty acids and protects them from oxidation.

• Helps relieve symptoms associated with chronic fatigue syndrome.

• Relieves symptoms associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia (prostate enlargement).

• Reduces epileptic seizures.

• Helps protect against kidney disease and bladder infections.

• Dissolves kidney stones.

• Helps prevent liver disease.

• Is lower in calories than all other fats.

• Supports thyroid function.

• Promotes loss of excess weight by increasing metabolic rate.

• Is utilized by the body to produce energy in preference to being stored as body fat like other dietary fats.

• Helps prevent obesity and overweight problems.

• Applied topically helps to form a chemical barrier on the skin to ward of infection.

• Reduces symptoms associated the psoriasis, eczema, and dermatitis.

• Supports the natural chemical balance of the skin.

• Softens skin and helps relieve dryness and flaking.

• Prevents wrinkles, sagging skin, and age spots.

• Promotes healthy looking hair and complexion.

• Provides protection form damaging effects of ultraviolet radiation form the sun.

• Helps control dandruff.

• Does not form harmful by-products when heated to normal cooking temperature like other vegetable oils do.

• Has no harmful or discomforting side effects.

• Is completely non-toxic to humans.

In my next post I will talk more about my own journey of added coconut oil into our daily diet and where I buy coconut oil. But meanwhile, here are some helpful resources for you to study further.

Coconutoil.com has a page providing links to different articles written by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig that is very helpful. If you have questions about saturated fats, and other issues regarding coconut oil, they give in depth answers to many such questions.

Coconut Connection also had a large amount of information about coconut oil and it’s health benefits. They also have many links to other helpful articles.

The Coconut Research Center is Bruce Fife’s website devoted to bringing you information about tropical oils. He has a page for resources, and another for personal stories.

Eat Fat, Lose Fat, by Sally Fallon and Mary Enig, provides both information about coconut products and many wonderful recipes using them as well.