The Meeting Place > Health & Wellbeing > Dr tells you to avoid coconut oil

Dr tells you to avoid coconut oil

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Drew
5 yrs ago

For the past few years, it has been said that coconut oil is a slimming superfood, but Dr Karin Michels of Harvard’s School of Public Health in a recent lecture (in German) has slammed the use of coconut oil.

“Coconut oil is pure poison,” the Harvard professor said, according to a translation by Business Insider. “It is one of the worst foods you can eat.”

Are you a large consumer of coconut oil?

9 comments
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Sophie
5 yrs ago

 

I wouldn't go so far as to use the words "pure poison"..however, I do agree it's not the superfood people make it out to be and can play havoc with someone's cholesterol levels. I don't consume it but I find it does wonders for my hair! 

The other thing is, coconut oil can get rancid very quickly, so storing it the right way is important. Must say though, I fully advocate drinking coconut water.. very refreshing and low in calories...

My wife suggested using coconut cream as a shaving cream. Works great !

 

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KSS
5 yrs ago

There is no such thing as "superfood". It's a pure marketing term that allows manufacturers to add thousands to the price. Go to the fresh fruit and veg aisle and pick up anything. That is the superfood at reasonable prices especially in season.

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ranga
5 yrs ago

BOVINE EXCRETA KARIN....

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Ted Wards
5 yrs ago

Obviouskly she has never been to places like the Cook Islands where they live on the stuff!

More than 50% of Cook Islanders are obese.

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Funkee
5 yrs ago

WTF??? Coconut Oil is one of the best and most useful of all. I have been using it for years as an after shave balm, keeps skin looking youthful (well considering my age)  and helps keep wrinkles at bay, I use it on my bald noggin as it's a great skin conditioner, I pour it liberally over my cereal and porridge, and it's the only oil I cook with.  Pretty close to super food if you ask me.

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Sen.Cit.90
5 yrs ago

I hope the doctor is wrong I use it a fair bit for frying it has a high-temperature tolerance.

Canola oil which I favour the most for frying also has a high temperature tolerance.

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TinTin
5 yrs ago

Could'nt understand a word...I don't speak or understand German.

Checked a few charts ... all seem to have similar figures to the one below:

More Charts.

That's a very old chart - 1979. The latest about coconut oil is that it contains about 90% saturated fat, which is a higher percentage than butter which is around 64% saturated fat. It is also higher than beef fat (40%), or even lard (also 40%). Too much saturated fat in the diet is unhealthy because it raises "bad" LDL cholesterol levels, which increases the risk of heart disease. So it would seem that coconut oil would be bad news for our hearts.

Yep Bijou, it is old but there are lots more on the link I provided below.

Agree re your other points.

Didn't mean it to sound like a criticism RnR. Thanks for the links:)

sounded critical to me .

has the %age and type of fat content in oils changed since then?

must be the effects of climate change

My cholesterol has LDL of 2 which is supposed to be very good and since I love toasted grains and seeds bread with my butter. And butter thick on my veggies.   Maybe coconut oil is being maligned once again. Like Butter. 

And didnt we see cholesterol being used as  a scam to sell more statin pills not so long ago?  

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Daisy
5 yrs ago

We (my hubby, myself and friends) used to smother ourselves with coconut oil at the beach years ago in the 1960s and ‘70s. Interestingly, we have no skin cancers in spite of the fact we all virtually lived at the beach in the sun at every opportunity. Interesting....

On the other hand, I bought some to use for frying and found it spat so much I stopped using it after only a few tries. It has sat in the cupboard ever since, unused. 

Not sure about the benefits of this oil. 

I can say that my hubby and I never use sun tan lotion and remain skin cancer free. Maybe I should start using that unused jar in my cupboard as a skin cream. Maybe it is protective....?

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