Beat stress with coconut oil

Got a lot on at the moment? Give your system the boost it needs and beat stress with coconut oil.

Although there was a time when we wouldn’t dare touch something with such a high saturated fat content, today we now know better. Coconut oil has an endless list of health benefits including improved hair, skin and teeth, as well as strengthening the bones. This is because of ‘the presence of lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid, and their respective properties, such as antioxidant, anti-fungal, antibacterial and soothing qualities,’ explains registered dietician and nutritionist Megan Ware on medicalnewstoday.com. Coconut oil is classed as a medium-chain fatty acid, so it’s known to provide the body with an instant source of energy, stimulating the metabolism and even aiding weight loss.

In a recent study in January, researchers looked at the effect of consuming coconut oil on stress. Carried out by a team of university researchers in Malaysia, the experiment tested ‘anti-stress and antioxidant effects of virgin coconut oil’ by studying the effects of Virgin Coconut Oil and stress-induced situations on mice.’ (They gave some mice coconut oil and assessed the difference between those with and without it in stressful situations).

The test results showed that ‘those subjects that had consumed coconut oil were seen to perform better and showed less signs of distress.’ Daniel Reeds from virgin coconut oil brand Coconoil adds: ‘When the researchers looked at this phenomenon in more detail they also discovered that those in the coconut oil group had lower levels of a hormone called corticosterone, which is linked in to the body’s stress response, compared to controls.’

Although the test was carried out on rats, ‘the researchers looked at the levels of antioxidants in the brain and were able to tell that these were higher in those using virgin coconut oil,’ says Daniel. ‘This therefore gives a clue as to how the oil might be having its effect.’

‘Antioxidants help combat oxygen free radicals – natural toxic chemicals produced by the body during stress. Through this mechanism virgin coconut oil may help prevent damage to neuronal cells which are involved in the production of anti-stress hormones such as dopamine,’ he explains.

If you’d like to reap the benefits of coconut oil then you can add it to your diet in so many ways. Perhaps the best way to start with coconut oil is to use it as a staple in cooking to replace other fats like oils and margarine. You can also bake with it, use it as a spread or – if you’re feeling really adventurous – take it off the spoon.