Description
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Coconut oil is pressed from the white meat of the coconut. Broadly speaking, there are two types of coconut oil: Virgin coconut oil is pressed from the fresh meat of raw coconuts. It is cold-pressed and filtered and retains the classic ‘coconut’ smell as well as many micronutrients in the oil. Most research into the health benefits of coconut oil is based on virgin coconut oil. Refined coconut oil is pressed from dried coconut meat (copra) and is almost always refined before human consumption. During the process of refining, much of the original coconut taste is removed, along with some of the micronutrients. Because copra is a cheaper raw material, refined coconut oil is also typically a lot less expensive than virgin coconut oil. Coconut oil is rich in saturated fatty acids, especially lauric acid (about 50%) and myristic acid (about 20%). These fatty acids are so-called ‘medium-chain triglycerides’ (MCTs) because they are shorter molecules than the saturated fats commonly found in vegetable oils and animal fats (e.g. palmitic and stearic acid). This also explains why coconut oil has a far better health profile than its high content of saturated fats would suggest.