When taken as a dietary supplement, used in cooking, or applied directly to the skin, coconut oil has been found to:

·        Reduce the risk of atherosclerosis and related illnesses

·        Reduce the risk of cancer and other degenerative conditions

·        Help prevent bacterial, viral, and fungal (including yeast) infections

·        Support immune system function

·        Help prevent osteoporosis

·        Help control diabetes

·        Promote weight loss

·        Support  healthy metabolic function

·        Provide an immediate source of energy

·        Supply fewer calories than other fats

·        Supply important nutrients necessary for good health

·        Improve digestion and nutrient absorption

·        Be highly resistant to spoilage (long shelf life)

·        Be heat resistant (the healthiest oil for cooking)

·        Help keep skin soft and smooth

·        Help prevent premature aging and wrinkling of the skin

·        Help protect against skin cancer and other blemishes

(Bruce Fife, N.D., Coconut Oil Miracle, Fifth Edition)

A Coconut Oil Miracle
A Message from Dr. Bruce Fife

Director of the Coconut Research Center
 

1.27 billion children live in poverty — deprived of food, safe drinking water, health care or shelter.

Six-hundred million children younger than 18 lack access to one of these basic needs; more than 350 million are deprived of two or more of these needs.

 

Could you imagine being unemployed, homeless, and forced to beg in the streets for food? Not a pleasant thought is it? But this is the life many people face throughout the world. Millions of poverty stricken children and their families go to bed hungry each night not knowing where their next meal is coming from. Often, it is found in the refuge discarded by others as unfit to eat. Half naked children as young as 3 and 4 years of age roam the streets begging for food. If you live in an affluent country like the US, sights like this are rare, but in Third World counties they are common. 

The plight of these people was made clearly evident to me when I made my first trip to Asia. My heart went out to the many underweight and malnourished children begging for food. No one should be forced to live like this, I thought. I wanted to help, but how? How could one person help so many in need? By myself I could do little. This was a global issue. The solution would require a global effort—a task far beyond my limited capability. I felt helpless.

Although I didn't realize it at first, the answer to the problem, or at least a partial answer, was staring me right in the face. The solution? It was simple—coconut. Yes, coconut was the answer. The reason I had come to Asia was to teach the people about the nutritional and medicinal benefits of coconut. This is an abundant and renewable, natural resource that has been vastly underdeveloped.

 

My Discovery


Without realizing it, I had been working on the answer for some time. Like most everyone else, I used to believe that coconut, especially coconut oil, was unhealthy because it was high in saturated fat. But then I had an experience that changed the way I think about fats and oils and particularly about coconut oil. Some years ago a colleague of mine, a nutritionist, told me that coconut oil was one of the good fats, that it did not cause heart disease, and that it had many health benefits. At first I was shocked. This went against everything I had ever read in the newspaper and in the popular diet books. But this nutritionist showed me some studies in the medical literature that indicated that coconut oil had many important nutritional and medical uses. Coconut oil, in one form or another, was used in hospital IV solutions, it was added to infant formula, and used in anti-candida medications. I became curious. If coconut oil had so many nutritional and medical uses why is it considered a dietary nightmare? If it did cause heart disease why is it used in hospital IV solutions and given to newborn babies. It just didn't make sense. I had to find the answer. 

Since everyone seemed to know that coconut oil caused heart disease I was certain that there must be many magazine articles written on the subject. Many of which would outline the dangers of using coconut oil and cite references to studies backing up these facts. So I went on a search to find some of these articles. I went on the Internet and to the library and looked for everything I could on coconut oil. Do you know what I found? I found absolutely nothing! It seemed that at that time there no articles written specifically on coconut oil. Now I did find many articles on nutrition and dietary oils, and most of them did contain one sentence about coconut oil and that sentence was exactly alike in all of them. It was, "Coconut oil is a saturated fat and causes heart disease." I ran across that statement over and over again. I still see that very same statement repeated now. It was like there was a royal decree that went out throughout the land dictating that if anyone wrote anything about nutrition they must include this statement on coconut oil—it's the politically correct thing to do.

Even though I ran across this statement time and time again, not once did any of these authors ever back up that statement with any facts, any figures, or any citations to the medical literature. There weren't even any anecdotal accounts. When I started this search I fully expected to read stories where people had used coconut oil since they were little children and by the time they were 30 years old they had raging heart disease. But there wasn't anything like that. It became obvious to me that these doctors and nutritionists who were writing these things knew absolutely nothing about coconut oil. All they were doing was repeating what someone else had said, who in turn was just repeating what someone else said before them, and on and on. None of them bothered to do their own research but just blindly accepted what others were saying.

It became apparent to me that if I was going to learn the truth about coconut oil, I wasn't going to find it in health books and magazine articles because none of these authors knew anything about it. If I was going to learn the truth about coconut oil I was going to have to go to the medical studies and see what researchers were actually discovering. That's what I did. In my search through the medical literature I found hundreds of research articles on coconut. And what I found shocked me. I discovered why coconut oil, in one form or another, was used in hospital IV solutions, why it was added to infant formula, and used in anti-candida medications. I also learned it was recommended for those with digestive concerns, such as premature infants and cystic fibrosis patients, and that it could help prevent a wide variety of health problems ranging from cancer and diabetes to influenza and AIDS. I was amazed! I also learned that there was absolutely no truth whatsoever in the belief that coconut oil causes or even contributes to heart disease. I failed to find even a single study that proved that coconut oil consumption caused heart disease. No such study exists. In fact, what I learned was that coconut oil can help prevent heart disease!

I learned that coconut oil has had a long history of use throughout the world as both a food and as a medicine. People in coconut growing regions of the world have been using it for hundreds of years without suffering from heart disease. In fact, those people who use the most coconut oil have the lowest heart disease rates in the world. For example, up until a few years ago the people of Sri Lanka used coconut oil in all their cooking. Each person consumed about 120 coconuts a year. Despite this high rate of consumption they had the lowest heart disease death rate in the world—1 out of every 100,000. Compare that to Americans who eat essentially no coconut oil yet nearly 1 out of every 2 deaths is heart related.


The Economic Impact of the Anti-Coconut Campaign


The truth of the matter is that if you want to protect yourself from heart disease, you should be using coconut oil. What an incredible discovery! So why had we been told that coconut oil causes heart disease? The answer is a combination of misconception, ignorance, and greed. 

Since the 1950s it was observed that some saturated fats tend to raise blood cholesterol. Since cholesterol levels were considered a risk factor for heart disease doctors were recommending that we reduce our saturated fat intake. The vegetable oil industry promoted this idea very aggressively in order to influence people to use vegetable oil in place of saturated fats. Since the tropical oils (coconut and palm) were highly saturated they were viewed as being unhealthy and even causing heart disease, even though no study had ever shown it.

Up until the mid-1980s coconut oil was commonly used in many foods. The anti-saturated fat campaigns sponsored by the soybean industry and misguided special interest groups succeeded in frightening the public away from using coconut oil and food manufacturers and restaurants eventually replaced it with hydrogenated soybean oil. By 1990 coconut had virtually disappeared from American and European diets. Even in coconut growing regions of the world, such as Malaysia and the Philippines, coconut oil was viewed as an artery-clogging fat and largely avoided. As a consequence, demand for coconut products plummeted and the coconut industry fell into a deep depression that lasted for two decades. Coconut farmers unable to sell their products stopped harvesting. Literally millions of farmers, pickers, consolidators, truckers, and processors were no longer able to earn a living. Many took on other jobs, if they could find them. Others continued working in the coconut industry because other jobs were unavailable. They barely eked out a living year by year on a pauper's wage. Many out of work and underemployed parents could not properly feed and clothe their children. They turned to begging in the streets.

The connection between heart disease and coconut oil that frightened so many people never existed. What most people didn't understand at the time was that there are many different types of saturated fat and that the fat in coconut oil is completely different from that found in animal fats. This difference is important because it's what makes coconut oil unique and gives it its remarkable healing properties. 

As I learned about the healing potential of coconut oil I began using it myself and recommend to others. I've saw it clear up hemorrhoids, stop bladder infections, remove precancerous skin lesions, reverse the effects of hypothyroidism and diabetes, and help people lose excess weight, among other things. There seemed to be no end to the miracles it could do.


The Coconut Oil Miracle


After learning all of this, I realized that few people outside of the research community knew about the healing miracles of coconut oil. I felt an obligation to share this knowledge with others. So I wrote the book The Coconut Oil Miracle. Most all the information in this book comes directly from the medical literature and my own experience. Everything is backed by medical studies, many of which are cited in the book. I purposely wrote it in easy-to-understand language so that the laymen could understand.

When I finished the manuscript I gave it to a prominent lipid researcher and asked him to review it for accuracy and content. He praised the book but said, "Don't publish it."

I was shocked. "Why? It's accurate isn't it?" 

"Yes," he replied, "but nobody will read it. If you publish this book you'll just be wasting your time and money."

He spoke from experience. He had known about the benefits of coconut oil for years, whenever he spoke favorably about coconut oil he was either ignored or ridiculed. He learned to keep silent. 

He was trying to protect me from criticism as well as wasting my money in financing the publication of the book. Despite his warning, I felt a need to get this information out to the public. The health benefits of coconut were so remarkable that I couldn't keep this knowledge locked away in research journals, inaccessible to the average person. I decided that even if the book didn't sell, at least I could say I tried. Because coconut oil offered so many health benefits I felt confident that if the facts were presented in a logical, easy-to-read format, backed by decades of medical research, the book would find a receptive audience, even if only a small one. 

Because the book went against the prevailing opinion about fats, I knew from the start that I would face criticism and ridicule. That didn't stop me. As I think back on it now, it was a bold and crazy move on my part. Why would anyone knowingly publish a book that would generate scorn? I just felt a need to share this knowledge despite the risks.

I didn't bother to send the manuscript to an established publisher because I knew none of them would dare touch it—too risky for them. Finding money to publish the book myself was another problem. It would require several thousand dollars. Money I just didn't have at the time. So I began to save. I tightened our family's budget. We ate more economically and cut corners, reducing expenses to a bare minimum. 

At first, sales were slow. The title scared people away. Stores didn't want to stock it. Few could accept the idea that coconut oil was healthy. People thought I was crazy. A few people laughed at me thinking the book was a joke. Some were even angered that I would publish such a book and criticized me. Articles in newspapers and health newsletters reemphasized the politically correct, but inaccurate, perception of coconut oil and raked me across the coals with false accusations in an attempt to ruin my credibility.

My saving grace was that if I could get someone to just read the book and see the evidence for themselves, they generally become converted. I let the facts speak for themselves. This was clearly demonstrated to me by an incident that occurred soon after the book was published. I gave a copy to one of my neighbors. Cautiously he took the book and with skepticism promised to read it. He became an immediate convert. He was so enthusiastic about the potential of coconut oil that he began telling others about it. He went to his nutritionist and showed her the book. When she saw it she scoffed, "That's just somebody's opinion. Coconut oil is no good," she said. She refused to even look at it.

He begged her to read the book and give it a fair trial. Hesitantly she consented. He placed the book on her desk and left. The following week he returned to her office and found the book positioned exactly were he had left it. Obviously she had not even touched the book. Again he insisted that she read it. Again she objected, but eventually gave in. Before leaving he made her promise that she would read it by the time he returned. To keep him off her back she reluctantly agreed. 

When she started to read the book she was immediately impressed by the logical and approach and the abundance of medical references that backed up each statement. She devoured the book in two days. She wanted to know more. She contacted me and we had many discussions about fats and oils. I opened her eyes. She changed her approach to nutritional counseling and began recommending the book to all of her patients. That's what happens when people read the book. They become excited and tell others. Those who criticize me or the book do so because they haven't read it. They are too closed-minded.

At first I found it impossible to get any media coverage or book reviews. No one in the media would touch it. The book began selling by word of mouth and interest slowly grew. People began using the oil and experiencing changes. Many people with chronic health problems found relief. Personal testimonials encouraged others to read the book. As interest grew I was able to get more notice in newspapers and magazines. Several excellent articles appeared in national magazines. Demand for good quality coconut oil was rapidly increasing. Because people wanted the oil for health reasons they were going to health food stores to look for it. When the book was first published coconut oil was almost impossible to find anywhere. Very few stores carried it and when they did, it was always in the cosmetic section and sold as a body oil. Today nearly every heath food store in North American and many pharmacies stock food grade coconut oil. Some carry as many as 5 or 6 different brands. Coconut oil has now come out of the closet and is staking it's rightful claim as "the healthiest oil on earth."

 

 

Lives Are Being Changed


As a result of the increased demand for coconut products, the coconut industry is experiencing a resurrection. Coconut farmers are finding new markets for their products, laborers are finding much needed jobs collecting and harvesting. Coconut processing plants that had remained silent or underutilized for two decades are now gearing up. People are finding employment. Children who were forced to beg in the streets are now being fed and clothed and receiving medical attention. These people are finding hope.

When I first published The Coconut Oil Miracle, my main purpose was to tell everyone about the health benefits they could enjoy by using the oil. After the book started to sell I was only partially aware that it helped to fuel the economic resurgence of the coconut industry in many Third World countries. When I was invited by the Philippine Department of Trade and Industry to come to Manila and lecture on the health benefits of coconut, I saw first-hand the remarkable impact my book had on the economy and the coconut industry. Many people came up to me to shake my hand and express gratitude saying, "Because of you I am able to provide for my family. God bless you." 

Even medical professionals were eager to meet me. One of which was Naomi Dilodilo, MD. She sent me an e-mail with the greeting "Biyaya" and said, "This means blessing and you are one! You have been a channel of blessings to millions of Filipinos, one third of the population of which is directly dependent on the coconuts for their livelihood...Thank you very much for all your efforts and contribution to the coconut oil information campaign. I, as a Filipino, appreciate very much your endeavors. It means a lot to us. 'Salamat' is thank you in our language and comes deep from my heart!" Wow, what a response. I was humbled. Little did I know the impact my book would have.

 

 
 
 
 

 Only search The Coconut Research Center
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
"Coconut oil is the healthiest oil on earth."
-Bruce Fife, N.D.

"Coconut oil is the healthiest oil you can use."
-Joseph Mercola, D.O.

Coconut oil is the world's only natural low-calorie fat.

Why has coconut oil had a bad reputation in the past? It's not what you might think. The reason has nothing to do with science or with health.

 
Philippine president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo with Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap acknowledges the efforts of author Bruce Fife (with wife Leslie) in dispelling decades of misinformation about coconut and helping revive the coconut industry in the Philippines, which provides for the livelihoods of over 20 million people in that country. Dr. Fife presented president Macapagal-Arroyo with a copy of his new book Coconut Cures.

 

In the Philippines alone at least 20 million people depend on coconut for their livelihoods. There are millions more in Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, and other countries. In Fiji, Samoa, and other islands coconut production accounts to up to 75% of their income. As many as 100 million people worldwide are dependent on coconut as their major source of income. There is now an opportunity for these people to find employment so that their children don't need to roam the streets looking for food.

I was amazed at how a single book could influence the lives of so many people. This was the answer I was seeking in order to help save the children from a life of poverty, sickness, and malnutrition. By stimulating the demand for coconut products these people are able to work and make an honest living. They aren't receiving a handout but an opportunity to work and provide for themselves.
 

 
Workers in a coconut processing facility

 

Save the Children


Out of this experience came the Save the Children Campaign. The purpose of this program is to help save children and their families from a life of poverty and starvation. The Save the Children Campaign is not a charity. We don't sell products or solicit donations. Our approach is to educate. As people learn about the health benefits of coconut products they will begin to use them. When you purchase coconut products you provide a means by which economically disadvantage parents can make a living so that they can feed, cloth, and educate their children. While you are helping others in this manner, you are also improving your own health. It's a win-win situation for everyone involved.


The Save the Children Campaign has four major goals or objectives.

 

 Help people achieve better health through the use of coconut products. You, me, and everyone else who uses coconut products can benefit from using this miracle food.

Provide a means for employment and economic development, especially in areas where coconuts are an abundant natural resource. Parents are able to earn a living that allows them to provide for the needs of their children. In many Third World countries coconut palms are an abundant renewable natural resource waiting to be put to use.

Reduce the occurrence of malnutrition and birth defects in children. Children who have gone hungry since birth and are malnourished can be fed. Pregnant women can get better nutrition so their babies aren't born with birth defects. Nursing mothers are able to provide their babies breast milk with a higher level of nutrition so their children can grow and develop properly.

Provide an affordable alternative to costly drugs, especially in economically disadvantaged areas. For many people, especially in Third World countries, drugs are out of reach because of their cost. Coconut oil and other coconut products, which cost far less, can often be used in place of some drugs. Coconut is considered a functional food, meaning it offers health benefits beyond it nutritional content. Since it is a food it does not have adverse side effects, as do many drugs.

Dr. Dilodilo with some of the children in the Philippines who are benefiting from the Save the Children Campaign.

 
How can you help save the children and accomplish the objectives listed above? It's easy. All you need to do is tell people about the benefits of using coconut products. It's that simple. It doesn't take much effort. Guide them to the Coconut Research Center website (www.coconutresearchcenter.org) and encourage them to read the book The Coconut Oil Miracle. Education is the key. As people learn about the health benefits of coconuts they will start using them. They benefit themselves as well as the coconut growers and their families. 

I would like to emphasize, that by far the best tool you can use to help people understand the importance of using coconut is The Coconut Oil Miracle. Even the most skeptical will come around after reading this book. You don't need to argue or debate, just give them a copy of this book and let them discover it for themselves. The book speaks for itself. I encourage you to share this book with your family, friends, and neighbors. Give them copies and encourage them to give copies to others. When you do this you are giving them the gift of health—the most precious gift you could ever give. Remember, each book you give not only helps those who receive it but also helps save the children. (Multi-copy discounts are available for the Save the Children Campaign from Piccadilly Books, Ltd. Contact [email protected] and ask for information on quantity discounts for participating in the Save the Children Information Campaign.)

It has been said that if you give a person a fish you feed him for a day, but if you teach him how to fish you feed him and his family for a lifetime. That is our goal with the Save the Children Campaign. When you purchase coconut products you are helping these people help themselves. You are providing them the means by which they can make a living and feed and clothe their families. These families are not asking for a handout, but the opportunity to work and make an honest living. You can give them that opportunity.

Our message and the goal of the Save the Children Campaign is to bring awareness of the many health benefits of coconut to the world and in so doing increase the use of coconut products to better our own health as well as others and to provide the demand needed to sustain the coconut industry so that those people who are involved, the vast majority of which are laborers and small farmers, can provide for the needs of their families.

Help save a child, tell someone about The Coconut Oil Miracle.
 
The book that started it all.
You Can Help
 
The Coconut Research Center was established to educate the medical profession and the general public about the health and nutritional aspects of coconut and palm products. The primary purpose of this website is to dispel the many myths surrounding coconut and palm products, to present a more accurate and scientific viewpoint, and to aid others in their research.

 

If you would like to help support our mission of education and help us maintain this website, please feel free to make a donation.

  

 

Coconut Educational Resources

Originally The Coconut Oil Miracle 5th Edition was self-published as The Healing Miracles of Coconut Oil. In order to reach more people with our message we have contracted with Avery Publishing Group/Penguin USA to publish and distribute the book worldwide. This way the book will find access to a greater number of people and be more readily available.

The health benefits of coconut oil and other coconut products are so numerous that I have written other books on the topic. These books can also help to save the children because they too provide education on the benefits of using coconut products. I encourage you to read them all.

 

Coconut Cures This book explains the health benefits of all coconut products—the oil as well as the meat, milk, and water. Provides many testimonials and explains exactly how to use these products to prevent and treat common health problems.  

 

The Coconut Ketogenic Diet This book describes how to use coconut oil to boost energy, raise metabolism, improve thyroid function, and reduce weight.

The Coconut Miracle Cookbook This book contains nearly 450 coconut recipes using coconut oil, meat, milk, and cream. Recipes include soups, salads, beverages, main dishes, side dishes, and desserts.

 

Cooking with Coconut Flour—A Delicious Low-Carb, Gluten-Free Alternative to Wheat  Coconut flour is a delicious, healthy alternative to wheat. It is high in fiber, low in digestible carbohydrate, and a good source of protein. It contains no gluten so it is ideal for those with celiac disease.

 

Affiliated Assistance Programs

LEAP—Local Empowerment Assistance Project

Local Empowerment Assistance Project (LEAP) is a non-government development organization dedicated to assisting Indonesian village communities, through poverty relief and small industry implementation. To learn more go to www.leapin.org.

 

 

Healthy Living Magazine
 
Things You Probably Didn't Know About Coconut Oil
An Interview with Bruce Fife, CN, ND

When it comes to personal health, there are times when you are truly enlightened by certain professionals in the field. My interview with Bruce Fife, ND, CN, was one of those times. A naturopathic physician and certified nutritionist, he has exposed the truth about coconut oil to the general public and revealed the marketing strategies that gave coconut oil such a bad name.

by Rachale Baseley
 
HL When did you first become interested in coconut oil? Why?

BF Like everyone else I used to believe that coconut oil was an artery clogging saturated fat. What started me thinking differently was an experience I had several years ago. I was in a meeting with a group of nutritionists and one of the members of the group stated that coconut oil was one of the good fats, that it didn't cause heart disease, and that it had many health benefits. At first I was shocked. This went against everything I'd heard in the past. This nutritionist, however, backed up her statement and referred to studies that showed that coconut oil had many important nutritional and medical uses. I learned that coconut oil, in one form or another, was used in hospital parenteral formulas to nourish seriously ill patients. It was an important ingredient in infant formulas and was recommend for people with digestive or nutritional problems. I began to wonder; if coconut oil is so bad, why is it fed to hospital patients and newborn babies and recommended for those with digestive concerns? It didn't make sense. Was coconut oil the evil villain or not? I had to find the answer.

I began looking. I went to the library and I went on the Internet, but I couldn't find anything specifically on the health aspects of coconut oil. At the time, there wasn't any. I did find lots of articles on oils and nutrition and most of them would mention coconut oil, but they didn't go into any detail. All they said was "coconut oil is a saturated fat and causes heart disease." I saw that statement repeated over and over again, but not a single one of these authors ever backed it up with any facts, any figures, or any references to the medical literature. It became obvious to me that none of these doctors and nutritionists who were making this statement really knew anything at all about coconut oil. All they were doing is simply repeating what someone else had said, who in turn, repeated someone else, and on and on.

I realized that if I was ever going to learn the truth about coconut oil I wasn't going to find it in the books and magazine articles currently available because apparently none of these authors knew anything about it. I knew that if I was going to find the truth I needed to go to the research. And that's what I did. I started digging though the medical literature and looked up everything related to coconut oil. When I did this, I found hundreds of articles. And what I learned shocked me!

I discovered why coconut oil, in one form or another, was used in hospital and baby formulas and why it was recommended for those with digestive problems. I discovered it had many important nutritional and medical applications. I also learned that there was no truth in the belief that coconut oil causes or even contributes to heart disease. In fact, I learned that if you want to protect yourself from heart disease you should be using coconut oil.

I began using coconut oil myself and recommending it to others. I've seen it help people with hemorrhoids, cancer, diabetes, psoriasis, gallbladder disease, bladder infections, flu, and many other health problems. After learning about coconut oil and seeing what it can do, I realized that nobody except a few researchers knew the truth about this miraculous oil. I felt an obligation to share this knowledge with everyone else. So I wrote the book The Coconut Oil Miracle (formerly titled The Healing Miracles of Coconut Oil).
 
HL At Healthy Living magazine we consider you one of the world's leading experts on coconut oil. What research have you done in this field, and what have your experiences taught you?
 
BF Most of my research has been investigating what other researchers have discovered about coconut oil and fats and oils in general and organizing and condensing it into a form that is easy-to-read and understand by the general public. Medical studies are written in a language that is very difficult for most people to understand unless they have medical training. This causes a lot of confusion and misinterpretation and is one of the reasons why there is so much confusion and understanding in nutrition and health.

I have the opportunity of seeing how coconut oil affects people in a clinical setting. I see people all the time who use coconut oil and witness how it affects their lives. Some have experienced incredible improvement from a wide variety of health problems. I am continually amazed at the conditions in which coconut oil seems to be able to help. Many of these people have suffered with health problems for years. After incorporating coconut oil into their diets and using it on their skin the problems often diminish or completely disappear.

One of my goals is to tell everyone who will listen about the coconut oil miracle. Most people are still in the dark about it. If you go to the average person on the street and ask them about coconut oil, they knew very little, including health care professionals, doctors, nutritionists; they really don't know much because they haven't studied it. Most of the education doctors receive after graduating from medical school is provided by the pharmaceutical industry and, therefore, is very biased. They don't hear about natural, nutritional approaches. Sometimes doctors have to be educated by their patients.
 
HL Can you explain why as a nation we stopped using coconut oil? Does the promotion of polyunsaturated soybean oil produced by American farmers play a role in this?
 
BF Oh yes. And this is something that people need to know about. The reason people think of heart disease when anyone mentions coconut oil doesn't have anything to do with science, and doesn't have anything t do the fact, but has everything to do with marketing and money. Back it the early and mid-1980s, people were concerned that saturated fats could raise cholesterol levels. The soybean industry realized this was a perfect opportunity to make a profit. They reasoned that if they could convince people that all saturated fats were bad and caused heart disease people would eat more vegetable oil. So the soybean industry spent millions in an anti-saturated fat and anti-tropical oils publicity campaign. Special interest groups such as the Center for Science in the Public Interest joined in and started producing alarming news stories about he dangers of saturated fats. They invented the term "artery clogging fat" in reference to coconut oil. Because of the media blitz it didn't take long before everyone believed coconut oil was an artery clogging fat. People are still duped by the soybean industry's attack on coconut oil. Many authors, too lazy to do their own research, still parrot the biased viewpoints produced by these groups. I'm trying to change this by providing accurate information so that people can know the truth.
 
HL Do you use coconut oil yourself? How do you use it and how often?
 
BL I use it all the time and in every imaginable way. We use it in all of our cooking and our baking. My wife uses it to make bread. She says her bread comes out better, it's moist and light. We make whole wheat bread, and it has become famous here, thanks to its soft, fluffy, delicious taste and texture.

At times I use coconut oil as a supplement and take it by the spoonful. The type I use tastes delicious so I don't mind taking by the spoon. I also add it to a bowl of oatmeal, in order to get the oil in my diet. You can spread it on bread, or you can use half-and-half butter and coconut oil, I put it in soups, again just to get the benefit of the oil. You can add it to a wide variety of foods.

I put it on my skin too. It is excellent for the skin; if you want to become a believer in the health benefits of coconut oil, just start using it on your skin. Dry, hard, discolored, and flaky skin will transform into soft, smooth healthy looking skin within weeks.
 
HL How is it that not all saturated fats are unhealthy? Tell us about medium-chain fatty acids.
 
BF Fats and oils are composed of molecules called fatty acids. Three fatty acids joined together form a triglyceride molecule. Some fatty acids are smaller than others. Medium-chain fatty acids are smaller than long-chain fatty acids. Likewise medium-chain triglycerides are smaller than long-chain triglycerides. The size of these molecules is very important because our bodies process and metabolize each fat differently depending on its size. Most all of the fats and oils in our diet are composed of long-chain fatty acids, whether they're unsaturated or saturated. There are only a few dietary sources of medium-chain fatty acids, the primary source being tropical oils, particularly palm kernel and coconut oils. That's why coconut oil is different from other oils and it the secret to many of its healing properties.

Because the medium-chain triglycerides are smaller than the long-chain triglycerides that are in most fats and oils, they're digested quicker. In fact, they don't even need pancreatic digestive enzymes to break them down. By the time they enter the intestinal tract, they are completely broken down into free fatty acids, while long-chain triglycerides still need the digestive enzymes to break them down. What's important here is that the long-chain fatty acids, when they're finally broken down, will be absorbed through the intestinal wall. From there, they are packaged into lipoproteins and released into the bloodstream. So the long-chain fatty acids go into the digestive tract and then into the bloodstream. As they circulate in the bloodstream they supply the fat that collects in fat cells and the fat that collects in artery walls.

With medium-chain fatty triglycerides in coconut oil the process is different. They are quickly digested, so pancreatic enzymes are not needed. By the time they enter the intestinal tract they are completely broken down into fatty acids. Because of this, they are absorbed immediately into the portal vein, and sent directly to the liver. In the liver they are used as a source of fuel to produce energy. Therefore, they bypass the lipoprotein stage, and they don't circulate in the bloodstream to the degree that other fats do. Consequently, they do not supply the fat that collects in fat cells or the fat that collects in artery walls. They produce energy not body fat and not arterial plaque.
 
HL What conditions does coconut oil help to treat?
 
BF Topically it seems to be able to benefit almost any skin condition. I wouldn't say that it can cure every type of skin condition, but I've seen a wide variety of conditions improve-and sometimes completely vanish-with the use of coconut oil. It can help speed healing of cuts and burns; there's a long tradition in the islands of using coconut oil as a sunscreen. It is great for fungal infections such as ringworm and athlete's foot. People tell me how they have used medicated treatments without success, but when they use coconut oil it does the job.

There is evidence that coconut oil helps prevent osteoporosis. One of the interesting things about coconut oil is that it helps improves nutrient absorption. It improves absorption of minerals such as calcium and magnesium and thus aid in preventing osteoporosis. Also, it increases absorption of some of the B vitamins, the fat-soluble vitamins: A, D, E, K, beta-carotene, and some amino acids. Because of it is easily digested, provides a quick and easy source of nutrition, and improves absorption of other nutrients coconut oil has been recommended in the treatment of malnutrition.

Coconut oil has many other uses. Research has shown it can be useful in the treatment and prevention of obesity. A lot of research is current being done in this area. Studies show it may be helpful in preventing liver disease, kidney disease, Crohn's disease, cancer and many infectious illnesses such as the flu, herpes, bladder infections, and candida, to mention just a few. Studies are now being done to test it effectiveness against serious illness such as AIDS and SARS. Preliminary results have been very promising.
 
HL We have recently written in depth about chronic fatigue syndrome. How can coconut oil help with this debilitating and often misunderstood illness?
 
BF It helps in a couple of ways. One way it helps is due to its antimicrobial effects, it can destroy organisms in the body that may be sapping the body's strength and contributing to the condition. Another way is that because the medium-chain fatty acids in coconut oil are used by the body to produce energy rather than body fat, it produces a surge in energy. With those two combined, it can be of benefit.
 
HL It appears that coconut oil can help with a whole host of conditions. What would you say to those skeptics who say that it must be too good to be true?
 
BF Coconut oil has so many benefits that some people may think that it can cure anything, but it's not a cure-all. It has some specific health benefits that are truly remarkable, but it can't cure everything, and so people shouldn't expect it to.
 
HL You have written several books on promoting good health, one of the latest being The Coconut Oil Miracle (Avery 2004). In this you detail the positive health benefits of coconut oil. Can you tell us a bit more about the book and why you felt the need to write it?
 
BF As I mentioned earlier, after learning about all the benefits we've talked about, such as the antimicrobial effects, the way coconut oil aids in digestion, nutrient absorption, and weight loss, I was amazed. I realized that few people were aware of this, thanks to the popular misconception that coconut oil causes heart disease. I wanted to share this knowledge with the rest of the world and the only way I knew how to do this was to write a book.
 
HL Would you recommend the addition of coconut oil to everyone's diet? Can we all benefit for its use?
 
BF Yes, absolutely. I recommend coconut oil to everybody and anybody who will listen.


This article was adapted and condensed from a two-part series published in The Doctor's Prescription for Healthy Living, Freedom Press, Inc, 1013 Centre Road #301, Wilmington, DE 19805.

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