I have been using coconut oil for a little over 3 years. I add a heaping teaspoon to my coffee (in each of two mugs full) in the mornings, to hot chocolate, and I use it topically as a natural (toxin-free) sunscreen. I’ve also been mixing it with my Young Living essential oils to create facial scrub (mixed with granulated sugar or sea salts for a natural exfoliant), facial cream and whipped body butter. It leaves skin moisturized, silky smooth, and supple. (It can be used to remove make-up as well. Just saturate a cotton ball and wipe away make-up effortlessly.) I use both unrefined and refined coconut oil; the unrefined has a definite coconut smell and taste, and the refined is odorless and has no taste. I prefer the refined when mixing with my essential oils so that the fragrance of the essential oils are not overpowered by the coconut fragrance.
*Note: When mixing with essential oils it is important to store in a glass or essential oil-approved container. Pure essential oils can break down the plastic, and you don’t want to apply that to your skin. Small canning jars are the perfect size and are inexpensive.
Coconut oil is liquid at room temperature but solidifies when chilled. For sunscreen, I pour some coconut oil into a small cup (like the disposable individual serving applesauce cup), cover with plastic wrap, and store in the refrigerator. When needed, just pop it out of the cup in solid form and run lightly over skin, then smooth it in until absorbed. (It is a bit greasy at first, but it does absorb.) Something stronger may be needed if time is spent at a lake, but for my purposes of sun protection while working in my yard it has worked well to prevent burning and excessive drying of my skin. It allows in the beneficial rays needed for our bodies to produce vitamin-D.
I have been seeing mixed reviews lately on health benefits, so I wanted to share some information I found.
Composition of Coconut Oil
More than 90% of coconut oil consists of saturated fats, along with traces of a few unsaturated fatty acids such as monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids. We have been told for years to stay away from saturated fats because they cause health issues, but more recent research is showing that not all saturated fats are bad. Some are beneficial and even needed in order for our bodies to absorb other nutrients such as vitamins A, D, E, and K; we just need to investigate which are healthy for us and in what amounts.
Saturated fatty acids: Most of the saturated fatty acids in coconut oil are medium chain triglycerides (MCTs), which have been shown to be easily assimilated by our bodies’ systems. MCTs are a fat source for patients who cannot tolerate other types of fats. Researchers also think that these fats produce chemicals in the body that might help fight Alzheimer’s disease.
Coconut Oil and Medium-Chain Triglycerides
-Lauric acid: Coconut oil contains 40-50% Lauric acid, followed by capric acid, caprylic acid, myristic acid and palmitic. The lauric acid in coconut oil is used by the body to make the same disease-fighting monolaurin that babies make from the lauric acid they get from their mothers’ milk. Monolaurin helps to prevent microbial infections and studies have shown it to be effective in fighting viruses, fungus, and bacteria.
-Capric acid: It reacts with some of the enzymes secreted by other bacteria, which subsequently convert it into a powerful antimicrobial agent, monocaprin.
-Caprylic acid, caproic acid and myristic acid: They have antimicrobial and antifungal properties
Unsaturated fatty acids: Linoleic acid (a polyunsaturated fatty acid) and Oleic acid (a monounsaturated fatty acid)
Poly-phenols: Coconut contains Gallic acid, which is also known as phenolic acid. These polyphenols are responsible for the fragrance and the taste of coconut oil and Virgin Coconut Oil is rich in these polyphenols.
Derivatives of fatty acid: Betaines, ethanolamide, ethoxylates, fatty esters, fatty polysorbates, monoglycerides and polyol esters.
Derivatives of fatty alcohols: Fatty chlorides, fatty alcohol sulphate and fatty alcohol ether sulphate
Vitamins and Minerals: Vitamin E, vitamin K and minerals such as iron.
As I was searching for information, I came across quite a few reports of how coconut oil has helped several people who had been diagnosed with dementia (including Alzheimer’s disease). I am not implying that it is a cure, but it has shown promising results in relearning forgotten skills and in improving memory retention.
In a 2004 study published in the journal of Neurobiology of Aging, they found that the MCFA’s found in coconut oil improved the memory problems in their older subjects.
Across all the patients there was a marked improvement in their recall ability after taking this fatty acid. As the MCFA’s are absorbed easily in the body and can be accessed in the brain without the use of insulin, they are able to fuel brain cells more efficiently. 20 Coconut Oil Benefits & Side Effects
I found a video about the use of coconut oil in treating the husband of Dr. Mary Newport. Because it was not a standard clinical trial, it has been dismissed by some of the medical community as “anecdotal” evidence. However, much of our traditional and holistic approaches started at one time as anecdotal evidence, and I believe it is important to look further into it as at the very least, an enhancement to traditional medical treatment.
This video is about 30 minutes in length. Video: The Empowering Neurologist – David Perlmutter, MD and Dr. Mary Newport
This one is a short (8-minute) video with some helpful and maybe surprising insights from four reputable doctors: 4 Doctors on Coconut Oil and Alzheimers Video
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