ahhh...one website says you should buy "unrefined" coconut oil and I bought "refined". I haven't opened it yet so I guess I can exchange it.

Honestly, I like the refined. I use it to clean my face, and really don't want to smell like a coconut.

Of course you can cook with it too.

big coconut oil fan!

use it sometimes in my hair.

put it on bee stings to take the sting away.

give little bits to my dogs to eat if their bellies are upset (or just b/c they love the taste!).

i also keep a jar of it in my vegetable crisper drawer and eat spoonfuls of it. i will reach for that instead of candy a lot of the time. it has to be the perfect level of chilled for me to like the taste, otherwise it is too oily and kind of gross. but when kept in the crisper of a cold fridge- yum!

tried oil pulling for a while last year, but stopped. i didn't notice any dramatic health benefits but it was calming in a sort of meditative way to do it.

I've stopped using all other face and hand moisturizers in lieu of coconut oil. Regular use has resulted in healthy, strong nails and skin that appears poreless, smooth and glowing.

It's the only change that I've made to my daily routine, and I can only associate the improvements to my use of the coconut oil.

I'd like to use it on my hair/scalp but can't figure out a way to include it into my routine.

I put it in my morning smoothies and use it for high temp frying. After I scoop it out for my smoothie, I would take what's left on the spoon and rub it into my hands, but I've never noticed any particular benefit from doing that.

I use it as a moisturizer, makeup remover, with a chamois buffer on my nails, occasionally on dry hair ends (but prefer Argon oil for that) and in the winter will slather my feet before bed and put on socks - too hot in the summer or I'd do it then, too. Change of taste cooking like sauteeing vegies or boneless chicken or when making rice/grain dishes in place of butter or olive oil - just a different flavor profile.

Because I have Invisalign my mouth can get very sore and brushing my teeth with regular toothpaste irritates it even more but mixing a bit of toothpaste with coconut oil is immediately soothing. I tried making my own with natural mint oil and baking soda mixed with the coconut oil but can't get past the salty taste of the b.s. - plus coming up with a convenient application method is problematic. If anyone has a better 'recipe' I'd love to hear about it. I'm beginning to really fear the chemicals in most toothpastes.

Don't put it on your hair. I've tried that twice and you'll need to shampoo several times to get it out, and your hair will still look a little greasy. I can't see any benefit that you can't get from other conditioning products.

Um, maybe this is TMI, but I use it as a "personal moisturizer." I get all kinds of skin irritations "down there" and coconut oil, along with vit. E helps and doesn't further irritate. I can't do mineral oils or glycerin on my skin, it is irritating.

Yes, great as a cuticle cream.

I also use it in cooking and baking. Not the same jar, ;)

The refined oil is great for popcorn!

Use for cooking. I use about a half tsp in my (hot) tea in the winter for health benefits. I give a small amount to my pup, she gets dry skin and it's great for her skin and coat. I've used it in my hair and had no problems washing it out. You don't have to use much. Have used it on skin and need to go back to using it around my nails, it really does help. I keep a jar in my vanity and a jar in the kitchen. It is also soothing for a sore throat.

Thanks for all the great ideas. Maybe I'll keep the refined for the kitchen and pick up unrefined for hair/nails/skin. Pinkmountain, I did read it could be used a personal lubricant too. Glad you have separate bottles LOL

I'm clearly out of the loop. When did coconut oil become a thing? I thought it was bad in food. Where does one buy the good kind?

You can buy it anywhere now. Our regular grocery stores carry it though it might be with the "health food" section if not with the regular oils. I've also seen it at trader joe's and whole foods.

You can buy at either Trader Joe's or if you use enough, Costco has a few different options but of course in large containers - both are organic.

Linelle

I'm
clearly out of the loop. When did coconut oil become a thing? I thought
it was bad in food. Where does one buy the good kind?

*********************************************

I've seen it at Walmart as well as my Certified grocery store.

You may be thinking of Palm Oil:

Q. Palm Oil vs. Palm Kernel Oil

More From EatingWell

A. They both come from palm trees, but there the
similarity ends. Palm oil comes from the palm fruit, while palm kernel
oil is extracted from the palm seed. And while over 80 percent of the
fat in palm kernel oil is saturated, only 50 percent of palm oil is,
making it easier on arteries. Palm oil's reddish or golden color is a
clue that it also contains a fair amount of heart-healthy carotenoids.
Some research even suggests that the fatty acids in palm oil don't raise
cholesterol the way saturated fats traditionally do.

BTW, be careful when opening the jar if it gets warm - say if you don't have AC cooling your kitchen, the solid will turn to oil.

When it gets cooler it will also revert back to solid.

Some women also use it "oil pulling" which is swishing it around in your mouth for 20 min to apparently alleviate menopausal symptoms like hot flashes. Of course, there is really no good scientific evidence for this.

Now there does appear to be some oral hygiene benefit to it to reduce plaque and gingivitis. At least there is some research on this that is promising.

Linelle, coconut oil is still a saturated fat, but it might help raise HDL cholesterol. Still, people need to be careful with too much saturated fat.

http://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/coconut-oil

http://www.berkeleywellness.com/healthy-eating/diet-weight-loss/food/nutrition/article/coconut-oil-all-its-cracked-be

chijim, haha, maybe I was thinking about palm oil being bad. I have definitely seen jars of coconut oil in TJ's, but didn't realize I can cook with it, put it in my hair, or swish it in my mouth for 20 (!!!) minutes. Twenty minutes?!! Doesn't it liquefy and make you all drooly?

I've heard oil pulling too. Interesting concept.

Oil pulling? I'm not a believer and think it's quackery. Snopes maintains its efficacy is unproven.

I do not like to use hand lotion in the kitchen because I think that the perfumy smell lingers on food that I handle afterwards. So I use coconut oil instead of hand lotion in the kitchen. I scoop some out of the main jar and put it in a smaller container for my hands, so I don't contaminate the main jar.

I also use it as lip balm.

For those of you who use it on your hair, I read once that if you use a particularly oily pre-conditioner, do not wet your hair before applying shampoo. Apply the shampoo; work it in to your hair and scalp; then get your head wet. I don't pre-treat, so I've never tried it. YMMV.

We have a friend who has dementia. When his symptoms began, he began eating coconut oil because his daughter had read that it slowed the progress of dementia. He still has dementia, but I suppose it could be worse.

IdaClaire, thanks for the SNOPES link. I did find some articles on PubMed but if it was such a great thing, it would be recommended by credible sources.

I just bought some at Whole Foods and this minute ate about half a teaspoonful. Coconutty.

So, I can use it in cooking. Frying? Smoothies? Does it give them an extra emulsive smoothness?

If it tastes like coconut that's going to be imparted to whatever you cook. Learned that the hard way with popcorn. The refined oil is better for cooking unless you really want that coconut flavor.

I add a few drops of essential oil to mine (grapefruit right now for summer, but I've also used others) and use it as hand/body lotion, eyemakeup remover, nighttime facial moisturizer, and cuticle cream. It has drastically improved my fingernails and cuticles. I add the scent because it motivates me to use it--I love the smell so I'm more likely to put it on.

re: hair, it depends on the kind of hair you have. On my hair it would turn into an oily mess. On my DD's curly hair, it works well as a leave-in conditioner and my DDs also use it as a bedtime leave-in conditioner when their hair is dry from being poorly treated with lighteners or dried out from constant swimming pool exposure (swim team, lifeguarding).

I bought unrefined because I wasn't sure of the pros/cons. I can think of lots of dishes where I wouldn't want a coconut flavor.

We actually really like popcorn made with coconut oil. It adds a nutty, rich flavor.

On the oil pulling, one thing I once saw mentioned somewhere is that some people may want to consider how they are disposing of the oil. Since it solidifies in cooler temperatures, it could potentially cause a rather nasty clog if you are spitting it down the drain. Personally, I could not imagine swishing anything in my mouth for 20 minutes.

Linelle, coconut oil has been a "thing" for a while and how one reacts to the nutrition/health claims probably depends on one's point of view. My take on it, is that I like the taste and I do strive for variety so coconut oil is just one of achieving variety. It is quite useful as a moisturizer, as many noted above but I think as far as all the other possible claims, there is not enough information yet to say one way or the other.

I did laugh the other day when in Trader Joe's looking at all of the coconut oil that was liquid. A true sign of summer.

The way I view oil pulling is, it is from ancient ayurvedic tradition which is thousands of years old. Back then, any kind of dental or oral care was probably welcome, so swishing your mouth with oil probably did have health benefits vs. doing nothing. But now that we have all kinds of proven oral hygiene techniques, I suspect the relative benefits are minimal if at all.

Oil is a solvent and can probably dissolve some types of compounds, as in "like dissolves like" which is one way things sometimes work. As we say in science class, "It's always true, except when it's not." Not a panacea, but as I mentioned, my skin is sensitive to glycerin, parabens, propylene glycol, and silicone, even though they are proven to help skin and hair. But there are many variables in play and they don't work for me. Coconut oil does, although it leaves grease stains on clothes, towels and bedding so I don't use it for an everyday hand or body lotion. I find collidal oatmeal, beeswax and zinc compounds very helpful for my skin issues as well. Cortisone cream, which is supposed to help in the worst cases, doesn't seem to do much for me.

I mix it with a bit of brown sugar for a facial scrub.

All coconut oiled up....toes, heels, cuticles and face.

....and neck!!