Coconut Galore!! For Your Health!!

Hi!

Been reading a book called "Eat Fat, Lose Fat" and for the past few days I have been taking extra virgin coconut oil as a supplement. I've been using it for a while to fry my eggs or anything else I fry, but taking it as a supplement is new for me.

The book (EFLF) recommends taking from one to two tablespoons (based on your present weight) of Extra Virgin Coconut Oil (EVCO) before every meal if you want to lose weight. It also recommends limiting sugar and carbs, as in "processed foods," and returning to cooking like great grandma did. GG used to cook everything from scratch and she did not use margarine, she used fresh wholesome butter from grass fed cows. In GG's day there was no other kind of cow. All the cows were grass fed. Not so now.  Now they are fed grain. Why? To fatten them up!! Guess what? Grain does the same thing to humans that it does to cows: it fattens us up! So: go easy on the grains and eat grass fed meat if you can.

If you are trying to lose weight, improve your diabetes glucose numbers, and improve your health in many ways you must also eliminate polyunsaturated oils (soy oil, corn oil, canola oil, etc.) from your diet. Saturated fat (SF) is not the villain that it has been painted to be in recent years. In fact, SF helps to prevent free radicals in your body, while the polyunsaturated oils cause them!

Taking EVCO as a supplement is quite an experience. Opening the jar lets out this wonderful absolutely delicious coconut aroma that just sucks me in like a bee to honey. It smells wonderful! I take a table spoon and dip out a heaping spoonful of the creamy white oil which I keep in the cupboard, and put it in my mouth. (I consider that two tablespoons.) I've tried to think of how to describe its texture and I think the closest thing I have come up with is soft Jello. You know how when you put soft jello in your mouth and you "chew" it, it kind of slips everywhere around your teeth and tongue? EVCO is the same. As I chew I swallow the small amount in the center and continue portioning it down my throat until it is all down. If I'm not careful it will make me cough a little on the last swallow because it is oil, after all. But a swig of water washes it down nicely.

In the book they recommend putting the oil in some hot camomile tea and drinking it. I tried it but not in camomile tea. I take "Calm" magnesium supplements every day, too, and I have found that I like to heat some water in the coffee maker and fix a cup of magnesium, so I put the EVCO in that. It turned into what reminded me of chicken noodle soup, but went down a little easier. When you're done the inside of the cup shines with an oily sheen, so I wonder if I'm getting the full benefit of the coconut oil. I actually prefer to take the heaping tablespoonful of EVCO and wash it down with the magnesium. That way I know it is all going into my body and not down the drain with the dish water.

Why do they recommend taking coconut oil as a supplement? Because it helps to control appetite and blood sugar levels. I have found that taking the EVCO about thirty minutes before a meal really does help to make the meal satisfying. I'm not left thinking I want more food when I'm done, and the "shut off control" works very plainly. I can tell a lot better when "enough is enough" and I don't walk away wishing for more. I walk away feeling like I've had enough.

I'm looking forward to including more coconut in my diet, too. They have lots of recipes that I want to try and a few that I'm sure I won't, but all recipe books are like that. You are just not going to like every one of them. I consider a recipe book to be a good one if I actually use two or three recipes from it. I am not an exotic eater and I live by myself so I'm not going to go to the trouble of cooking large meals that I am then stuck eating for the next two days. I want one serving and that is enough. Many of their recipes are for a family situation, but they still have good ideas.

If you want to read some really good articles about the effects of traditional nutrition and coconut oil on the body try some of these:

http://coconutoil.com/coconut-oil-research/

http://diabeteslight.com/hello-world-2/

http://coconutoil.com/truth_saturated_fats/

Here is a link to the coconut oil that I personally use:

http://www.vitacost.com/vitacost-extra-virgin-certified-organic-coconut-oil-54-fl-oz

This is the best price I have ever seen for it. I think the one from Tropical Traditions (below) is maybe a superior coconut oil but it is very expensive and comes in glass jars or huge plastic buckets. In case you are interested here is the link to theirs:

http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/virgin_coconut_oil.htm

Coconut oil naturally has a long shelf life so don't worry about buying a large quantity, it will not go bad for a very long time. Don't store it in the refrigerator because, like butter, it will harden, but it gets harder than butter and is difficult to get out of the jar. Just put it in a cupboard and let it stay room temperature. It melts and becomes a liquid at about 76 degrees. So as the day gets warmer the coconut oil gets softer. This is normal, too.

As a side note: I remember reading somewhere a long time ago that a diabetic stumbled upon the fact that coconut lowered his blood sugar when he tested his numbers after having eaten some coconut macaroons. So adding actual coconut to your diet is a good thing too. Just be sure to NOT buy the kind at the regular grocery store because it has been sweetened which cancels out the good effects. You can find this kind of coconut at: http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/organic_dried_coconut.htm -- and the price is right, on this item!!

You can find coconut water vinegar here:
http://www.freecoconutrecipes.com/coconut_water_vinegar_recipes.htm

This one has a video that shows you how to make coconut milk:
http://www.freecoconutrecipes.com/dried_coconut_recipes.htm

I don't have enough data on my personal experiment to verify the claims from the EFLF book, yet, but I am working on that and will get back to you with the facts when I know them.

Here's what I am doing:

2 TSB EVCO 30 minutes before each meal

Meals consist of fresh raw salad and animal protein (eggs, beef, pork, chicken) in "normal proportions"

Some meals have cooked veggies, too. (broccoli & green beans mostly)

Every other day or so, I have a bowl of oatmeal -- to keep my mood level.

That is pretty much it.

In the book they have many more recipes for all kinds of wonderful traditional meals. It is a reduced carb / high fat diet which is very satisfying. They give you three diet options, quick weight loss, faster weight loss, and a gourmet maintenance plan.

In the book they also claim that you can follow their menu and eat about 2500 carlories per day while taking the coconut oil before meals and lose from 1 to 2 pounds per week. If that does not happen for you, then they have a Phase Two diet which is about 2000 carlores. Here's hoping it works for me -- and you too, if you try it. 

You can check out the book here:

http://www.amazon.com/Eat-Fat-Lose-Healthy-Alternative/dp/0452285666/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1336606733&sr=1-1

Have fun!!

Be back soon,

Marcia