Coconut Oil Craze: Dietitian's guide to selecting healthy coconut oil

Coconut oil is continuously growing in popularity and Ghanaians are gradually embracing the goodness of this “super oil”. Naturalist, “Fro lovers”, foodies not forgetting the staunch health conscious folks constantly sing the praise of  Coconut oil in their journey. There is never a day I scroll through my social media pages without coming across a coconut oil related recipe or DIY formula.

This article is dedicated to the healthy living lovers out there  who have obliviously jumped unto the coconut oil wagon without clearly understanding the types of coconut oil on the market and which options are truly "healthy". 

Always remember to READ NUTRITION LABELS carefully for It is the only way to know whether you are purchasing the healthiest variety of coconut oil. Labeling regulations always ensures that producers state the exact content of product on the label, it is up to consumers to rightly decipher the many jargons used on these labels and this article will help you do just that.

Kindly read through the article and post all questions in the comments section.

Varieties of Coconut Oil on the Market

1. Pure coconut oil: This is crude coconut oil. No additives added. Heat is mostly used for extraction and for this reason it is NOT THE BEST OPTION HEALTH-WISE. It’s got both medicinal as well as industrial use.

2.  Refined coconut oil: This variety is chemically Refined, Bleached and Deodorized. For this reason it is mostly referred to as RBD coconut oil. It is NOT A HEALTHY VARIETY  since the final product is mainly saturated fat.

Refined and Bleached to look like regular oil on the market

Always Check the Ingredient Section on the Label

3. Virgin coconut oil: Mainly extracted from the coconut milk/meat not the dried kennel. Little heat is used to extract oil which taste and smells the best. This is a VERY HEALTHY VARIETY of coconut oil as its antioxidant (compounds in food that prevent cellular destruction in the body) and nutrient content is very intact. this variety is sometimes indicated as COLD PRESSED.

A Common brand on the Ghanaian Market

Butter form

4. Organic coconut oil: Oil of this kind is extracted from coconut grown on organic manure without any artificial fertilizers or Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) substances. It is equally extracted without the use of chemicals. It serves as the base ingredients for most organic soaps, lotions, wash, snacks and foods.

A typical label.

5. Organic virgin coconut oil:  This is virgin coconut oil extracted from organically grown coconut palms. This variety is RARE but healthy.