Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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What is the big deal with coconut oil? Is it high in Omega 3 or something?.. Also what is good about the MCT's?

flag	asked Jul 6 at 21:16 durward 263●10

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It is nice to step back once in a while and rethink things so I like your question. Indeed it strikes me as odd the fascination with all the disparate parts of the coconut here: coconut oil, coconut butter, coconut flour, coconut water - all processed pieces of the whole coconut! At the same time everyone goes on about eating whole foods primarily. Just kind of an odd disparity, yknow? Coconut oil is damn tasty, though! – ben61820 Jul 6 at 22:26

Great site to learn about VCO :) facebook.com/pages/Health-by-Coconut/… – Dags Jul 7 at 8:49

UncleLongHair · Accepted Answer · 2012-07-07 02:52:32Z UTC

The oil is a natural anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial, has a high smoke point, is stable at room temp, and the good stuff has a mild, neutral flavor, so from a practical and health standpoint it is a great cooking fat.

It is full of Medium-Chain Triglycerides, which I find easy to digest and which suppresses my appetite (in a good way) and gives me energy for hours. I would not eat a stick of butter, but would have a tablespoon or two of coconut oil, i mix it with hot water, turmeric and cinnamon for a dessert.

Coconut oul gets a really bad rap from "big agra" companies and their lobbyists who seem to think it is a cheaper, healthier, more versatile threat to their business (i agree on all counts). This leads to other groups like WAPF giving it glowing reviews which i find a little overstated but interesting.

If you have ever had "extra virgin" oil from a place like Tropical Traditions, it is so much better than some of the chemical-produced stuff that you'll have a whole new perspective on it (I did).

miked · Answer 2 · 2012-07-06 21:29:53Z UTC

I has virtually no omega 3. It's almost 100% pure saturated. My bottle says a serving is 14g and of that 13g is saturated and <0.5 is polyunsaturated.

The two big thing about coconut oil that I like:

1 - It's saturated, that means it's super temperature stable, you can use it in just about all cooking without worrying about oxidation.

2 - the fact that it's primarily a MCT means that it bypasses most of the lipid digestion that happens in your body and goes directly to your mitochondria for fuel. It's a great source of energy.

There are lots of other good things, but those are my two favorites.

KA24 · Answer 3 · 2012-07-06 21:56:05Z UTC

The best answer is...what's bad about it?

Almost everything else in the Paleo/Primal world, someone has complaints about. Outside of someone being allergic to coconut (this can apply to anything) or it making someone constantly have to go #2 (this is likely due to a bad digestive system as most who complain of this are just starting CO), I haven't seen any other complaints.

The benefits and stories from what CO has done for people are endless...

Len · Answer 4 · 2012-07-07 00:40:04Z UTC

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Can someone please explain how Coconut Oil, especially in the form it is supplied in today, could have been consumed by our pre-agricultural ancestors? Aside from being a plant oil (with all the secondary metabolites & toxins that plants produce) it is full of hideous-sounding synthetic enzymes and other crap.

answered Jul 7 at 0:40

Len
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"In the form it is supplied today" is a flawed argument. You can argue that almost every aspect of life today was not possible in those days. That doesn't mean they don't fit the concept and offer health benefits. Believe it or not, there are things that are very beneficial to humans that were not available in the past. The whole idea is to take those things and include them, while subtracting many other things. If someone chooses to not consume Coconut Oil for this reason, they are missing out. The health benefits on the stuff have been proven over and over. – KA24 Jul 7 at 0:50

Look at the videos of "extra virgin" coconut oil production (for example from Tropical Traditions) which involves manual labor and hand tools, and it is very easy to imagine small tribes producing it. If you ate coconuts every day for 100 generations you would figure out other ways to prepare them. – UncleLongHair Jul 7 at 2:43

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Hideous sounding synthetic enzymes? What you talkin' 'bout, Willis? – Matt Jul 7 at 3:32

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It's actually pretty easy to make coconut oil the traditional way, although a bit laborious. The old way requires the use of the flesh from a dried coconut, ground and ground until it oozes oil, and then filtered. My mother used to do this when she first moved to the US from India, when coconut oil at the Indian Grocery was relatively expensive. Modern methods use faster industrialized processes that may damage properties in the oil. But the good stuff that most people care about is still present. Saturated fat content, stability, anti-inflammatory lauric acid, and taste too! – Walcott Jul 7 at 3:34

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Coconut oil has been extracted and used by Pacific Islanders for thousands of generations without modern machinery so I'm not seeing a problem here. The Paleo wunderkind, the Kitavans, have thrived on those all natural absolutely wonderful "hideous-sounding synthetic enzymes" ... – cerement Jul 7 at 17:16

Jamie · Answer 5 · 2012-07-07 02:26:59Z UTC

Lauric acid is supposed to be anti-inflammatory. MCTs are easier to digest fats, they dont require bile. Coconut oil has a high smoke point, so doesnt oxidise.

Coconut flour however is mostly fibre and it does a number on my digestion, I avoid that.

a mesmerizing trickster · Answer 6 · 2012-07-06 21:40:51Z UTC

I don't know, but I can think of one good thing about it: a lot of people can't afford meat from good, healthy sources. Since toxins accumulate in fat, some people choose to eat lean meats (to avoid those toxins), while getting their saturated fat from coconut oil instead.

Also I think many Paleo people still have it in their mind that fats from vegetable sources are better for you than animal fat. Not true...

aseafish · Answer 7 · 2012-07-06 21:52:23Z UTC

The big deal about coconut oil is partly due to its versatility in my opinion.

You can cook with it, eat it by the spoonful, use it to moisturize your skin, sooth an upset tummy, and it tastes great.

Sure, there's lots of technical data, but that is not my expertise. I just love the stuff and love knowing it's not likely to do me harm.

Chinaeskimo · Answer 8 · 2012-07-06 23:25:19Z UTC

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It makes me FULL!

answered Jul 6 at 23:25

Chinaeskimo
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Acumen Athletics · Answer 9 · 2012-07-07 02:07:07Z UTC

It has the ability to suppress appetite. Some of the members here claim that 1 tbsp in their coffee blunts their hunger throughout the day. Plus it has a slight sweet taste. That's why all the VLC & ZC worship it. Then there are the people that over due things in the name of health ex. Bacon wrapped coconut flour crusted lamb fried in coconut oil.:

tj · Answer 10 · 2012-07-07 15:45:43Z UTC

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burns belly fat tastes great protects from the sun? makes my hair awesome.

answered Jul 7 at 15:45

tj
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falmer1946 · Answer 11 · 2012-11-19 11:30:41Z UTC

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It also boost your cell metabolism at mitochondria level and improve the consume of CO2!

answered Nov 19 at 11:30

falmer1946
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What is the big deal about coconut oil?

11 Answers