Go Nuts for Coconut Oil! (Part One)
Go nuts for Coconut Oil! (Part One)
Coconuts! To me, one of the most underestimated and underused foods in western culture given its superb health benefits. Coconuts are not actually nuts at all, they are in fact seeds. They will sprout a shoot that grows in to another tree when nurtured within the correct environment. Most other seeds are much smaller than coconuts, and withhold all their nutritious goodness inside a hard indigestible outer shell. If you have ever eaten bread containing whole linseed (aka flaxseed) before, you may also know that they come out the ‘other end’ exactly the same as they went in. Still in their whole state and completely undigested, therefore making their nutritional value entirely lost to us while in their whole food form. Coconuts however, are great because the seed is big enough to cut open, and contains many different constituents that yield several useful products including water, milk, flesh and oil. Even the outer fibre can be used to make rope and cloth!
It goes without saying, that living in Europe makes coconuts are a rare and somewhat pricey commodity. Unlike when visiting parts if the world such as the West Indies, where it is not unusual for me to ask a family member or friend to climb a tree and retrieve a few (tree climbing was never one of my strong points!). So for those of us living in a cooler climate, I would like to concentrate on the many uses of coconut oil, as not only does it have a naturally longer shelf live than other parts of the seed, but its benefits are so bountiful, l that you are definitely missing out if this miracle oil is not regularly incorporated in to your regime.
Coconut oil is extracted from both the milk and the meat of the seed depending on the extraction technique. This beautifully sweet smelling oil is predominantly made up of a medium chain fatty acid called lauric acid. In fact pure coconut oil is the richest natural source of lauric acid, containing around 40% - 50% on average. Lauric acid is important because the body converts it in to a lipid called monolaurin, which has antimicrobial, antifungal and antiviral properties. Monolaurin works by interfering with the membranes of microbes, funguses and viruses, rendering them useless which eventually destroys them.
Why is this relevant to us? Well, coconut oil so powerful, that it is being used to effectively assist in the prevention and treatment of a multitude of ailments including
To name but a few. Research is also being done to test the effectiveness of lauric acid against the spread of HIV and cancer!!!
Coconut oil provides around 7 grams of lauric acid per tablespoonful. In my opinion, it beats taking prescribed or over the counter pharmaceutical drugs any day of the week. Just a spoonful a day is all it takes. Take it neat as you would any other medicine, plus you won’t have to worry about any offensive taste or residue in the mouth.
Amazing stuff right?! So don’t put it off any longer. The price of coconut oil ranges greatly from anything between £2 for 500ml to a whopping £15 depending on its quality pertaining to the extraction method, if it’s cold pressed, organic etc. I personally prefer the better quality stuff as I want to consume the most unadulterated form of the oil. But if you are on a tight budget, then the less expensive variety is still a lot better then nothing at all! You can buy coconut oil online, in health food stores and in some cases your local supermarket (don’t be afraid to ask your supermarket to start stocking coconut oil if it makes your live easier, they are normally quite accommodating and they won’t want you to take your custom elsewhere!), plus many ethnic food stores stock coconut oil as it is used very regularly in some cultures.
In part two of Go nuts for Coconut Oil, I will show you how to use coconut oil in your cooking and why it could even help you lose weight!
"Here’s to you and your coconutty health!"
Shelley Winford
Personal Trainer and Fitness Instructor
Latest Fitness.tv writer
www.naturesnamebrand.com
