Virgin Coconut Oil - An Introduction

In India, Philippines, and other tropical countries where coconut trees are abundant, numerous applications of coconut tree and its parts, and also various usages of coconut oil (also known as coconut butter) as food, medicine and even cosmetic product are known to people, which is why they call the coconut tree as the Tree of Life!

In last couple of years, virgin coconut oil or VCO has become a subject of interest for many doctors and scientists around the world for its chemical composition and miraculous effects on our health. Unlike most other oils, which cause saturation of cholesterol and formation of blockages in blood vessels or development of harmful fat in our body leading to deterioration of our health, virgin coconut oil has proved to work in exactly reverse way. Among the numerous health benefits of virgin coconut oil are weight management, prevention of heart disease, strengthens the immune system, and acts as an efficient carrier oil in various medical treatments, to name a few.

What is Virgin Coconut Oil

Virgin coconut oil is extracted from fresh coconut meat using different methods such as mechanical or natural methods. This oil is different, in its chemical composition, from the oil extracted from dried coconut (also known as copra). Pure virgin coconut oil is always colorless, sediment free, has natural fresh coconut scent and tastes lighter.

Methods used in the manufacture of Virgin Coconut Oil

Following methods are used to extract virgin coconut oil from fresh coconut meat:

Drying: This technique is widely used to derive virgin coconut oil from coconut meat. The coconut meat is dried (by applying pressure) in order to extract oil. However, oil obtained using this method is not considered for medical use as the chemical composition of the fatty acids found in it are different as compared to virgin coconut oil derived by using cold-press or wet-milling process.

Wet-Milling: Fresh coconut meat is used to derive oil without drying it. Coconut milk is derived as a first step of the process by squeezing out coconut meat, which is then further processed to separate oil from water. There are various methods used to separate oil from water, namely boiling, fermentation, refrigeration, enzymes and by centrifuge.

Fermentation: Fermentation is the traditional method of deriving oil from coconut meat. The milk extracted from coconut meat is fermented for specific number of days depending upon the practice followed by oil producers (generally it varies from 1 to 4 days) and allowed to get separated from water and solid. Heat treatment is used on the extracted oil in order to reduce the moisture content and help improve its shelf-life.

Uses of Virgin Coconut Oil

For last couple of years, scientists have turned their attention to virgin coconut oil and its health benefits. This write-up will not be complete if we fail to mention Dr. Bruce Fife and Filipino doctor Conrado Dayrit for their extraordinary contribution, extensive research and belief in virgin coconut oil and its miraculous powers.

Although, we will see the numerous uses of virgin coconut oil in subsequent articles, let us have a look at some of them in brief: Virgin coconut is known for its use in heart-related problems which includes lowering of triglycerides, lowering of cholesterol etc., virgin coconut oil contains lauric acid (medium chain fatty acid), which is found in mother’s milk that helps the newborn’s body fight against various diseases and helps build their immune system. Once our body digests the lauric acid, it is converted/transformed into Monolaurin acid which is known for its antiviral, antibacterial, antiprotozoal, antifungal and antimicrobial properties and its action against lipid-coating of viruses. It also contains other important acids such as caproic acid, linoleic acid, stearic acid, caprylic acid, capric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, palmitoleic acid and oleic acid etc. Because of these acids, coconut oil is known to have effective use against viral diseases such as AIDS, herpes, hepatitis, influenza, and various bacteria generated diseases.

Virgin coconut oil is also known for its effective use in healing injuries (internal as well as external). From ancient times, people in India, Philippines and other tropical countries have used it as a protective and healing lotion for injuries.

In recent researches, it has been found out that people who are suffering from herpes and HIV type of viruses can take help of virgin coconut oil in order to get some relief. HIV viral load has been found to lower after use of lauric acid, as it directly breaks down the protective lipid-coating of the HIV virus, hence killing it efficiently rather than just stopping it. This has given a new hope to people suffering from diseases for which there is no permanent cure available. (Use of virgin coconut oil, structure and benefit of lauric acid etc. will be explained in subsequent articles).