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The Coconut Diet: A Slimming Secret
Article
written and provided by Cherie Calbom, MS
After all the bad press concerning coconut oil, it turns out that it is actually slimming. But the Coconut Diet doesn’t stop there. It promotes eating plenty of fresh vegetables, low-sugar fruit, and it doesn’t toss out the carrots and beets with the potato chips like other low-carb diets. The Coconut Diet is about eating plenty of brightly colored vegetables that are rich in antioxidants and whole foods versus refined. It eliminates high glycaemic foods such as refined flour products, white rice, white potatoes, and sweets. It doesn’t recommend artificial sweeteners that are detrimental to one’s health, but rather healthy low-carb sweeteners. It encourages preparing recipes with virgin coconut oil and extra virgin olive oil in exchange for other vegetable oils. Coconut is the oil that has promoted phenomenal weight loss success for many people such as Kelly Inglet, who lost 130 pounds on the Coconut Diet (First for Women 2005). Virgin coconut oil works wonders because it is made up predominantly of medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) that burn up quickly in the body—a lot like kindling in a fire rather than a big log (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1983). MCTs are so effective in helping people lose weight and gain energy because the body does not prefer to store them. If you consider your body’s metabolism to be like an oil furnace, eating vegetable oils dominated by long chain triglycerides (LCTs) is like adding oil to a storage tank, whereas consuming coconut oil, which is dominated by MCTs, is like pumping oil directly from the delivery truck into the furnace. You’ll want to eliminate other oils (except extra virgin olive oil and macadamia nut oil) because the composition of the fatty acid chains in polyunsaturated oils such as corn, soybean, canola, and safflower is dominated by long chain triglycerides (LCTs). They are transported from the intestines as fairly large fat droplets (chylomicrons) and are dumped into the bloodstream near the heart (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1982). These fat droplets are then transported through the entire body before reaching the liver. The body is slow to metabolize them and tends to store them as fat rather than burn them. The scientific community has known for a long time that LCTs have a tendency to produce fat in the body. Farm animals fed vegetable oils usually put on more weight and produce more meat, while animals fed coconut oil tend to be lean and more active (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 1982). There is considerable false information circulating about coconut oil such as causing loss of minerals like calcium or raising cholesterol. When it comes to healthy bones, saturated fat, as found in coconut oil, plays a vital role. At least 50 percent of dietary fats need to be saturated for calcium to be effectively incorporated into the skeletal structure (American Oil Chemists Society Proceedings, 1996). Coconut oil is also rich in lauric acid. P.K. Thampan, the former chief coconut development officer of the Coconut Development Board in India studied traditional cultures that consumed large amounts of coconut and has written a book entitled "Facts and Fallacies About Coconut Oil" (1994). With a simple, delicious, and easy-to-follow program, The Coconut Diet delivers a step-by-step plan for healthy, nutritious weight loss that works. The cleansing programmes in Phase II are especially helpful highlighting issues that can prevent weight loss, especially that dimpled pudge known as cellulite. The detoxification phase shows how to flush fat and toxins from the body with an easy-to-use menu plan and cleansing recipes. With four effective phases and 70 easy-to-prepare recipes, you can experience better health and a slimmer you. Cherie Calbom, M.S. is a nutrition researcher with a Master of Science degree in Nutrition from Bastyr University, where she now sits on the Board of Regents. She is the author of fourteen books including the best-selling Juicing for Life, The Juice Lady’s Guide to Juicing for Health, The Ultimate Smoothie Book, The Wrinkle Cleanse, and The Coconut Diet. She appears regularly on QVC with the George Foreman grills. For more information on The Coconut Diet see Cherie's website www.gococonuts.com. Book no longer available in UK. |