|
Coconut oil has traditionally been used in a wide range of
food products because of its considerable stability and adaptability.
Coconut oil is ideal for industrial uses because of its stability
under most conditions including temperature. For example,
coconut oil does not require refrigeration and is naturally
solid at room temperature (up to 76°F). It has a shelf
life of three years or 18 months once opened. Coconut oil
also has many uses in its natural state. It has a slightly
sweet flavor and is wonderful in baked goods or as a spread.
It is a vegan, dairy-free replacement for butter, shortening
and lard. It is also a healthy alternative to refined and
hydrogenated vegetable oils for sauté cooking and stir-frying.
It combines readily with other ingredients, has a neutral
flavor and can be used as the oil of choice in almost any
application.
Coconut oil has been the undeserving target of negative publicity
generated by the food oil industry and other consumer activist
groups. For example, in 1988 the Center for Science in the
Public Interest published a booklet called the "Saturated
Fat Attack." Section III is entitled "Those Troublesome
Tropical Oils," and it includes statements encouraging
pejorative labeling. According to Mary Enig, Ph.D., "There
were lots of substantive mistakes in the booklet, including
errors in the description of the biochemistry of fats and
oils and completely erroneous statements about fat and oil
composition of many of the products" (Coconut: In Support
of Good Health in the 21st Century). According to Dr. C. Everett
Koop, former Surgeon General of the United States "the
coconut scare is foolishness. . . To get the word to commercial
interests terrorizing the public about nothing is another
matter." Moreover, years ago researchers gathering data
from rats fed hydrogenated coconut oil concluded that it raised
blood cholesterol levels (Enig, On the Effect of Coconut Oil
on Serum Cholesterol Levels and HDLs). The result of hydrogenation
is a molecular distortion of the fatty acids, turning them
into harmful trans fatty acids. Trans fatty acids are mutated
forms of naturally occurring fats that impede cell functionality
when they become part of the cell wall.
Research conducted over the last few decades has recognized
an enormous amount of health benefits that set the record
straight on coconut oil. Lauric Acid, the major fatty acid
found in the fat of the coconut, has long been recognized
for its unique properties that it provides to nonfood uses
in the soaps and cosmetics industry. More recently, Lauric
Acid has been recognized for its unique properties in food
use, which are related to its antiviral, antibacterial, and
antiprotozoal functions (Enig, Coconut: In Support of Good
Health in the 21st Century). Almost 50% of its fatty acid
content is Lauric Acid, a disease fighting fatty acid. Lauric
Acid, also found naturally in human milk, keeps the body from
being infected by many diseases. Recently published research
has also shown that natural coconut fat in the diet leads
to a normalization of body lipids, protects against alcohol
damage to the liver, and improves the immune system's anti-inflammatory
response. Furthermore, coconut oil and palm kernel oil only
have 3,910 kilocalories per pound compared to soybean, cottonseed,
or corn oil which have 4,010 kilocalories per pound (Enig,
Know Your Fats: 169).
Coconut oil has a unique taste, texture, and an incredibly
long shelf life. Not only is coconut oil lower in calories
than most other fats and oils, less coconut oil is required
when baking or cooking! You can replace butter, shortening
or lard with three-quarters the amount of coconut oil to obtain
the same results. Coconut oil can be used in baked goods,
such as cookies, cakes, muffins, pastries, pie crusts, waffles,
and pancakes, candy bars, chocolate coatings, candy coatings,
protein bars, meal replacement products, and many other products.
It is recommended for consumers to seek out a quality food
grade coconut oil, as a cosmetic grade is common in the market
place.
Recently coconut oil has been receiving an increasing amount
of recognition for its amazing health benefits dealing specifically
as an aid to the immune system for viruses. Recent reports
from the US Food and Drug Administration about mandated labeling
of the trans fatty acids will hopefully put coconut oil in
a more competitive position and may aid its return to the
baking and snack food industry.
www.apcc.org.sg
www.lauric.org
Enig, Mary. "Coconut: In Support of Good Health in the
21st Century," presented at the 36th session of the Asia
& Pacific Coconut Community, 21-25 June 1999.
Enig, Mary. "The Effect of Coconut Oil on Serum Cholesterol
Levels and HDLs." www.ospc.com/coco.htm
Enig, Mary. Know Your Fats: The Complete Primer for Understanding
the Nutrition of Fats, Oils, and Cholesterol. Bethesda Press,
Silver Spring, MD, 2000.
Source: Omega Nutrition.
|
Featured
Articles