People living in equatorial countries and regions of the world like Southeast Asia have long understood the benefits of coconut oil. They would eat the coconut itself, drink its nutritious water and make coconut oil to use in cooking, beauty products, and medicinal cures. Today you can get coconut oil at virtually every supermarket, or even make it yourself!
Experts differ on exactly what makes a great coconut oil, but they mostly agree that you’ll want to find one with a clear color when in a liquid state and a white color when solid. Coconut oils that are tinged brown could be rancid and should be avoided. You’ll also want to look for is a yummy coconut smell coming from the oil and check the country of origin. If the oil was produced in a country where coconuts are abundant, it’s probably of a higher quality than if it came from somewhere else!
So now that you have your jar of coconut oil, now what happens? The uses for your new super oil are only limited by your imagination! You can make an awesome DIY face scrub or healing mask, use it to tame your split ends, cook some of your favorite vegetables in it for a stir-fry that’s out of this world. The sky is the limit! Let’s look at some of the incredible things that this amazing oil can do!
1. Healthy for You
Coconut oil is full of good fats. It’s comprised of medium-chain triglycerides, which have been linked to higher amounts of energy, increased weight loss and a slowed down aging process. Sounds pretty excellent, right? In addition to helping you keep your youthful glow, coconut oil could also help ward off and fight diseases and is widely accepted as a great addition to any diet. People who want to lose weight will benefit from swapping out traditional oils for coconut oil. Not only will the oil infuse your food with a beautiful tropical flavor, studies have shown that coconut oil will actually target stubborn belly fat in women, giving you a leaner figure!
Coconut oil fills you up without that feeling of sluggishness, so you’ll want to go head out for a run or hit the gym. All of that new energy combined with coconut oil’s tummy targeting properties will have you feeling like a new person. People who consume coconut oil also could build more muscle. As muscle burns, more calories at rest than fat, you’re building a more efficient body with every spoonful of coconut oil. There aren’t any other oils that have quite the bragging rights of coconut oil, and increased energy, accelerated weight loss, and slowed down aging are only the tip of the iceberg with this superfood!
2. Immune System Support
The lauric acid in coconut oil contributes greatly to your immune system support because of its mighty antifungal and antibacterial properties. Most of our common illnesses are bacterial, ranging from the mildly annoying to the very serious. Stop spending your days under the weather or investing in expensive medicines and cures, when you can practice some pre-emptive prevention by merely changing up your diet a little bit! By simply incorporating coconut oil into your diet you’ll benefit from the immunity-boosting benefits that occur naturally! Eating the miracle oil regularly could get your immune system in tip-top shape and keep you healthier than you would have been otherwise!
3. Important for Heart Health
Our old friends, medium-chain triglycerides, do more than help you maintain a good weight! They’re also huge contributors to a healthy heart and help manage two big culprits in heart disease; arteriosclerosis and obesity. With 610,000 people dying of heart disease every year, it’s a huge health crisis and concern. One in every four Americans will succumb to heart disease. Start incorporating oils like coconut into your diet and reduce your chances of being a statistic! You’ll also reap the tangential benefits of increased heart health, like more energy and the ability to do more in the gym. Healthier hearts lead to healthier lives, period!
4. Gives You Energy
Coconut oil gives you a cleaner, more productive type of power. Since it’s comprised of the good type of fats, you won’t feel sluggish after incorporating it into your diet. To the contrary, you’re likely to feel alert and able to accomplish anything! Plus, you’ll feel full for longer because your body is running on good fats and therefore has a sustainable stock of calories from which to draw from. The other thing that makes this oil so potent is how easily your body can digest it. We’ve all had that horrible, bloated feeling after a fatty meal. You can hardly move! This oil runs through your system quickly, giving you nutritional and caloric benefits without the feeling of exhaustion.
5. Supports Thyroid Function
Your thyroid is the tiny little gland that lives just underneath your larynx and it has a pretty important job to do! The thyroid gland regulates your metabolism, which dictates how quickly you are able to burn calories, lose weight and really, how effectively your body functions. Coconut oil supports thyroid function and helps it operate at maximum capacity. Thyroids don’t just control metabolism. They have other important jobs too, like managing cholesterol and making sure your body isn’t too hot or too cold. For women specifically, they can help maintain regular menstrual cycles. It’s very important to keep this little gland operating at its best.
6. Good for Skin
Your skin will love coconut, especially if it’s dry! This oil is amazing for your skincare routine and can be used as anything from a luxurious body butter to an intensive hand cream. It can even make your complexion brighter and clear up unsightly problems like cold sores. Some beauticians recommend adding the oil to a warm bath, along with a few drops of your favorite essential oils for a detox soak that your skin will love! Tame ragged cuticles with just a touch of this oil, or spread it on rashes for a natural ointment that will soothe the affected area and have you looking your best in no time!
7. Increases Cell Regeneration
Coconut oil might be the secret to the Fountain of Youth! It has been proven to slow down the process of aging and can actually help regrow cells. Yes, add it to your diet and increase cell regeneration! Our bodies need to produce new cells to heal and superfoods like this oil help us do just that. Far from being just cosmetic, this wonderful oil can also help you regain functionality you thought was lost forever. Diseases that were once hereditary or part of aging no longer have to be a certainty!
8. Anti-Viral
One of the major advantages of this healthy oil is its tremendous effects on our health and bodies. One of the best properties is its ability to positively impact our immune systems, staving off diseases and illnesses. Lauric Acid, one of the major components is anti-bacterial and also anti-viral, making it doubly effective in keeping us healthy. There are 219 known viruses that could impact humans at any given time, with more being constantly unearthed. These 219 strains range from the moderately annoying to the very severe and can impact anyone at any place in the world at any time. Oils like coconut can insulate us from the effects of these viruses.
9. Anti-Bacterial
This healthy and delicious oil’s lauric acid makes it anti-bacterial, a boon for anyone who worries about suffering from sicknesses and major or minor bacterial infections. It’s not a substitute for antibiotics or medical care, but superfoods like this tropical oil can help with cuts or infections that may result from our body’s normal wear and tear! For centuries, it has been used as a very important and welcome addition to a balanced diet. Its ability to act as a medicinal agent has been long lauded and praised by people who live in tropical regions as well.
