Virgin coconut oil is extracted from copra, which is the dried inner flesh of coconut. Coconut oil consists of about 90 per cent saturated fat. The oil contains predominantly medium chain triglycerides, such as lauric acid, myristic acid and palmitic acid.
Research is now verifying many health benefits of coconut oil, which many indigenous communities have long known. In a recent study published in Skin Pharmacology and Physiology, scientists examined the impact of topical coconut oil on wound healing and found that when virgin coconut oil was applied to the wound, it dramatically increased the rate at which wounds heal.
They found that the coconut oil dramatically increased the rate at which the wounds heal by stimulating collagen production and turn-over. Also, new blood vessels formed more quickly in skin treated with virgin coconut oil.
This study, which was undertaken to evaluate the effect of a topical application of virgin coconut oil on wound healing in young rats, involved three sets of experiments with three groups of female Sprague-Dawley rats each consisting of six animals. Group 1 was the control; groups 2 and 3 were treated with 0.5 and 1.0 ml VCO, respectively, 24 hours after wound creation for 10 days. After the experimental period, the healing property of virgin coconut oil was evaluated on the healing process.
Head lice infestation (pediculosis), one of the most common contagious childhood diseases is caused by barely visible insects found almost exclusively on the human scalp.
Contrary to popular belief, head lice infestation has little to do with personal hygiene. In fact, head lice are totally non-discriminating, and can infest people of any lifestyle, age, race, or socio-economic status. However, it is a serious public health problem because some lice can carry organisms that cause other diseases, including relapsing fever.
A 2009 clinical trial has shown the superiority of a coconut oil as a natural alternative to the conventional treatment from head lice and their eggs. The clinical trial, which was published in the journal European Journal of Paediatrics involved 100 participants, found that coconut-oil based spray was more effective than pharmaceutical permethrin (an insecticide for treating lice infestation) 0.43 per cent topical treatment for head lice.
Quite interestingwas their finding which indicated that coconut oil spray, which also contained anise, was far safer for use in children. It was 40 per cent more effective than the neurotoxin permethrin.
Overall, these studies indicated that the product is likely to have a treatment success rate of around 90 per cent, which would make it an acceptable alternative in areas where resistance is an issue with conventional insecticides like permethrin.
The researchers, declaring that the fatty content of the coconut oil, which persisted on the hair and lice subsequent to washing contributed to the efficacy of the coconut-oil based spray.
Eczema is a condition in which the skin becomes dry, cracked and flaky and is far more susceptible to getting infected. There is no known cure for eczema, but Virgin coconut oil can be considered as a natural alternative to relieve its associated itching and redness of the skin.
According to a 2008 study published in the journal Dermatitis, virgin coconut oil has emollient properties that help to heal and protect the skin’s surface, as well as broad-spectrum antimicrobial components that help to protect against bacteria, viruses and fungi associated with eczema.
Burns, especially scalds from hot water and liquids are some of the most common childhood accidents. An assessment of virgin coconut oil on burns found out that it could be used as a cheap and effective adjuvant to other topical agents used in the treatment of burns.
Scientists published in the 2008 edition of the Indian Journal of Pharmacology that there was significant improvement in burn wound contraction in the group treated with the combination of coconut and silver sulphadiazine.
They suggested that its effectiveness in treatment of burns could be due to both its anti-inflammatory and antiseptic properties.
Arthritis is painful and frustrating. Many prescription and over-the-counter medications promise relief from the aching joint pain. Not all forms of treatment come from the pharmacy, though. In fact, one of such is coconut oil.
Studies have shown that coconut oil helps to smooth the pain of fibromyalgia and arthritis. That people suffering from arthritis will experience less pain in their joints and fingers after rubbing the affect areas with coconut oil was corroborated in a 2010 study published the journal, Pharmaceutical biology.
Under laboratory conditions, the oil was tried out on the swollen paw and ear of rats and found to have anti-inflammatory, analgesic, and antipyretic properties. It was suggested that massaging coconut oil into the aching joint help to reduce inflammation, increase blood flow to the afflicted area and invariably decreasing arthritic pain.
Because of its smoothing medical effects, coconut oil is used on herpes symptoms, on minor cuts and bruises. The lauric acid that it contains is also an anti-microbial that kills certain bacteria, virus and fungi that are not treated with conventional medicine.
Meanwhile, previous studies indicated that in societies that consume much of their calories from the saturated fats of coconut oil, diabetes was very rare. A study done in India in 1998 showed that when Indians abandoned traditional fats like ghee and coconut oil, and started using polyunsaturated fats like sunflower or safflower oils, their rates of diabetes became alarmingly high.
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