Consuming Coconut Oil

Over the last few days with the rain and virus keeping us indoors I've had the chance to delve into a few books that have been waiting patiently on the bookshelf. A couple friends of mine use coconut oil on a regular basis for baking, cooking and helping a variety of ailments. One of my friends lent me a whole stack of books on coconut oil written by Bruce Fife N.D.. I already have a jar of Nutiva Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil in my cupboard so I figured it couldn't hurt to learn more about coconut oil.

In the past, coconut oil was labelled as bad fat, unfit to be consumed, causing all sorts of cardiovascular problems. Today many people and even health care professionals still believe this to be true. AskDrSears.com states that coconut oil is "the least healthful naturally occuring oil".

In my university days I took a course on nutrition and one thing I remember clearly was that the professor described coconut oil as a good fat, a special fat even though it is a saturated fat. According to Bruce Fife "coconut oil is the healthiest oil on earth". That's a bold statement, and there does seems to be research and science to support his claim.

I flipped though three books by Bruce Fife, a naturopathic doctor, and here's a few things I found interesting:

Coconut oil is unique because it contains medium chain fatty acids which are more easily absorbed, transported and metabolized by the body than the long chain fatty acids found in animal fats. Because of the way the body processes coconut oil, coconut oil is converted directly into energy like carbohydrates. In fact, you need to eat a lot of coconut oil before its stored as fat like other oils. Numerous testimonials report increased energy and weight loss with regular consumption of coconut oil in their diet. Also, coconut oil doesn't contain cholesterol and people who have a diet high in coconut like the Pacific Islanders have very little heart disease, cancer and degenerative diseases.

A "Drugstore in a Bottle", this is what proponents of coconut oil call it. Coconut oil has been used for thousands of years to treat human ailments. Interestingly, coconut oil contains some of the same substances as breastmilk (lauric acid) which help explains its antibactirial, antiviral, antifugal and immune enhancing properties. Coconut can also be used to improve skin and hair.

Bruce Fife recommends that an adult should try consuming 2-4 Tbsp. of coconut oil per day either by cooking/baking, eating it directly or applying it to the skin. I've started adding coconut oil to our morning oatmeal and using it for cooking and baking. Coconut Oil Cooking has some interesting coconut oil recipes that I'd like to try. I'm hoping that it will help boost our immune systems, especially Sweetpea's.