Researchers differ over health benefits of Palm Kernel oil

Researchers are divided over the use of palm kernel oil in treating skin ailments, convulsion and stomach problems. While Nigerian researchers say palm kernel oil can be used as ointment on the body to minimize infections by microorganisms, Cameroonian researchers say they can actually cause skin rashes. CHUKWUMA MUANYA writes.

PALM KERNEL OIL (Udeaki in Ibo, Menyanga in Cameroon) has been traditional used by different tribes in Nigeria for treating convulsion and skin diseases in children and poisoning but a Cameroonian study has linked the local therapy to skin rashes in children.

The Cameroonian study concluded: “This research has thus established that there is a causal relationship between skin rashes in children and palm kernel oil. The skin rashes observed on children attending infant welfare clinic (IWC) at St Mary Soledad Health Centre Alakuma – Mankon and the Sub Divisional Medical Centre (SDMC) Nkwen in Bamenda, Cameroon are caused by Candida albicans present in the palm kernel oil that mothers rub on their children. It is therefore imperative that an intensive health education should be given to the population to dissipate their ignorance and to stop the use of palm kernel oil. Stopping the rubbing of palm kernel oil on children is guaranteeing the right of children to better health care and better health status.”

Until now, mothers in South East Nigeria use palm kernel oil as rubbing oil for their children to prevent and treat skin rashes and convulsion. It is produced from seeds inside palm nus of the Palm tree (Elaeis guineensis).

There are two types of palm kernel oil: white palm kernel oil obtained by compressing palm kernels in factories; and black palm kernel oil obtained traditionally by frying the palm kernels in a pot until the oil is extracted. They are all crude palm kernel oil.

According to the Useful Plants of West Tropical Africa by H.M. Burkill, the uses of palm kernel oil as conceived by the community are: apply on the body of the child to prevent and treat skin rashes, rub and give the child to eat to treat high fever and convulsion; eat to treat abdominal pain; it is a good and cheap rubbing oil that smoothens the body of the child; it is used to make bread sandwich, to prepare traditional medicine concussions and to oil the head hair.

Candida albicans is an opportunistic fungus (or form of yeast) that is the cause of many undesirable symptoms ranging from fatigue and weight gain, to joint pain and gas. The symptoms include thrush (whitish tongue and white patches at the vagina).

Candida albicans have emerged as important causes of morbidity and mortality in immune-compromised patients such as in Human Immuno-deficiency Virus (HIV)/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), cancer chemotherapy, organ or bone marrow transplantation.

According to lead researcher and medical consultant at Bamenda, North West Province, Cameroon, Dr. Daniel Mfonfu, the skin rashes observed in this research is a fungal dermatitis due to the Candida albicans in palm kernel oil, presenting clinically as: brown, red, or intensely red and shiny patches of various sizes on the body of the child; sometimes ulceration of lesions occur especially at the genitals.

An operational research was carried out in July and August 2007 in Bamenda, Cameroon, involving 251children attending Infant Welfare Clinics (IWC) in two health facilities in order to elucidate the relationship between the skin rashes in children and palm kernel oil.

According to the study, the magnitude of use of palm kernel oil was 81.3 per cent, while the prevalence rate of skin rashes at IWC was 71.31 per cent. The statistical relationship between the skin rashes in children and palm kernel oil was very significant: (83.8 per cent) of the 204 of children who rub palm kernel oil had skin rashes and (95.5 per cent) of the 179 children with rashes rubbed palm kernel oil.

Candida albicans was identified by culture on Sabouraud dextrose agar of specimens from skin rashes; samples of palm kernel oil from the factory, the vendor at the market, and the mothers; Candida albicans was positive in both black and white palm kernel oil. “This research has shown that Candida albicans effectively grows in palm kernel oil,” the researchers wrote.

However, Nigeria researchers led by Ugbogu had in 2006 demonstrated that, in vitro, palm kernel oil samples showed noticeable inhibitory effect on Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus species. while no significant inhibitory effect was observed on Candida albicans…… and concluded that palm kernel oil can be used as an ointment for the body to minimize infections by microorganisms and this may justify its usage amongst the populace in some parts of Nigeria.

Staphylococcus aureus is a bacterium that causes cause a range of illnesses, from minor skin infections. Streptococcus species are responsible for many cases of meningitis, bacterial pneumonia, endocarditis, erysipelas and necrotizing fasciitis (the ‘flesh-eating’ bacterial infections).

Another team led by Ekwenye in 2005 concluded that the traditionally extracted palm kernel oil, Mmanyanga, a black viscous non-drying liquid, derived from mixed varieties of Elaeis guineensis showed minimal antimicrobial activity against Escherichia coli compared to Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Candida albicans and Asperigillus niger with no sign of inhibition.

Eschericia coli is a bacterium. Most strains are harmless, but some serotypes can cause serious food poisoning in humans, and are occasionally responsible for product recalls due to food contamination.

Aspergillus niger is a fungus. It is less likely to cause human disease than some other Aspergillus species, but, if large amounts of spores are inhaled, a serious lung disease, aspergillosis can occur.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a common bacterium that can cause disease in animals, including humans. The symptoms of such infections are generalized inflammation and sepsis. If such colonizations occur in critical body organs, such as the lungs, the urinary tract, and kidneys, the results can be fatal.

The Cameroonian researchers wrote: “Despite the popular and widespread use of palm kernel oil as rubbing oil for children and the fact that palm kernel oil does not inhibited the growth of Candida albicans, such a clinical based research on ‘skin rashes in children and palm kernel oil’, may not have yet been done to assess the clinical consequence of palm kernel oil on the skin of children.

“It also follows that studies may not have yet been done to determine the presence of Candida albicans in the palm kernel oil that mothers are rubbing on their children although the people of Eastern region of Nigeria have been using palm kernel oil as skin ointment since prehistoric times (Ugbogu et al 2006), and despite the evidence that palm kernel oil does not inhibit the growth of Candida albicans (Ekwenye et al 2005; Ugbogu et al 2006)

“Although palm kernel oil and coconut oil have the same amount of lauric acid 48 per cent of weight that is antibacterial and antiviral, the contents of fatty acids specific for the killing of Candida albicans in palm kernel oil are Caprylic acid (C8) 4.2 per cent and Capric acid (C10) 3.7 per cent body weight; while in coconut oil, Caprylic acid (C8) is 7.3 per cent and Capric acid (C10) 6.6 per cent.

“The quantity of capric acid, specific against Candida albicans, in palm kernel oil may not be adequate enough to inhibit in vivo the growth of Candida albicans, although Gudmundur Bergsson et el, showed that in vitro both capric and lauric acids are active in killing C. albicans and may therefore be useful for treatment of infections caused by that pathogen or others that infect the skin and mucosa.

“Eric Armstrong states that coconut oil also contains caprylic acid (eight per cent), which kills fungus (for example, athlete’s foot fungus) and yeast (Candida, as well as vaginal yeast). Zde?ka ?iháková, et al, (2002) showed that monoacylglycerols made from coconut oil have antifungal activity.

“It was realised during this research that the population expressed the need for a natural vegetable oil to rub on their children; the most appropriate oil would be the coconut oil that simultaneously has antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal and antiprotozoal properties.

“This research has proven that there is a causal relationship between skin rashes in children and palm kernel oil. The skin rashes observed in children at infant welfare clinic (IWC) are caused by Candida albicans present in the palm kernel oil that mothers rub on their children; mothers should therefore stop rubbing children with palm kernel oil.”