Coconut Oil -- Nutritional Jewel

 

Some of you may recall a blog post of mine from last May about oil pulling and its benefits. In that piece I said the my preferred oil is coconut oil, because it has anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial properties.  As it turns out. there are many other reasons to use coconut oil.

For many years coconut oil was considered unhealthy because of its high content of saturated fat, and along with other saturated oils was linked to heart disease and increased blood cholesterol. In recent times coconut is praised as the healthiest oil found on earth.  Let's look at some of the good news.

1.  Coconut oil has medium-chain fatty acids which heighten metabolism and energy, thus stimulating the thyroid. It targets the harmful bacteria candida and kills it.  It also actually lowers cholesterol because of its lauric acid content that safegruards the heart by increasing good cholesterol and decreasing of total cholesterol. It also encourages weight loss, because there is no circulation of the medium-chain fatty acids in the bloodstream. Rather, the coconut oil goes directly to the liver and is then turned into energy.  The coconut oil's fat is therefore not stored as fat by the body, but is used for energy.
 

2.  Virgin coconut oil helps to control diabetes, because the amount of insulin in the bloodstream does not increase.  Also, in studies in the Pacific Islands, where the entire caloric intake included 30% abd 60% of fully saturated coconut oil, demonstrated that the people were free of cardiovascular disease. 

3.  Virgin coconut oil strengthens the immune system because of its lauric acid content.  It is also good for the skin when applied directly.  It makes a shielding antibacterial layer which protects the part of the body that is infected. It can quicken the healing of bruises, as it repairs damaged tissues. It's wonderful as a massage oil, and lip moisturizer.

4.  Virgin coconut oil also nourishes the brain, enhancing cognitive function.  It also reverses or stalls neurodegenerative diseases during the early stages.  Ayurvedic healers  have used it as a medicine for 5000 years, and residents of Panama drink it to guard themselves from health problems.

 N.B.  Coconut oil is solid at room temperature but becomes clear liquid at temperatures at temperatures higher than 78 degrees Fahrenheit.To avoid harmful trans fats, use only extra virgin cold-pressed coconut oil.Heating fats, including the wonderful coconut oil, produces carcinogenic free radicals and impair the blood's ability to transport oxygen by clogging capillaries with fat globules and congesting vascular walls, contributing to arteriosclerosis and other cardiovascular disorders. Heated fats can cause acne, impaired liver function, and unpleasant body odor.

Caveats aside, good coconut oil is a wonderful thing to incorporate into a health-seeking,
 life-producing diet.  For maximum advantages, do your best to buy brands that are known not to have heat treated the oil in processing. Enjoy!

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Thanks for being here! Live Well ~  ~  Eat Raw!!....Jane



Olive Oil – Some Additional Thoughts

              

Olive Oil - Gift of the Mediterranean

Last week I posted a piece about Olive Oil and its benefits to our health, especially in heart health.  I want to add a few practical matters to that discussion. 

Here are a few suggestions for how to use olive oil.  You may want to add  some of them to your current practices. 

·         Use an Olive Oil dressing on your favorite salad. Making your own will spare you the additives in store-bought dressings, and will give you a much tastier dressing.

For example:
 

Creamy Italian Herb Dressing*

      2 cups olive oil

      1 cup basil

      1 cup parsley

      ¼ cup apple cider vinegar

      2 tsp onion

      2 scallions

      ½ lemon, juiced

      2 cloves garlic

      1 Tbs honey

      2 Tbs dried Italian seasoning

      1/ tsp sea salt

      ¼ tsp black pepper 

      Blend all ingredients in a blender.

·         Sprinkle green vegetables with olive oil instead of margarine or butter. Make pesto and serve with your favorite pasta. 

·         Prepare your own raspberry vinaigrette for salads. 

Raspberry Vinaigrette

      Try this one:

 

Raspberry Vinaigrette*

      1 ¼ cups raspberries

      1 cup orange juice

      2 Tbs olive oil

      ½ Tbs lemon juice

      Sea salt and pepper to taste 

      Blend all ingredients in a blender until smooth.

·          Add flavor to olive oil by infusing the oil with  sprigs of rosemary or other dried herbs.
 

 In addition to all the benefits there are to putting olive oil inside our bodies, it’s good to keep in mind  that the same antioxidants that heal internal cells may help protect the outer layers of cells, our skin, from damage. People living thousands of years ago in ancient Greece took for granted that extra virgin olive oil is one of the best beauty secrets to be found. It’s a wonderful lubricant for dry skin, and can also be used to create a hair mask or eye makeup remover. 

 Indeed, the multibillion beauty industry of today beauty uses olive oil in a large proportion of its products, from skin moisturizers to nail care kits. 

 

Some people are interested in the study of olive oil, much like there are connoisseurs of wine or coffee.  Several months ago I heard a fascinating interview of Tom Mueller, who, in 2011, released his book Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil.” In it he makes the point that not all olive oils are equal in taste quality or health benefits, depending largely on how much they have been tampered with and/or tainted in the processing mechanisms.  I was very interested in what he had to say, bought his book, and put it on my shelf where it remains yet unread.  That’s another story, but if you live near me and want to borrow it, I will happily lend it in return for a nice book report.  If you’d like to buy your own copy, you can click on the image below, and get right to it.  (If you take that route, I will appreciate the small commission I receive from Amazon, which has no affect on the price you pay.  Thanks for helping me to spread the word about healthier eating and living!)  

 

 

Let me know what you’d like to hear about in future posts. You can leave comments below, and if you haven’t yet filled in the “follow by email” box in the sidebar, this would be a good time. 

Enjoy! 

* Recipes from Living on Live Food, by Alissa Cohen