Truth about Coconut Oil

[DinaFine]

I've been reading lately about the benefits of coconut oil, and yet there are many people and most physicians who say to avoid it because of its high saturated fat content. Others say that the type of saturated fat it contains is beneficial and can actually help prevent heart disease. I have also read that studies which were done on coconut oil that proved it unhealthy, were actually done on the hydrogenated kind and so are not indicative of its value. Does anybody have any thoughts on this matter?

I keep a kosher kitchen, and so I am always looking for butter substitutes that are healthy and not hydrogenated. I dont like to use olive oil for high heat sauteeing, I can never be sure if other oils are hydrogenated or prepared with chemical solvents.

Can anyone help with this dilemma?

 

[Andy M.]

I've always gone by the old adage that tropical oils in general are not as healthful as others.

Hydrogenated oils are solid rather than liquid at room temp. Crisco shortening is hydrogenated vegetable oil.

 

[Banana Brain]

Can you believe that for thousands of years the human race has survived not knowing anything about saturated fats or unsaturated fats or what any of there food was chemically made of? It just seems so strange that now that we know we're analizing everything we eat so carefully and trying to only eat whats exactly right. If we'd been born not that many years ago, we wouldn't know butter was bad and olive oil was good, or that all the protein was in the whites, or any of the things we have to obsess about today.

That wasn't meant to be rude though, just my thoughts. Hmmm, I'm gonna say Coconut oil... good? Bad? Good for baking cakes.

 

[Andy M.]

Back in those good old days, people died in their 40s, 50s, and if they really held on for a long time, their 60s.

 

[Banana Brain]

^True. The reason our lifespan has gotten so much longer is a lot because we have better nutrition. People laugh when I say that because people think of the U.S. and the wealthy world as being unhealthy because so many of us are overweight, but we're living a **** of a lot longer than people who are malnutritioned in parts of Africa. And the lifespan gets longer every generation.

OK, begone with my last post. I want to live long.

 

[auzzi]

It is not a simple matter of substituting coconut oil for another type of oil.

Coconut oil and hydrogenated coconut oil eg copha can leave a "coated" mouth-feel if the product is not used in recipes specifically formulated for coconut oil.

 

[ChefJune]

Back in those good old days, people died in their 40s, 50s, and if they really held on for a long time, their 60s.

Truth to tell, in colonial times, folks were lucky to make it to their 40's! In fact, when SocialSecurity was instituted, and the reason it is in trouble now, the average life span of a white male was 47! so they arbitrarily chose "65" as the magic number because the odds were not too many folks would ever live to collect!

There are any number of people, mostly in the tropics, who live long and healthy lives eating coconuts and all its byproducts. However, I doubt their coconut oil is hydrogenated. and THAT, I believe, is the kicker. If you can find -- and nowadays, I believe you can -- coconut oil that is not hydrogenated, there is no question it would be better in your Kosher diet than any of the margarines you are probably using now.

I'd be searching it out.

BTW... in a post farther up, I read someone refer to butter as "BAD." Butter is not BAD... especially in moderation. Olive oil is "better," but not applicable to all situations in which you might use butter.

We're being challenged these days to use our noodles! We can't just pick up any old thing from the grocery shelves. We have to be smart for ourselves and our families and friends.

 

[jennyema]

In fact, when SocialSecurity was instituted, and the reason it is in trouble now, the average life span of a white male was 47! so they arbitrarily chose "65" as the magic number because the odds were not too many folks would ever live to collect!

Just for the record, the average lifespan in 1935 was more like 63.

 

[mudbug]

I thought coconut oil was just for slathering on one's body to get a tan when one was ignorant about skin cancer

 

[DinaFine]

Truth to tell, in colonial times, folks were lucky to make it to their 40's! In fact, when SocialSecurity was instituted, and the reason it is in trouble now, the average life span of a white male was 47! so they arbitrarily chose "65" as the magic number because the odds were not too many folks would ever live to collect!

There are any number of people, mostly in the tropics, who live long and healthy lives eating coconuts and all its byproducts. However, I doubt their coconut oil is hydrogenated. and THAT, I believe, is the kicker. If you can find -- and nowadays, I believe you can -- coconut oil that is not hydrogenated, there is no question it would be better in your Kosher diet than any of the margarines you are probably using now.

I'd be searching it out.

BTW... in a post farther up, I read someone refer to butter as "BAD." Butter is not BAD... especially in moderation. Olive oil is "better," but not applicable to all situations in which you might use butter.

We're being challenged these days to use our noodles! We can't just pick up any old thing from the grocery shelves. We have to be smart for ourselves and our families and friends.

[I really believe you are right about this, we cant just go into a store these days and pull whatever off the shelves. The hydrogenation of fats has now been proven to be unhealthy, and goodness knows what else we ingest that in 10 or 20 years we will find out that we can get cancer from. I stopped using margarine and vegetable fat years ago. I dont use polyunsaturated oil anymore either because of it being processed under high heat, which causes rancidity, and with chemical solvents. My question about coconut oil refers to the organic kind which is not hydrogenated. I have read that coconut oil contains something called Lauric Acid which is also found in butter and I have read can help prevent disease. I wonder if anyone has some more information on this or an opinion.

Even though most medical professionals will tell you that saturated fat is the worst thing you can eat, I wonder why we automatically have to believe it. They have after all been proven wrong on many things.

It is too bad that we have to think about these things. The problem with potentially living longer, is also the potential for having a bad quality of life in those later years. It may be worth it to give a care about whats on our plate and in our air etc. now. ]

 

[cjs]

As Julia always said, "Moderation in all things..."

 

[Yakuta]

Dina while I cannot comment on the benefits or risks of coconut oil I can say that it is definitely an acquired taste.

Coconut oil is very strong in smell and flavor. Using it for frying is not a good option. Even cooking with it leaves a very strong flavor in the food.

In India a lot of things in the South are cooked in coconut oil and I personally would be able to smell have an after taste in my mouth which I did not like.

I like to use Canola which is pretty bland in taste and is great for frying or general cooking.

 

[DinaFine]

Thank you for the input. You are probably right, there is a strong taste.

 

[gemgirlco.com]

I cousin is a Doc (Childrens Brain specialist) in the Philippines. He takes the virgin type of coconut oil regularly. Although I am not sure why, he states that the virgin type is very good for you. He has sent some to me, but to be honest I have yet to take it. At the moment it is rock solid in the container and no longer liquid.

 

[karadekoolaid]

I've been reading lately about the benefits of coconut oil...

Venezuela is full of coconut palms. If you go down to the beach you can drink fresh coconut water, icy cold, direct from the coco. Others drink a little then add a splash of local rum. The snobs drink whisky with coconut water.
There are hundreds of girls waddling along the streets with huge trays of "Conserva de coco" (Coconut preserve) on their heads. A favourite refresher is the "Cocada" - a dee-vine drink made with young coconut meat, the coconut water, and a little sugar.
The empty shells are also used for potting orchids or bromeliads.

I'd be most interested to know if anyone in India could enlighten us as to the benefits of coconut, since I remember some while ago hearing a radio programme on the subject.

 

[Lynan]

http://www.alternative-healthzine.com/html/0108_2.html

This site has some good info. I looked into coconut oil a couple of years ago after hearing of the health benefits. Still haven't gotten around to trying it yet! So much to try...so little time. lolol

 

[gemgirlco.com]

I cousin is a Doc (Childrens Brain specialist) in the Philippines. He takes the virgin type of coconut oil regularly. Although I am not sure why, he states that the virgin type is very good for you. He has sent some to me, but to be honest I have yet to take it. At the moment it is rock solid in the container and no longer liquid.

I just looked at the coconut oil (virgin type) my cousin gave me. Its liquid again we are having a heat wave here. I am suppose to take a teaspoon of it or cook with it. I am going to give it a try for breakfast.

 

[DinaFine]

I just looked at the coconut oil (virgin type) my cousin gave me. Its liquid again we are having a heat wave here. I am suppose to take a teaspoon of it or cook with it. I am going to give it a try for breakfast.

I have been using a teaspoon or two of coconut oil, the organic kind, but it doesnt say virgin, combined with olive oil when I stir fry. My idea is that it will raise the time it takes the oil to smoke. I have no proof for this, but I just do it anyway. I dont find any taste difference in the food. I have wondered if the supposed benefits of the oil only apply to the "Virgin" kind. Maybe your cousin has some info on that.

 

[Michael in FtW]

I've spent a week researching this and boy - there is no 25-cent answer to this! And, I haven't found answers to satisfy all of my questions ...

Let's get the Organic and Virgin terms out of the way first - they are the same thing.

Yes, coconut oil is LOADED with saturated fats (about 90%) ... but yeah, they are different from other saturated fats. Most saturated fats are long chain triglycerides ... about 50% of coconut oil's saturated fat is medium chain triglycerides (MCT) ... and that is what makes one of the differences. Instead of going through the normal digestive process - MCT's are sent directly to the liver (instead of being digested in the intestines) and are treated like carbohydrates instead of as a fat - thus they are instantly available for energy. For this reason, coconut oil has been used in a blend with other fats by savvy hospital food nutritionist and doctors in the diets of some patients.

There is evidence that Lauric and Capric Acid (which make up about 50% of the saturated fats in coconut oil) have some significant antimicrobial properties. Derivatives of these are being investigated for treating AIDS/HIV patients with some promising results. But, it's not the only oil that has some medicinal properties ... a 4:1 mixture of oleic and erucic acid (short chain fatty acids) extracted from olive oil and rapeseed (known as Lorenzo's Oil) is a treatment for ALD (Adrenoleukodystrophy) - although the research is still underway.

RE: Hydrogenated Coconut Oil .... what I found is that coconut oil is usually blended with other vegetable oils (high in mono and poly unsaturated fats) which are then hydrogenated, or blended in after the other oil is hydrogenated. But, all of the effects of hydrogenation is another story ....

While there clearly is a benefit to virgin coconut oil on one hand - I can't seem to find answers to all of my questions about how it affacts serum cholesterol on the other. But, that's not the only question I have ...

 

[karadekoolaid]

That is amazing, Michael; I just learned more about coconut oil in two minutes than I have learned in 20 yrs! Well researched and beautifully explained!