Awesome!

I have an ugly scar on my arm from a burn and I have been using coconut oil on it for only a few weeks and it has started to fade already. I love it. I can’t wait to see what the benefits are in the long run, I am going to use this for the rest of my life!

Coconut Oil for Beauty

Coconut (Cocus nucifera) is the largest known seed, and the fruit of the coconut palm tree. It is a member of the Palmaceae (Palm) Family. Coconut oil, also known as coconut butter, is solid at room temperature and becomes a clear liquid oil at temperatures greater than 78 degrees Fahrenheit.

Coconut oil smells great and imparts beauty and radiance when rubbed on the skin. It is excellent for inflamed and sensitive skin, as well as normal, dry, mature, and oily skin. It is very nourishing, cooling and moisturizing and has a long shelf life. Coconut oil is emollient and can help create a thin imperceptible layer that recreates the soothing benefits that our own skin produces and prevent moisture evaporation.

Coconut oil can help reduce scars and blocks about twenty percent of UV rays. Used in massage, skin care, and first aid creams, it helps repair tissue. Many body care products like moisturizers, sunscreens and lotions contain petroleum by- products, which can clog pores and cause breakouts.

Dry Skin Cleansing Oil

Your skin will thank you for this rich fragrant blend!

• 1/8 cup pure raw coconut oil
• 10 drops essential oil (such as rose, lavender, or rosemary)

Put the ingredients into an amber bottle and shake well. To use, apply some of the mixture on the face and remove with a natural cotton ball.

Simple Scented Moisturizer

This is delicious, though put it on your skin and don’t eat it!

• 2 tablespoons softened coconut oil
• 5 drops of essential oil of your choice (such as rose, lavender, or rosemary)

Mix ingredients together by allowing the coconut oil to get room temperature and mashing the essential oil in with a fork.

Coconut Lip Balm

Lip balms that contain coconut oil help heal and protect the lips.

• 4 tablespoons coconut oil
• 4 drops each of essential oils of spearmint, rose, and cardamom

Place the coconut oil in a tightly sealed jar in a pot of hot water to get the oil to melt. Remove from heat and add the essential oils, stirring well. Pour immediately into small lip balm sized containers.

Massage Oil

To make a massage oil, the easiest method is to select a clean, dry bottle. In the bottle, pour 4 ounces of coconut oil. To this add about 40 drops of pure essential oil (such as lavender or rosemary), which will give the oil a wonderful and therapeutic aroma. Shake well to blend the ingredients before using.

Herbal Oil Scalp Treatment

Coconut oil adds shine to hair and is used as a hot oil and scalp treatment to impart strength and glossiness to the hair. This is fragrant and nourishing.

• 2 tablespoons raw coconut oil 15 to 30 drops pure essential oil (rosemary)

Massage just a small amount into the scalp, focusing on the ends of the hair. Wrap your head in a towel or shower cap. Wait twenty to thirty minutes. Shampoo, and rinse thoroughly.

Rich Hand (or Feet) Cream

Do something lovely for your hands (and feet) that do so much for you!

• 1 cup raw coconut oil
• 30 drops essential oil (lavender, rosemary or rose)

Mix together with a fork. Store in a clean dry glass container.

So many great beauty products for men and woman from one plant! For more healthful info on natural beauty, check out my book, Beauty by Nature.

Brigitte Mars is an herbalist and nutritional consultant with over forty years experience. She is the author of Beauty by Nature, Rawsome!, The Sexual Herbal, Addiction Free Naturally, Healing Herbal Teas, The Desktop Guide to Herbal Medicine, and co-author of The Country Almanac of Home Remedies, and The Hemp Nut Health and Cookbook. Brigitte has had a radio show on KGNU called Naturally for over twenty years. She is a professional member of The American Herbalist Guild. Ms. Mars teaches at Naropa University, Boulder College of Massage, Omega Institute, Kripalu, and Bauman College of Holistic Nutrition and Culinary Arts. Brigitte is a blogger for The Huffington Post and Care2.

http://www.brigittemars.com

Here’s a wonderful hot breakfast recipe idea, especially for those chilly winter months.  This cereal recipe includes Organic Coconut Oil, and Hempseeds, and comes to us from one of our Nutiva Recipe Club members.

Ingredients

1 Tablespoon Nutiva Extra-Virgin Coconut Oil
1/4 cup Cream of Buckwheat
1/8 tsp. Celtic or Pink Crystal Salt
and/or any other flavoring spices that you like (Cumin, Fennel, Curry, etc)
1 1/4 Cups Water
Chopped Greens of Choice
Raw or Toasted Nutiva Hempseed for Garnish and Protein
Chopped Parsley/Cilantro Mix for Garnish and to Include Some “Raw”

Directions

1. Melt Coconut Oil in saucepan. Add any spices of choice and cook until they sizzle, don’t let burn.

2. Add Salt, Cream of Buckwheat, and Water.

3. Put a couple of handfuls of chopped greens (Chard, Kale, Beet Tops, etc) on top of the Buckwheat. Cook a few minutes until done.

4. Add additional Salt if needed and a few grinds of Black Pepper.

5. Top with Hempseed and Chopped Herbs.

You can also try a variation of this recipe by sprinkling some Chia Seeds on top before you serve, for an extra shot of fiber, protein, minerals, omega-3, and antioxidants.

Recipe Credit: Sharon Engel, California.

From the Dr. Oz Show:

Dr. Oz reveals the 3 most powerful health benefits of this tropical oil.  Click on the video below to learn more.

Click to Watch this video clip from Dr Oz's Show

Coconut Oil has long been the subject of conspiracy theories.

Turns out this is true, as well, for coconut oil. Something along the lines if coconut oil is such an amazing product, how come it is not more popular? The conspiracy theory is that U.S. agribusiness has put the kibosh on coconut oil because it is not a domestic crop and would compete with soybean-based oil, which is. And it is the partially hydrogenated soy bean oil’s trans fats – once touted as a healthy option – that are now under the gun.

We’re thrilled to see Virgin Coconut Oil finally starting to gain the widespread recognition and praise it deserves.

Check out this article from (surprised, Coconut Fans?) non other than Dr. Oz’s Blog.  
Dr. Oz has come out in the past against Coconut Oil, and we’re happy to see him singing a new Coconut Oil tune, buy posting this article on his blog.  It looks as though even anti-coconut folks are opening up.

Overall not a bad piece but the author does confuse Omega-6 being in Coconut Oil (very micro amounts of omega-6).

Folks, we all make mistakes and overall Dr. Oz has done a good job in promoting increased consumption of  fresh fruits and veggies.  Plus Dr Oz is a big fan of hemp so.. A tip o’ the hat for what he does well.

Way to go!

~ Enjoy!

By Audrey Kunin, M.D.

I love to cook. Yet much of my domestic culinary life has been shadowed by my obsession to remove unhealthy saturated fats from my family’s diet. After all, isn’t it a given that fat is bad for you? And haven’t I struggled with my weight, my heart health and my love of a good French fry?

As a dermatologist, I’ve taken comfort in the knowledge that many of those good-for-us unsaturated fats also have healthy skin benefits. The omega-3s from sources like fish, walnuts and olive and canola oils work to keep skin less eczema-prone, and reduces dryness and sensitivity. Hair looks lustrous and becomes less brittle while nails get stronger.

Yet I have avoided one of my favorite food sources due to my concern that it was high in “bad” fat. Warned about the high levels of saturated fat found in coconut oils, I sadly said goodbye to coconut milk-based sauces, macaroons, piña coladas and Mounds bars. My palate protested the unfairness of a plant saturated with saturated fat!

To my delight, I’ve since learned that sometimes a “bad” fat (at least in modest portions), can be a skin-healthy choice. Initially, I discovered that my general health concerns about using either coconut or coconut oil in my recipes was unfounded. Coconut oil is composed of an unusual medium chain fatty acid. These fats don’t wreak the havoc on the cardiovascular system that its saturated-fat cousins cause.

Virgin coconut oil has an amazing ability to fight free-radical damage, presumably because it is rich in ferulic and p-coumaric acid. Consumed, this means these powerful antioxidants can fight free-radical damage and is now yet another tool in my wrinkle-busting arsenal. Applied topically, it has been shown to be useful in wound healing.

Continue Reading this Coconut Oil article on Dr. Oz’s Blog Site.


If you love organic veggies and coconut oil, this may be just the new dish to try and enjoy.

We thought this would be a great one to post, because, truth be told, eggplant is a very difficult vegetable to cook properly, and most people don’t know what the heck to do with them!  This is our favorite eggplant recipe.  Enjoy!

Coconut Eggplant

• 1 – 2 eggplants
• 3 Tbsp Nutiva Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
• 2 Tbsp Nutiva Shelled Hempseed

Directions:
Chop up fresh eggplant into cubes a bit wider than a french fry– and 2-3 inches long.
Place in steamer for 10 minutes until the eggplant is slighly soft, but not over done.
Just before the steaming is done, heat up a sauce pan to medium heat with several Tbsp of Coconut Oil.
Place the steamed eggplant into the hot pan for 3-4 minutes, and add more coconut oil as the eggplant soaks up the oil.
Drop in tamari or soy sauce for an extra flavor edge.
Turn the pieces over with a spatula so the eggplant cooks evenly.

Serve in a bowl–top with a dash of sea salt and shelled hempseeds.

Tiffany Janay and Malik Zakee of Organic Blood use Nutiva Organic Coconut Oil for hair and skin.   They used to use non-organic oils with chemicals, and those would dry out in a couple hours.  Coconut oil works all day and infuses hair and skin with moisture and nutrients.   Coconut oil applied to skin also worked to eliminate Malik’s daughter’s eczema.

For more videos like this, Subscribe to Nutiva’s YouTube Channel.

Wow!

Watch as Raw Food author and friend of Nutiva, Ani Phyo shows how to create her Coconut Cake with Nutella Hazelnut Sauce.
A great recipe you can make with Nutiva’s Organic Extra-Virgin Coconut Oil.

Thanks for another ridiculously amazing recipe, Ani!

If you love raw foods as much as we do, you should consider buying Ani’s book.

Naturals Moms Podcast Featuring Nutiva CEO John W Roulac. Learn more about why coconut oil fell out of favor, and how people are using coconut oil. Roulac discus’s why hemp is a nutritious seed, and why we need to avoid corn and soy oil for our personal health.

Click HERE to go to the audio

Ingredients:
2 tsp coconut oil
¾ onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 cups canned peeled tomatoes, chopped, with juice
1 C hemp hearts (shelled hemp seed)
1/3 C of water
3 Tbsp chili powder, more if desired
2 tsp molasses
¾ tsp cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp black pepper
1½ C canned kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1½ C canned black beans
1 jalapeno pepper (optional), diced

Directions:
Heat oil in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion and garlic until softened. Stir in next 8 ingredients and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce heat to medium low and simmer 15 minutes. Add beans and simmer another 20-30 minutes, adding water if chili becomes too thick. Stir jalapeno pepper into chili just before serving.

Make enough for 6
Prep Time: 10 min.
Cook Time: 45 mi