Since a certain conversation – oh about ten months ago – continues to come to mind, I decided to share it. It’s actually quite telling of today’s culture.
I was at a large table with a good sized group of people and those nearest me were talking about food. Food is often the topic of conversation with me, since most people know that I eat gluten free and they’re curious about it.
At one point, I started to mention coconut oil and how helpful that has been for my digestive system. I couldn’t get the words out. An older woman was all over me with just the mention of coconut oil. “That’s a saturated fat!! It’s VERY bad for you!”
I couldn’t even go on to tell her how and why it’s helpful. It’s not like I was just quoting studies and statistics I found on the Internet to prove a point. I was trying to tell about my own personal experience. This is a woman who I believe worked in the medical field, who has multiple health problems, and who has many prescriptions. But there didn’t seem to be a way to lovingly and graciously point out the comparisons between us. I have no major health problems, no medications.
There are times I’ve wanted to point that out when someone disagrees with what I believe and know about food and healing, but it sounds so very arrogant. And I’ve noticed that if I do mention medications, the person I’m talking with downplays any that they’re taking as if their particular meds are minimal and don’t count.
And recently I got the feeling that what I say about healing with food…well it almost seems like the person I’m talking with has something like a religious conviction against it – well, probably not. J
To be more realistic, perhaps they’re like I used to be: How can it be possible that the entire medical world (generally speaking, of course) has it so wrong? So I read and read, and read some more, and began to change my kitchen and my habits, and read some more, and continue to read. Most of the healing for me took place rather quickly, but even today, ten years later, I still see improvements. It’s not like I eat healthy all the time, but there are food rules I now follow consistently: no high fructose corn syrup (now being relabeled corn sugar?), no msg, no processed food (with one exception, we all have our weaknessesJ), no hydrogenated oils.
People are too kind to tell me to “put a lid on it.” But I wouldn’t be able to. There are so many people I care so much about and I’m watching them damage their bodies with their food and drink choices. I wish I was blessed with the gift of debate or the gift of gab or the gift of convincing-ability (is that what a good sales person has?). I just look for moments when I can drop a clue about healing with food, letting people know that there are alternatives to drugs, and pray that God will lead them on their own healing path.
There’s a passage in the Bible that shows how Jesus adapted the bazaar medical practices of his day to his miracle healings. The practice in those days was for the physician to use their own spittle for healing, and that’s what Jesus used when he miraculously brought sight to a man’s eyes. My prayer for you is that you find God’s healing path, whatever direction that may be, miraculously – wouldn’t that be exciting! – or by finding the courage to make necessary changes.
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I wrote the above several weeks ago but hadn’t felt right about posting it and wasn’t sure why. Maybe now I know. I just received new information (actually old news, it’s just becoming more known) on coconut oil that explains it all so well. This is the information I needed at that dinner table ten months ago. Below, I’m posting highlights. There are probably too many, but I sure do hope, for the sake of your health, that you’ll look through it.
All the …s in the text below mean there was text there, so don’t expect it to read as smoothly as the original article.
The rest of information can be read at http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2010/10/22/coconut-oil-and-saturated-fats-can-make-you-healthy.aspx.
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This Cooking Oil is a Powerful Virus-Destroyer and Antibiotic…
Posted By Dr. Mercola | October 22 2010
You've no doubt noticed that for about the last 60 years the majority of health care officials and the media have been telling you saturated fats are bad for your health and lead to a host of negative consequences, like elevated cholesterol, obesity, heart disease and Alzheimer's disease.
Meanwhile during this same 60 years the American levels of heart disease, obesity, elevated serum cholesterol and Alzheimer's have skyrocketed compared to our ancestors, and even compared to modern-day primitive societies using saturated fat as a dietary staple.
…The fact is, all saturated fats are not created equal.
… some saturated fats occur naturally, while other fats are artificially manipulated into a saturated state through the man-made process called hydrogenation.
The medical and scientific communities are now fairly united in the opinion that hydrogenated vegetable and seed oils should be avoided.
… Some cities and states have now outlawed their use. There is no controversy anymore regarding the health dangers of these artificially saturated fats.
… this rightful vilification of hydrogenated saturated fats has created a lot of confusion regarding naturally occurring saturated fats, including coconut oil.
…
The truth about coconut oil is obvious to anyone who has studied the health of those who live in traditional tropical cultures, where coconut has been a nutritious diet staple for thousands of years.
…
Similarly, in 1981, researchers studied populations of two Polynesian atolls. Coconut was the chief source of caloric energy in both groups. The results, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, demonstrated that both populations exhibited positive vascular health.
…
It may be surprising for you to realize that the naturally occurring saturated fat in coconut oil actually has some amazing health benefits, such as:
· Promoting your heart health
· Promoting weight loss, when needed
· Supporting your immune system health
· Supporting a healthy metabolism
· Providing you with an immediate energy source
· Keeping your skin healthy and youthful looking
· Supporting the proper functioning of your thyroid gland
Does coconut oil have some secret ingredients not found in other saturated fats?
The answer is a resounding "yes".
50 percent of the fat content in coconut oil is a fat rarely found in nature called lauric acid …
Your body converts lauric acid into monolaurin, which has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoa properties.
Monolaurin is a monoglyceride which can actually destroy lipid coated viruses such as:
· HIV, herpes
· Measles
· Influenza virus
· Various pathogenic bacteria
· Protozoa such as giardia lamblia.
Lauric acid is a powerful virus and gram-negative bacteria destroyer, and coconut oil contains the most lauric acid of any substance on earth!
Capric acid, another coconut fatty acid present in smaller amounts, has also been added to the list of coconut's antimicrobial components.
…Coconut oil is about 2/3 medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), also called medium-chain triglycerides or MCTs. These types of fatty acids produce a whole host of health benefits.
Coconut oil is nature's richest source of these healthy MCFAs.
By contrast, most common vegetable or seed oils are comprised of long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), also known as long-chain triglycerides or LCTs.
Let me tell you why these long-chain fatty acids are not as healthy for you as the MCFAs found in coconut oil:
· LCFAs are difficult for your body to break down -- they require special enzymes for digestion.
· LCFAs put more strain on your pancreas, liver and your entire digestive system.
· LCFAs are predominantly stored in your body as fat.
· LCFAs can be deposited within your arteries in lipid forms such as cholesterol.
· In contrast to LFCAs, the MCFAs found in coconut oil have many health benefits, including the following beneficial qualities:
· MCFAs are smaller. They permeate cell membranes easily, and do not require special enzymes to be utilized effectively by your body.
· MCFAs are easily digested, thus putting less strain on your digestive system.
· MCFAs are sent directly to your liver, where they are immediately converted into energy rather than being stored as fat.
· MCFAs actually help stimulate your body's metabolism, leading to weight loss.
…
Coconut oil does not produce an insulin spike in your bloodstream. Coconut oil acts on your body like a carbohydrate, without any of the debilitating insulin-related effects associated with long-term high carbohydrate consumption!
… coconut oil added to the diets of diabetics and pre-diabetics has actually been shown to help stabilize weight gain, which can dramatically decrease your likelihood of getting adult onset type-2 Diabetes.
…
Back in the 1940s, farmers found out about this effect by accident when they tried using inexpensive coconut oil to fatten their livestock.
It didn't work!
Instead, coconut oil made the animals lean, active and hungry.
… the ability of MCFAs to be easily digested, to help stimulate the metabolism and be turned into energy has entered the sports arena. Several studies have now shown that MCFAs can enhance physical or athletic performance.
…research has demonstrated that, due to its metabolic effect, coconut oil increases the activity of the thyroid.
…Cell regeneration increases to replace old cells, and your immune system functions better overall.
…the truth is this: it is UNSATURATED fats that are primarily involved in heart disease, not the naturally occurring saturated fats, as you have been led to believe.
Plus, the polyunsaturated fats in vegetable and seed oils encourage the formation of blood clots by increasing platelet stickiness. Coconut oil helps to promote normal platelet function.
And polyunsaturated fats, which include common vegetable oils such as corn, soy, safflower, sunflower and canola, are absolutely the worst oils to use in cooking. These omega-6 oils are highly susceptible to heat damage because of their double bonds.
…The medium-chain fats in coconut oil are considered so nutritious that they are used in baby formulas, in hospitals to feed the critically ill, those on tube feeding, and those with digestive problems. Coconut oil has even been used successfully by doctors in treating aluminum poisoning.
Coconut oil is exceptionally helpful for pregnant women, nursing moms, the elderly, those concerned about digestive health, athletes (even weekend warriors), and those of you who just want to enhance your overall health.
