The Coconut Diet

Today I have been researching Candida Diets - since mine has been such a disaster. See My Candida Diet Disaster. And along the way, I found this little gem:

The Coconut Diet
Coconuts are a way of life for millions of people around the world today in tropical climates. Known as the "tree of life," the wonderful fruit of the coconut palm is rich in specific fats that have incredible health benefits. Traditional tropical populations that consume a lot of coconut oil are seldom overweight, and traditionally have been free from the modern diseases that afflict most western cultures.



The Coconut Diet picks up where traditional diets fail. Low-fat diets don't work. The body needs a proper balance of good fats, but in recent years traditional, healthy saturated fats have been substituted with harmful transfatty acids in the US food industry. We now know that these harmful transfatty acids that are found in most vegetable oils are not the healthy oils they were once thought to be, and they are considered one of the major culprits in modern diseases and obesity. The Coconut Diet replaces these highly refined harmful fats with one of the healthiest fats known to mankind: coconut oil.

I found the coconut diet website pretty interesting. And (if they are indeed true) the success stories sound pretty good!

Interestingly, Virgin Coconut Oil is related to not only weight loss, but to such things as increased metabolism, helping sluggish thyroids, increased energy levels, killing Candida and yeast infections, improving cholesterol levels, clearing up skin infections, killing viruses, improving digestive health, and more!

It sounded too good to be true, so I checked some other sources. At Web MD, and MedicineNet, I found mostly positive stuff, and then I realized that it was the same article in both places. So.. I looked specifically for information about whether or not coconut oil really is effective against candida. And found this article at the Public Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. What is really interesting, is that when I was at the grocery store buying "real food" for my candida diet, I saw a bottle of virgin coconut oil, and was really drawn to it. I opted not to buy it because it wasn't on my list, and my budget is so limited. But, now I think I'm going to try it.

I'll keep you posted and let you know if I have the same results as this person:

Theresa - "This Diet Has Given Me Renewed Energy and A New Life! I have been taking a tablespoon of coconut oil three times daily with meals. Taking the oil with my meals seems to give me a “full feeling” a lot faster. My sweet tooth has practically vanished—and this is from someone who should have bought stock in Hershey's long ago! Ironically, facilitating weight loss was my main reason for trying the coconut oil diet, but with all the wonderful benefits I am experiencing, the weight loss aspect almost seems like an afterthought.

About three days into the routine, I had an energy rush on a Saturday morning that kept me going until well after lunch. I can’t believe how much I got done that day! My mental state of mind seemed to be much sharper. I was able to focus on the tasks at hand without getting sidetracked. I was not exhausted at the end of running my errands, which included traipsing around a huge mall. It seemed like I was practically running, rather than the leisurely walking that was formerly my habit.

In addition to my energy level, my mood has been very stable—no up and down mood swings—even with the onset of PMS! My husband commented yesterday on how soft and silky my skin felt, and I have not used any lotion since I started taking the oil." ~(from the Coconut Diet Forums)