There are a Myriad of organic coconut oil health benefits. Coconut Oil has a very unique combination of minerals and fatty acids which makes it great for your beauty and health.

It has been used over many centuries for maintaining healthy hair, healthy digestive system, and healthy skin and also for weight loss!  There’s a huge amount of coconut benefits on the body – I’m about to share with you a few of my favorites today. I’m sure you have probably never even heard about some of them!

 Coconut Oil Health Benefits for Hair   

Coconut oil uses for hair are endless! It keeps the hair follicles and shaft moist thus the hair grows thick and long because the oil reaches every layer of the hair strand. Saturated fatty acids such as caprylic acid, oleic acid, myristic acid, and linoleic acid are found in abundance in coconut oil – a feature which makes the oil exceptionally good for healthy skin and hair.

These saturated fatty acids make your hair soft by providing ample moisture to the scalp and hair. Therefore, these coconut oil health benefits are especially good if you suffer from dry hair.

•    Conditioner   

Coconut oil has the ability to retain the natural hair oil and moisture keeping the hair damage free, soft and silky smooth. It waterproofs the hair and also acts as a barrier to protect your hair from various harsh chemicals found in some health care products. I swim a lot and apply coconut oil to my hair beforehand to protect it from the damaging pool chemicals.

•    Dandruff treatment   

Dry scalp is the leading cause of dandruff. The fatty acids found in coconut oil have the ability to maintain and restore moisture in the scalp thus preventing flaking. Hair that grows on a healthy scalp will also be healthy!

•    Hair growth   

Coconut oil is a very effective natural hair growth remedy mainly because it nourishes the skin cells quickly. Moreover, it reduces the amount of protein lost from your hair and scalp during conditioning and washing. Protein strengthens the hair and ultimately prevents hair loss and breakage. Coconut helps prevent hair loss by removing dead cells from the scalp and revitalizing both the scalp and hair.

Besides keeping the scalp moisturized, massaging your scalp everyday with coconut oil which is very rich in vitamin E also increases blood flow to the scalp and hair follicles. Additionally, vitamin E helps in healing of the scalp from insect bites and keeping away pimples. Coconut oil supplies the hair follicles with essential nutrients as well as oxygen which are essential for hair growth and maintaining a healthy scalp.

 More Coconut Oil uses!

Boosting your Energy and Metabolism  

Coconut oil is food to the “mitochondria” (which is the energy producing unit of the cells). Therefore, coconut oil is a very effective metabolic stimulator since it is the best natural source for medium chain fatty acids (MCFA’s) which are also known as medium chain fats (MCT’s).

Unlike most vegetable oils which are long chain triglycerides– (LCT’s), coconut oil mainly comprises of medium chain fatty acids – MCFA’s. The main difference between these two types of fats is that; whereas LCT’s are normally stored in your body as fat when eaten, MCFA’s are mainly used for energy. This all sounds a little bit ‘technical’ I know – but the intake of MCFA’s increases your metabolic rate because they stimulate energy production very quickly. So eat it up! Seriously! A teaspoon a day. There are so many benefits of eating coconut oil!

Unlike other oils, coconut oil does not stress our digestive systems because it does not need bile from the gall bladder and other enzymes from the pancreas in order to be fully digested. The MCFA’s are sent to the liver and converted into energy right away!

Therefore, besides producing energy, coconut oil is also very easy to digest and it actually helps the body to conserve the energy that could have otherwise been used to digest other fats!

Did you know that eating foods that have been prepared using coconut oil keeps your metabolism elevated for at least 24 hours?

When you boost your metabolism, your body burns calories faster thus energizing your entire body – and losing weight too!

   Defense against parasites   

Cryptosporidium and giardia normally live in digestive tracts of most mammals. Therefore, it is very easy for public water systems to be infected with these parasites especially when they are contaminated with animal waste or sewerage.

According to CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention), Cryptosporidium is in at least 65% of the nation’s surface waters (lakes, rivers, and streams). On the other hand, half of the nation’s tap water comes from the treated surface water.

Giardia is a bigger problem. It can live in various water sources including:

• ponds,
• streams,
• swimming pools and
• tap water.

Giardia is normally found in the pre-treated water used by 40 million Americans. It has caused epidemics in various small cities and some large metropolitan cities.

Coconut oil provides a very effective defense against many parasites including cryptosporidium and giardia.

Just like fungi and bacteria, giardia, cryptosporidium and a few other protozoa can’t stand up against medium chain fatty acids (MCFA’s) found in coconut oil.

People who suffer from chronic fatigue can benefit from coconut oil because the MCFA’s are easily absorbed into our cells and converted into energy immediately.

Studies have proven that coconut oil is very effective in getting rid of intestinal worm such as tapeworms. Moreover, ground coconut is fed to pets and other animals in order to expel intestinal parasites. On the other hand, Indians rub coconut oil into the scalp in order to get rid of head lice. Coconut oil can be used to eliminate or hold in check lice, tapeworms, giardia, viruses, bacteria and germs of all sorts.

FACT – Coconut oil is one of the best natural remedies you can use for intestinal infections.

   Coconut Oil Health Benefits for the Skin.  

•    SPF factor   

The sun protection factor (SPF) of coconut is 4. Therefore, besides being a skin application especially in tropical area, coconut oil is also used in sunscreen and tanning products. Its moisturizing and anti-bacterial properties make it great for treating acne too.

•    Cleansing and anti-bacterial properties   

Studies have shown that besides having great anti-bacterial properties, coconut oil is also quite effective in cleansing and moisturizing the skin. Since it is not greasy but it’s still effective in removing oil and other impurities such as black and white skin heads, coconut oil is becoming a popular ingredient in face masks and other skincare products.

Moreover, coconut oil is quite effective in treating acne. Acne is mainly a result of toxin build-up under the skin over the years. Coconut oil can penetrate your skin and remove toxins that cause acne breakouts.

Therefore, this natural oil may seem to be too powerful for some people because they may experience severe acne breakouts after using coconut oil. The acne breakout is usually a result of the toxins being purged out of the skin. However, this is only part of the healing crisis and it should not be a matter of concern if you want your skin to heal.

However, if you are afraid of the breakout, you can apply a thin layer once per day every day before you go to sleep and see how it goes. This way, the acne breakout won’t be too severe. Once you start feeling comfortable with the positive results, you can gradually start applying the coconut oil twice per day.

So there you have it – a few of my favorite coconut oil health benefits.

I have a “myriad” of other coconut oil uses that I will share with you next time, so be sure and visit again soon.