A lot of good things can be said for the humble coconut. A few years ago, coconut oil was considered as a bit of a “bad boy’ in the food industry. However, thanks to scientific research we have learned more about the health benefits of coconuts and coconut oil.
For many thousands of people around the world, coconuts are an essential part of their daily diet. In the West, we have been a little bit slow in making part of our diet mainly down to common misconceptions.
Does coconut oil cause heart disease? No, it does not. As a matter of fact, the entire coconut is packed with essential nutrients such as minerals, antioxidants, and dietary fibers we should all be eating more of on a daily basis.
The good folk at The Coconut Company have long been aware of all of the goodness contained in the coconuts.
Make Fresh Coconut a Part Of Your Diet
Fresh coconut, or young coconut, should be part of your diet. We know the nutrients in coconuts can help us to combat many modern health conditions such as allergies and even constipation.
If you are an athlete, you should put coconuts close to the top of your weekly shopping list. Did you know they are packed with electrolytes that can help to boost your workout?
Electrolytes are essential when it comes to maintaining energy in the body. They boost and maintain your body’s natural energy levels better than sugar. Energy drinks will make you feel you have boosted your body’s natural energy, however, there is a downside. They are often packed with caffeine which does not help to elevate your body’s energy production for very long.
Caffeine will give your body a quick boost, but you are soon over the peak. Electrolytes continue to stimulate the cells to produce more energy and help you to sustain your energy level for longer.
Electrolytes also boost hydration. As we all know, the one thing that will get us off that treadmill or spinning bike is dehydration.
Coconuts Pack a Nutritional Punch
One thing you don’t have to worry about when you make coconuts part of your diet, is added sugar, salt or ‘bad’ fats. Coconut water, for example is low in fat and calories. Coconut oil is high in ‘good’ fats and zero sugar. Coconut milk contains some natural sugars, but also good fats.
Take a closer look at coconut water, and you will find it is packed with healthy levels of carbohydrates, natural minerals, and various proteins. On top of that, you will find other daily nutritional essentials such as vitamin C and the full range of B vitamins.
Our bodies can’t manufacture B vitamins. Unless we add them to our daily diet, our very limited supply quickly becomes depleted. We can within days develop vitamin B deficiency if we don’t have enough vitamin B in our diet.
Antioxidants And Coconuts
Antioxidants are nutrients that help our body to fight off infection and inflammatory disease. Most fruits and vegetables contain them in large numbers. Some fruits contain unique antioxidants that are hard to find.
Coconuts are a good example of that. The antioxidants found in coconuts are preserved in coconut oil. This is one of the reasons a spoonful of the oil gives your immune system a boost.
Coconut Oil – A Healthy Fat
We are often told to add healthy fats to our diet. Is coconut oil a healthy fat?
Despite what you may have been told, it is a healthy fat that your body can use to boost energy levels. It’s become widely recognised that the medium chain fatty acids found in coconuts, are used by the body as a fast energy resource and are not stored for the long-term. Therefore, a good quality coconut oil that has been cold-pressed, is good for you, as it contains a lot of those medium chain fatty acids, such as capric and caprylic acid.
Coconut Oil can use it for both frying and baking. Just like when you buy olive oil, make sure you buy an oil that has been produced naturally and has not been blended with other oils.
Can Coconut Oil Help Me To Lose Weight?
As part of a balanced diet, it’s been suggested that coconut oil can help you to lose weight. It is a medium-chain fatty acid the body finds easy to metabolize. In other words, instead of the oil “hanging around” it will be burned up by the body and turned into productive energy.
A good idea would be to replace hard fats such as butters and margarines with coconut oil.
You can also add the flesh and milk of coconut to your diet. Both are packed with a range of healthy proteins which can help you to feel fuller longer and top up your energy reserves in a natural healthy way.
Coconut And Looking Good Naturally
Coconut oil has been an essential part of the beauty and skincare industry for a long time.
There is a very good reason for that. Modern western manufacturers of beauty and skincare products learned about the unique qualities of coconut from ayurvedic medicine.
Coconut in its many forms has long been part of natural medicine. Today we know it can help to reduce wrinkles, remedy psoriasis and help us to cope better with skin allergy outbreaks.
Not only that, but slightly warmed up coconut oil will also help to soothe the pain of arthritis in both major and small joints.
Yet another good reason, you should make the coconut part of your daily routine.
Cooking With Coconut
Indian style of cooking would simply not taste the same if it was not for the addition of coconuts.
This wholesome ingredient is easily added in anything from soups to breads. The taste blends in with many healthy spices such as ginger and turmeric.
Don’t forget that coconuts are packed with proteins, some of which are rather hard to come by. When you eat a lot of plant-based foods, coconut is an excellent ingredient to add to your cooking to boost protein intake.
Not only will you add a range of healthy proteins, but you will also add extra fibre to your diet. It will help you to feel fuller for longer and build up your immune system.
You really can’t go wrong when it comes to coconut and there is no reason why coconut oil should not have its pride of place in your home larder or kitchen cupboard.