Are you wondering what coconut oil is useful for? The benefits of this oil can be used in skin care, hair care, weight loss, treating fungal infections, improving digestion and increasing immunity against a number of infections and diseases. Coconut Butter So coconut oil is used not only in tropical countries where coconut plantations are abundant, but also in the USA, Canada, Europe and Australia. People are discovering the wonders that this oil can create and it is gaining popularity worldwide.
Health Benefits of Coconut Oil
Coconut oil has several health benefits, the most important of which are its usefulness in hair care and skin care.
Hair Care
Do you know the reason for the long and shiny hair of women in tropical coastal areas? Yes, it is coconut oil. Women in tropical coastal areas of the world use this oil for their hair almost every day. This thick butter-like oil helps in healthy hair growth and gives shine to the strands. It is quite effective in reducing protein loss which if left unchecked can lead to various unhealthy qualities in your hair. This is why it is used in the production of hair care oil and various conditioners and dandruff removers. Now, are you wondering how to use coconut oil for your hair? Apply it topically to your hair or use coconut oil hair mask.
Are you worried about damaged hair? Again, coconut oil is the solution. It is an excellent conditioner and helps in the regrowth process of damaged hair. It also provides the necessary proteins needed to nourish and heal damaged hair. Research studies show that it provides better protection to the hair from damages that occur due to hair.
By massaging your head with coconut oil regularly, you can ensure that your scalp is dandruff-free, even if your scalp is chronically dry. It also helps in keeping your hair and scalp free from lice and nits.
How to Use Hibiscus for Hair Growth?
Answer: Hibiscus can be applied topically in various ways to promote hair growth as follows: Make a paste of dried hibiscus flowers and mix it with pre-warmed coconut oil and massage it into your hair.
Skin care
Did you know that coconut oil is great for your skin? Coconut oil is an excellent massage oil that acts as an effective moisturizer for all skin types, including dry skin. Unlike mineral oil, there is no chance of any negative side effects on the skin from applying this oil. Therefore, it has been used safely for thousands of years to prevent dryness and skin flaking. Yes, you read that right – thousands of years!
It also helps in treating various skin problems like psoriasis, dermatitis, eczema and other skin infections. Therefore, coconut oil forms the basic ingredient of various body care products like soaps, lotions and creams used for skin care. Moreover? it also delays the appearance of wrinkles and sagging skin that normally accompany aging. The credit for this benefit is based on its well-known antioxidant properties.
Weight loss
Coconut oil is also beneficial for weight loss. It contains short and medium chain fatty acids that help in shedding excess weight. Studies suggest that it helps in reducing abdominal obesity in women. It is easy to digest compared to other cooking oils and helps in healthy functioning of the thyroid and endocrine system. It also increases the body’s metabolic rate by removing the stress on the pancreas, thus burning more energy and helps obese and overweight people lose weight. Therefore, people living in tropical coastal areas who use coconut oil as their primary cooking oil every day are not normally obese or overweight.
Increases immunity
Coconut oil is good for improving your immunity. It strengthens the immune system because it contains antimicrobial lipids, lauric acid, capric acid, and caprylic acid, which have antifungal, antibacterial, and antiviral properties. The human body converts lauric acid into monolaurin, which research has supported as an effective way to deal with viruses and bacteria that cause diseases such as herpes, flu, cytomegalovirus, and even HIV. Coconut oil helps fight harmful bacteria such as Listeria monocytogenes and H elicobacter pylori, as well as harmful protozoa such as Giardia lamblia.
Improves digestion
Coconut oil helps improve the digestive system and therefore prevents various stomach and digestion-related problems, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). The saturated fats present in it have antimicrobial properties and help in fighting various bacteria, fungi, and parasites that can cause indigestion. It also helps in the absorption of other nutrients like vitamins, minerals, and amino acids.
Dental Care
Calcium is an important component of our teeth. Since coconut oil facilitates calcium absorption by the body, it helps develop strong teeth. It also stops tooth decay. Recent studies show that it is also beneficial in reducing plaque formation and plaque-induced gingivitis.
Prevents Candida
Candida, also known as systemic candidiasis, is a tragic disease caused by the excessive and uncontrolled growth of yeast called Candida albicans in the stomach. Coconut provides relief from inflammation caused by Candida, both externally and internally. Its high moisture retention capacity prevents the skin from cracking or peeling. Capric acid, caprylic acid, caproic acid, myristic acid and lauric acid found in coconut oil help to destroy Candida albicans.
Furthermore, unlike other pharmaceutical treatments for Candida, the effects of coconut oil do not cause withdrawal symptoms or Herxheimer reactions (accompanying symptoms are gradual, whether severe or sudden, giving the patient a suitable amount of time to get used to the name given to the body by the rejection of toxins formed during the elimination of this fungus). However, in the treatment of this condition, people should systematically and gradually increase their dosage of coconut oil and not start with a large amount at the beginning.
Accelerates Healing
When applied to infected areas, coconut oil forms a chemical layer that protects the infected body part from external dust, air, fungi, bacteria and viruses. It is very effective on bruises because it accelerates the healing process of damaged tissues.
To Keep Organs Healthy
The presence of medium-chain triglycerides and fatty acids in coconut oil helps prevent liver diseases. This is because these substances are easily converted into energy when they reach the liver, thus reducing workload and also preventing fat accumulation. It helps prevent kidney and gallbladder diseases and helps dissolve kidney stones. Coconut oil is also believed to be beneficial in keeping the pancreas healthy by treating pancreatitis.
Helps in AIDS and Cancer Treatment
Coconut oil is believed to play an instrumental role in reducing the viral susceptibility of HIV and cancer patients. Preliminary research has shown evidence of this effect of coconut oil on reducing the viral load of HIV patients.
Improves Heart Health
This is a controversial topic. There is enough research to prove that coconut oil is not good for the heart due to the presence of saturated fats. There is also research that shows that coconut oil is good for the heart. The lauric acid found in coconut oil actively helps prevent various heart problems such as high cholesterol levels and high blood pressure. Coconut oil does not cause an increase in LDL cholesterol levels and reduces the incidence of injuries and damage to the arteries, thus helping to prevent atherosclerosis. One study suggests that taking coconut oil may help in maintaining healthy lipid profiles in premenopausal women. Finally, is coconut oil good or bad for the heart? If you are using it for edible purposes, check your cholesterol levels regularly. It is better to stop the intake if you increase them. In any case, consult a professional physician before you start consuming coconut oil.
According to the Coconut Research Center, coconut oil kills viruses that cause the flu, measles, hepatitis, herpes, SARS, and other serious health risks. It also kills bacteria that cause ulcers, throat infections, urinary tract infections, pneumonia, and gonorrhea. Finally, coconut oil is effective in eliminating fungi and yeasts that cause athlete’s foot, thrush, and baby skin rashes.
Other Benefits
Coconut oil is highly recommended for its many other benefits, which are explained below. Using this oil has been shown to help with:
Skin blisters due to stress: Coconut oil is very relaxing and therefore helps in relieving stress. Applying it to the temples and doing a light massage helps in eliminating mental fatigue. Coconut oil provides stress relief and has antioxidant properties.
Diabetes: Coconut oil helps control blood sugar and increases insulin secretion. It also promotes the effective use of blood sugar, thus playing an effective role in the prevention and treatment of diabetes.
Bones: As mentioned earlier, coconut oil improves our body's ability to absorb important minerals. These include calcium and magnesium, which are essential for the development of bones. Thus, it is very useful for women prone to osteoporosis after middle age.
Increases Energy: Coconut oil is often used by athletes, bodybuilders and dieters. This is because it contains fewer calories than other oils, its fat content is easily converted into energy and does not cause fat accumulation in the heart and arteries. It helps increase energy and endurance and improves the performance of athletes.
Coconut oil and Alzheimer's disease: Research conducted by Dr. Newport indicates that coconut oil is beneficial in treating Alzheimer's disease. Other than that, there is no scientific evidence or traditional knowledge of coconut oil being used as a treatment for Alzheimer's.
Composition of Coconut Oil
More than 90% of coconut oil% is made up of saturated fats (Don't panic! It's not as bad as it sounds, read to the end of this and you may change your mind), with traces of a few unsaturated fatty acids such as monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Saturated fatty acids: Most of these are medium-chain triglycerides, which should be well assimilated into the body's systems.
Lauric acid: The chief captive, representing more than 40 of the total %, followed by capric acid, caprylic acid, myristic acid and palmitic acid. The human body converts lauric acid into monolaurin. Lauric acid is helpful in dealing with viruses and diseases.
Capric acid: Reacts with certain enzymes secreted by other bacteria, which then convert it into monocaprin, a powerful antimicrobial agent.
Caprylic acid, caproic acid and myristic acid: They are rich in antimicrobial and antifungal properties.
Unsaturated fatty acids: Polyunsaturated fatty acids – linoleic acid, monounsaturated fatty acids – oleic acid
Polyphenols: Coconut contains gallic acid, also known as phenolic acid. These polyphenols are responsible for the smell and taste of coconut oil. Virgin coconut oil is rich in these polyphenols.
Derivatives of fatty acids: 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: Minerals such as Vitamin E, Vitamin K and iron.
