Origin
The name coconut is derived from Portuguese and Spanish word “coco” meaning “Skull” as the nut resembles. Coconut is used for many purposes. The inside of the nut contains a juice commonly known as “coconut water”. Oil can also be derived from coconut. The inside flesh of a coconut is edible. Coconut is consumed in a lot of different ways, such as in curries or as an ingredient in baking.
Health Benefits
Eating coconuts are excellent for one’s immunity. They are antiviral, antifungal, antibacterial, and anti-parasitic, meaning they kill harmful bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites. Because of that, if you consume coconut in any of its various forms (whether it be raw coconut, coconut oil, coconut milk, coconut butter, etc.), it can help treat some of mankind’s worst and most resilient of illnesses such as influenza, giardia, lice, throat infections, urinary tract infections, tapeworms, herpes, gonorrhea, bronchitis, and numerous other ailments caused by microbial.
- Maintains healthy and youthful looking skin: Applying coconut oil topically benefits your skin as it helps reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. This is because the oil keeps your connective tissues strong and supple.
- Keeps candida yeast from wreaking havoc on your body: A study published in mSphere found that mice that were given coconut oil had a 10-fold drop in the colonisation of Candida albicans yeast in their gut, compared to mice that were given soybean oil or beef tallow.
- Supports proper thyroid function: Unlike soy oil and other vegetable oils, coconut oil does not interfere with thyroid function. It has anti-inflammatory properties that can help reduce inflammation that may lead to hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism.
- Promotes good oral health: One study found that massaging coconut oil on your gums for 10 minutes a day, for at least three weeks, has a significant effect on reducing plaque and decay-causing Streptococcus mutans.
- Promotes heart health: Animal and human studies found that heart disease risk factors such as total, LDL and HDL cholesterol levels were greatly improved by taking coconut oil.
In particular, coconut oil’s saturated fats may actually increase “good” HDL cholesterol, while also helping convert “bad” LDL cholesterol into a less harmful form.
Nutritional value
Water – g 46.99
Energy – kcal 354
Protein – g 3.33
Total lipid (fat) – g 33.49
Carbohydrate, by difference – g 15.23
FFibre total dietary – g 9
Sugars, total – g 6.23
Minerals
Calcium, Ca – mg 14
Iron, Fe – mg 2.43
Magnesium, Mg – mg 32
Phosphorus, P – mg 113
Potassium, K – mg 356
Sodium, Na – mg 20
Zinc, Zn – mg 1.1
Vitamins
Vitamin C, total ascorbic acid – mg 3.3
Thiamin – mg 0.066
Riboflavin – mg 0.02
Niacin – mg 0.54
Vitamin B-6 – mg 0.054
Folate, DFE – µg 26
Vitamin B-12 – µg 0
Vitamin A, RAE – µg 0
Vitamin A, IU – IU 0
Vitamin E (alpha-tocopherol) – mg 0.24
Vitamin D (D2 + D3) – µg 0
Vitamin D – IU 0
Vitamin K (phylloquinone) – µg 0.2
Lipids
Fatty acids, total saturated – g 29.698
Fatty acids, total monounsaturated – g 1.425
Fatty acids, total polyunsaturated – g 0.366
Cholesterol – mg 0
Amino Acids
Other
Caffeine mg 0
Footnotes
(a)”From mature coconut.”
