Coconut oil consumption in Australia has significantly increased in popularity over the past few years and with good reason. Coconut oil contains natural saturated fats that increase the good HDL cholesterol in your body. It also helps to convert the LDL or “bad” cholesterol into good cholesterol. By changing the ratio of HDL to LDL, the saturated fat in coconut oil can help contribute to a healthier heart and lower your risk of heart disease.

For a GAPS patient it can be a godsend. This is because about half of the fatty acids in coconut oil are lauric acid. Lauric acid is very powerful at killing bacteria, viruses, and fungi and helping fight off infections.

When ingested, coconut oil it reacts with enzymes to form a monoglyceride called monolaurin. Monolaurin is great for killing harmful pathogens too! In addition to keeping all kinds of nastiness at bay, coconut oil has been shown to kill the very dangerous pathogen, Staphylococcus Aureus and the yeast Candida Albicans, which is a common source of yeast infections in GAPS patients.

Dr Natasha mentions introducing extra virgin coconut oil at any stage of the GAPS Diet, but with caution. All of those powerful anti-microbial substances can cause die-off.Coconut oil, unlike other types of fats, is a type of fat that doesn’t require bile to be digested. It’s very easy to absorb and goes straight to your liver for energy. So if you don’t have a gallbladder, or your gallbladder struggles to produce enough bile, try including coconut oil as your main fat.

Consuming fat of any type when you eat carbohydrates and protein is essential to help stabilise your insulin response to the sugars in carbohydrates.In addition to assisting with stabilising blood sugar levels, good quality fat can help the body absorb fat soluble vitamins A, D, E and K.

Coconut Treats

For a very quick GAPS treat whip together with a fork, half a cup of honey with half a cup of room temperature extra virgin coconut oil. Put the liquid into silicon molds and place in the freezer for about an hour. Remove from the freezer, pop out the coconut creams and store in a container in the freezer for easy snacking. You can also add these coconut treats to your herbal tea to jazz it up a little.