Virgin Coconut Oil

The process of producing virgin and non-virgin coconut is a very different one. And you, as a consumer should know how the food you consume is produced because the process determines the how healthy the food. Did you know that an apple grown naturally has about 5 times more nutrition in it than one grown commercially? (Those found in the supermarket)

Non virgin coconut oil is basically produced from copra. Copra is dried coconut meat. It can achieved through a variety of ways. Some ways to extract coconut oil from copra includes smoke, sun, or kiln drying. Some manufacturers even use derivatives. The coconut oil produced in this way is not hygienic and not suitable for consumption. What they do then is to refine, bleach and deodorize it. High heat not only speeds up the process as mentioned above, but it also deodorizes the oil. The oil then goes through a bleaching clay to remove impurities. Sodium hydroxide is then added to prolong shelf life (just like everything else) and maybe the oil goes through hydrogenation as well. (Coconut oil should be liquid at 76 degrees Fahrenheit)

The traditional way of producing coconut oil (virgin) has been used by the Filipinos for thousand of years. Virgin coconut oil, however can only be produced using fresh coconut meat. No chemicals or high heat is used and the reason is because it has natural shelf life of several years. There are 2 main ways to produce virgin coconut oil.

1) Quick drying. The fresh coconut meat is dried and oil pressed out through mechanical means.

2) Wet milling. Fresh coconut "milk" extracted first through pressing and water is then separated from oil. There are several ways to separate oil from water. Some common ways used are boiling, fermentation, enzymes or through use of mechanics. The oil is slightly heated to less than boiling point to remove moist and then filtered.

Not all coconut oil are made equal though. The typical process of turning a fresh coconut into coconut oil is often riddled by germs and bacteria, caused by several factors like insects and fungus. Therefore, just like our tap water is added chlorine (poison) to kill bacterias, the coconut oil needs to go through a process called hydrogenation and high heat to kill of f these hydrogenation.

Hydrogenation is necessary to chemically change the natural liquid state to a solid state at a certain temperature. This enables the manufacturer to preserve the oil longer. It was thought to be fine. But it is now known that hydrogenation causes trans fatty acid, also known as TFA. These fatty acids causes high blood cholesterol and heart diseases. They are the same fatty acids found in you favorite fast food.

High heat is used to speed up the process of producing coconut oil. The faster the company produce, the less expense the more they can sell.

So, should we not eat coconut oil then? No! Natural coconut oil, also known as virgin coconut oil uses a much different process. It doesn't go through hydrogenation or high heat but is cold pressed from fresh coconuts.

Now, I want to dismiss this scam forever. There is no such as extra virgin coconut oil. Quoting the APCC (Asian and Pacific Coconut Community),"virgin coconut oil is obtained from the fresh and mature kernel of coconut by mechanical or natural means with or without the application of heat, which does not lead to alteration of the oil". No mention of extra virgin anywhere.

Coconut oil is one of the highest source of saturated fats. In fact, almost 92% of it is saturated fats but 62% of them are medium chain triglycerides, If you don't know what medium chain triglycerides (MCT) is, read the "Why coconut oil is in fact good for you" part. Other than giving you quick energy, MCT also contains large amount of lauric acid. Lauric acid is largely responsible for building and maintaining your body's immune system. This is the exact same ingredient found in mother's milk, responsible for keeping the baby healthy during their infancy.

MCT also contains lauric, capric and caprylic acids. These acids has strong anto-bacterial characteristics that are critical in boosting the body's immune system.

In other words, if you are always falling sick and weak. Even if you only have the occasional flu and headache, coconut oil can definitely help you prevent many of these diseases.

*Interesting Trivia* Did you know that a healthy human being is not supposed to get sick? An occasional flu, headache and even pimple is not normal. It is a signal your body is giving out to warn you of a larger problem developing.

Two out of three reading this is overweight and one quarter of you are considered obese. America is a fat country. You should have known that by now and everyone is looking for a way to lose weight. Yes there are weight loss solutions presumably effective and works really fast, but statistics showed 95% of the people who lost weight in a diet went on to gain more weight than they have lost within 5 years. You haven't heard that because companies will not tell you their customers had gained their weight back.

So what went wrong? As you all know, fats are very high in calories, twice the amount carbohydrates and protein supplies, but it is also essential in providing fat soluble vitamins like vitamins A, D, E, K and beta carotene. Therefore a low fat diet is NOT the answer.

But what if there's a fat that is not high in calorie? Wouldn't that be great? That fat is contained in coconut oil. By using coconut oil, you are reducing you calorie intake by 2.56% per gram.

It does not end there though. Fat are fattening because of the way they are handled by our body. As long as consume enough to satisfy our energy need, fat will always be stored as fat in our body. MCFA, medium chain fatty acids found in coconut oil, is handled differently though. They are instead sent straight to the liver and converted into energy - just like carbohydrates.

Next, we all know the key to weight loss is not eating less. It's metabolism. Metabolism is responsible for using at least two thirds of the calories we consume. Exercising increases metabolism. Protein increases metabolism. But did you know that coconut oil is better at revving up your metabolism rate than protein can due to its MCFA? Coconut oil is the most concentrated natural source of MCFA. MCGA are easily absorbed, burned and used as energy for metabolism, thus increasing metabolic activity and thus also burn LCFA (long chain fatty acids).

Therefore to summarize, coconut oil not only has less calories, it is burned rapidly to produce energy, increases metabolic rate, thus burning MORE calories. In other words, the more coconut oil you consume, the more weight you'll lose.

Vegetable oils like soybean and corn is very unhealthy because they suppressed thyroid function, thus lowering metabolic rate. Soybean oil is particularly unhealthy because they contain goitrogens, an anti-thyroid chemical. Therefore the less you eat, the more weight you gain!

Coconut oil's recommended daily consumption is 3 tablespoons. Don't worry if the smell or taste of coconut isn't your favorite and you feel weird drinking oil. You can also use coconut oil to cook, add it to salad, add it to your juice etc!

Coconut oil is highly heat resistant. It will only oxidise at about 180 degrees Celsius. In fact, it is more stable than all other vegetable oil and yes including olive oil. Plus, it can be easily blended with other oils such as butter or olive oil.

Other than consuming it, you can also put it on your skin. It is one of the best natural moisturizing agent there is. If you just want to try it out, buy a small bottle and apply it on your skin. I notice the change in 3 days.

There are other uses coconut oil has been used for traditionally, which includes treatment of burns, ulcers, wounds, head lice and even cholera.