Wholesome foods Pt 2: coconut oil

Last post I talked about the benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar. Whilst that makes it's way to my salad every lunch time, there's something that's new to my palate that pops up at almost every meal: Coconut Oil! I'd never tried (in fact, never even heard of) this little pot of wonder until a few weeks ago.

SingChin

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Coconut makes an appearance in many forms in my diet now. So much so, I am beginning to understand why in Sanskrit the coconut palm (kalpa vriksha) means "tree which gives all that is necessary for living".

I sprinkle coconut flakes* on my yoghurt, shredded coconut* on my oats, I treat myself to coconut water once or twice a week and I use coconut oil for everything from buttering my toast, roasting my vegetables, coating my fish and even moisturising my face.

(*Organic if possible and check ingredients for sugar - I've found many that are loaded with additional sugar.)

The coconut oil is the oil extracted from the kernel or meat of matured coconuts. It's true it has a high level of saturated fat. But it's a naturally occurring fat, not a trans fat. It's actually been suggested that due to the medium-chain fatty acids, coconut oil may assist in losing weight. These MCFA's are easily digested, go directly to your liver for energy conversion (rather than being stored as fat) and can stimulate the body's metabolism. My online mentor (unbeknowns to her) Sarah Wilson talks more about coconut oil  here.

Aside from the magic of helping with weight loss, coconut oil has a stack of other benefits:

• Coconut oil is a rich source of fibre, vitamins and minerals
• It boosts energy
• It's an antioxidant, therefore boosts the immune system
• Aids digestion (beneficial for Crohn's and IBS sufferers) 
• Can provide relief from yeast infections
• Great moisturiser (time saver... I moisturise, whilst spreading it on my toast!)
• Helps alleviate skin conditions such as eczema  
• Conditions hair/controls dandruff
• Supports and regulate thyroid function (my thyroid is a lazy underactive sort)
• Helps reduce sign of aging (whoop whoop)
• Lowers cholesterol and high blood pressure
• Helps regulate blood sugars
• Put on cuts and wounds to prevent infection
• Relieves symptoms of urinary tract infections
• Helps in absorption of calcium and magnesium = stronger bones!

My brand of choice thus far is NuiLife Coconut Oil. It's unrefined (meaning it hasn't undergone any processing, bleaching or deoderising and so it still contains the favourable fatty acid balance - which is the big health benefit of the stuff in the first place). Yep it tastes like coconut, but it's delicious on some multigrain sourdough, it tastes like coconut ice straight up, but when I've cooked with it, the flavour isn't overpowering. 

So here's to the tree that gives all that is necessary for living!

Taste buds they are a'changin'!

So, last night was chocolate night - and for those who didn't catch my first post I made an agreement with myself that I would still allow myself to share a block of chocolate with my husband on Friday nights: purely for the therapeutic benefits of celebrating the end of the week with my DH.

Here's the interesting thing - quite often, I can't wait until Friday night for my chocolate hit, so sometime after lunch I'll duck into some sort of sweet treat and believe me, it certainly doesn't curb my appetite for my Dairy Milk later that night.

But this past week, with next to no sugar in my diet, I was very blase about our chocolate ritual. Of course, I supported DH in finishing the block. But the taste was sickly sweet. I even felt a bit ill for the rest of the night. I'm certainly not in a rush to go out and eat more, that's for sure. Dare I say it - I may have ruined our Friday night chocolate night!!

This isn't the only taste (or physiological/psychological?) change that has occurred. My little ones had pasties for lunch one day. Miss 2 requested "black" (aka BBQ) sauce on hers. I was picking at her leftover meat and took in a smidge of the sauce. And, Wham - it was sweet! Sickly sweet. It tasted completely different to what it would have 2 weeks ago.   

This is all good news. It tells me already things are changing. I haven't noticed anything dramatic with the scales (maybe just less "I'm having a fat day" days), but that's not my major goal in any case. I just want to feel better about myself. I just want to finish the day and know that I didn't abuse my body. 

Where I'm at with other foods:

• I'm enjoying my breakfast once again. I've learned that porridge cooked on the stove is far superior to porridge in the microwave (and I've been putting oat milk on it, but have since gone back to Sarah's book and David Gullespi's website and found that the sunflower oil and inulin in it are no-no's... still trying to find out why. But once that carton is gone, I'm going to try porridge with coconut milk)
• Coconut water is alright! I found some in my local supermarket and thought I would give it a go. I've been missing my weekly hit of soft drink, but thanks to my rejigged taste buds this is sweet enough and doesn't leave me pining for more (in fact 3/4 bottle is still in my fridge)
• Licorice tea is fabulous! Really gives me a warm sweet hit.
• Rice cakes with almond spread are tasty and filling.

Thanks to some fellow I Quit Sugar comrades for commenting on here, and others for your support. Keep it coming!