Coconut: 10 Health Benefits of the Wonderful Tropical Fruit

A lot of tourists flock to the Caribbean Islands to explore the Atlantic in a new dimension. One among these countries is the Turk and Caicos with its tropical sun. Being famous for its powder soft white sand beaches, coral reefs, and conchs, the country lures tourists worldwide. And tourists, especially from the northern hemisphere, accept the greeting and rent one of the luxurious homes in Turks and Caicos mainly between the months of December and April. However, apart from all the natural wonders that you can witness in these tropical islands, your food habit while traveling is arguably the most important part of the itinerary, as all the greatest pleasure you have gained from visiting a new place could be washed away with a single health issue.

Researching about the foods that should be eaten while spending a vacation in the tropical islands is really important, as the climate and the food habits in these kinds of regions are not very familiar to the people who visit these islands from other regions. People coming from relatively dry and cooler places might suffer from high temperatures and dehydration while in tropical areas.

Apart from the variety of seafood like fish, lobsters, or conchs, there is something highly available on the beaches that is way simpler to get and eat but often overlooked by tourists. Most travelers crave to indulge their taste buds with some cool spicy local delicacies they can find on these islands. We are not against it, especially when you are spending your holidays, but we do recommend adding a very simple item that could enrich your diet plan as a whole.

And that is coconut!

This is the easiest thing to get while on the beach but we often forget this fact as well as its beneficial facades.

Let us see what the benefits of coconut are.

1.A remedy for Hydration

While on the tropical beach, needless to say, how much dehydration occurs under the sun. Coconut water contains very crucial electrolyte elements that help in maintaining hydration. People lose a lot of water from their body while surfing or skateboarding or snorkeling. Coconut water replaces the lost electrolyte elements, provides hydration, and builds up immune responses. It is a better alternative to water as it is way tastier than plain water and is loaded with nutrition.

2. Boosts immunity

And almost together comes the point of immunity. Doing any kind of water sports means a lot of energy loss. Coconut nutrition is excellent for the immunity system. It is antiviral, antifungal, anti-bacterial, and anti-parasitic. Having coconut oil can help our body to raise resistance to both viruses and bacteria that cause illness. Having coconut in its raw form can help to treat some of the worst illness like throat infections, bronchitis, urinary tract infection, tapeworms and other ailments caused by microbes.

Coconut actually helps to raise our energy by burning fat. The triglycerides that are found in coconut oil increase 24 hours of energy expenditure by 5% and which practically leads to weight loss if you see it in the long run. It has been known for reducing the hunger pangs. This trait is directly related to the way the fatty acids in our body are metabolized into ketone to produce an appetite reducing the effect.

3. Controls acidity

Having a lot of spicy fish fries in Turks and Caicos, are you? To be honest, you really should. This country is the land of some real fish fry. But along with it, you must take precaution for acidity and heartburn. Coconut water is an easy solution that alleviates acidity and heartburn problems.

4. Healthy bones and teeth

Enjoying beach sports are one of the ultimate things to do during an island holiday. However, people who cannot think of spending their vacation on an island without enjoying all the water sports should always be concerned about their muscles and bones. Eating coconuts daily help to make our bones stronger and healthier. It improves our body’s faculty to absorb the calcium and the manganese which support bone development. It prevents diseases like osteoporosis, which is a situation that makes the bones thinner and very fragile, and it lose their density.

5. Anti-aging agent

Cytokinins, trans-zeatin, and kinetin which are present in coconut have many good benefits like antithrombotic, anti-carcinogenic and anti-aging effects.

6. Controls diabetes

Coconut enhances insulin secretion and the utilization of our blood glucose. It controls diabetes by creating a strong effect on some hormones for the blood sugar control. Thus, it decelerates the rising in our blood sugar level and helps to reduce the glycemic cravings.

7. Prevents cancer

It has been well proven that the nutrients present in coconut prevent cancer occurring in areas like breast and colon.                

8. Extremely beneficial during pregnancy

Coconut water is sterile and it is good for the pregnant ladies. It raises the immunity along with the entire health of the mother and her baby and prevents infection and other diseases. It boosts the levels of amniotic fluid to improve the overall health of the fetus.

Not only as food, coconut can also be used as the skin product to get great benefits.

9. Prevents skin cancer

Coconut improves moisture and lipid in our skin and it prevents skin cancer by blocking nearly 20% of harsh Ultra Violet rays. It can also be used as a body and skin moisturizer as it hydrates the skin by replenishing the natural oils.

10. Body Toner

It can be used as a body scrub too. Mix a little bit of coconut oil with small amount of brown sugar and then stir well. Scrape a little coconut shell, then add few drops of the essential oil. Now mix it again. the scrub is now ready. You can also mix 1 tablespoon of coconut water and lentils to make a paste.