Coconut oil for Oil Pulling

As I type, I'm swishing oil between my teeth. Yup, oil. Coconut oil, sesame oil, and spearmint essential oil, to be exact.

The idea behind oil pulling makes sense. My mouth is at just the right temperature to house billions of bacteria, multiplying constantly, and feeding on the egg salad, Brussels sprouts and watermelon I had for dinner. 

Inside my mouth-house are both good and bad bacteria. The bad guys cause cavities and gum disease; bad bacteria thrive on sugar, sugar is converted into acid, which erodes the enamel on teeth, and the end result are cavities. While sugar encourages the growth of this bad bacteria, my saliva counteracts the acid and gives me a more neutral pH balance. 

So how does swishing oil get rid of some of the bad bacteria?

The idea behind oil "pulling" is that the oil attracts the fatty membranes of the microorganisms and they come out of their hiding places between your teeth and around your gums. The longer you oil pull (20 minutes is recommended), the more microbes are pulled free and released from your mouth when you spit out the oil solution. You're getting rid of the bad stuff and freeing up your body to fight off any infections you might have. 

I personally chose this combination:

• coconut oil because it really doesn't matter what kind of oil you use and I like coconut oil for its many health benefits, 
• sesame oil because historically, sesame oil was used for oil pulling, and 
• spearmint essential oil because I personally need a little gum-feeling action with this new habit

I'm now 15 minutes into my oil pulling. I occasionally get the "gag" feeling but when I get that out of my head, I'm able to get back to swishing and not think too much about it. After I finish, I'll spit out the oil and clean  out my mouth with fresh water (swish and spit, repeat) before brushing. 

My battle against the bad bacteria will be complete for the night and I'll repeat the fight again tomorrow. 

Note: the information above is my interpretation of Dr. Bruce Fife's book Oil Pulling Therapy. My amounts of oils are approximately 3/4 tablespoon coconut oil, 1 teaspoon sesame oil and a drop of spearmint essential oil. At the time of publishing this blog, I've only oil pulled once a day for three days but I plan to continue the practice with the hopes of having fresher breath, whiter teeth and stonger gums. The practice will be easier when my children aren't asking "mom, what are you doing?" and "don't make her laugh!" while pulling oil. 

Have you practiced oil pulling? What's been your experience with it?

SPF? Sunscreen or No Sunscreen? Zinc Oxide? Vitamin D?

It used to be that we were warned to stay out of the sun at all costs... don't leave home without the sunscreen... lather up in the highest SPF possible... always wear a hat... and if you must venture outdoors, go before 10 a.m. or after 3 p.m.

The problem with this, according to Dr. Mercola, is that "wearing sunscreen effectively blocks your body’s production of vitamin D, which happens naturally when your skin is exposed to sunlight. In fact, sunscreens reduce vitamin D production by as much as 97.5 to 99.9 percent."

The article goes on to say that the flip side is that you don't want to get burned.

The happy balance is to slowly expose your skin to the sun a little at a time each day. If you do need to be outdoors to the degree that you risk sunburn, then do the following:

• wear a hat
• use a sunscreen containing the minerals zinc oxide or titanium oxide as the base for sunscreen protection.  They don't penetrate the skin like other chemicals used in lotions, and unless you are inhaling the powder, they are completely safe
• wear "strategic clothing" - cover where you need to
• start small and build up the amount of time spent outdoors

Since the diaper rash cream contains zinc oxide, it doubles as a sunscreen.  My guess on the spf is around 10-15 (based on 6% zinc oxide; Dr. Mercola's formula has 7%, which he says is a 15 spf). It gets bonus points for containing coconut oil, the food of the tropics.

Read the rest of Dr. Mercola's article for more on ways to find out if your sunscreen is safe, and what makes UVB the good guy and UVA the bad guy when it comes to ultraviolet light.

Whipped Shea Butter Recipe

For written instructions, visit The Lotion Exchange.

From Jungle to Skin - the Cocoa Bean

The EdventureProject, one of the organizations that we sponsor, had the opportunity to learn how the cocoa bean  travels from seed to chocolate during their recent stay in Guatemala. In a video of their interview, we learn the following facts about cocoa beans:

*cocoa pods grow on the trunk of the tree and are harvested year-round

*in Guatemala, cocoa is pronounced “cuh-cow”

*a cocoa pod is about the size of a large sweet potato, and cutting it is like cutting a gourd

*inside the pod is the arrangement of cocoa seeds held together and surrounded by a white, slimy, citrus and sweet-tasting liquid

*that sweet, white liquid is what feeds the fermentation process

*cocoa beans are fermented naturally on the jungle floor, inside the pod

*cocoa beans are extracted from the pods, dried, toasted (to remove the shells), and then ground into powder (cocoa powder)

*cocoa butter is the result of pressing the cocoa beans with a press, extracting the oil

*the Mayans like their chocolate hot... but by that I mean spicy!

*the skin of the bean is released when heated, and the skin by-product is often used to make tea

*chocolate can be made with just cocoa powder and honey.

*chocolate mousse: Kari says she makes a chocolate mousse with avocado, cocoa powder and honey!

Watch the process of making chocolate from the cocoa bean here: http://edventureproject.com/learn-to-make-chocolate/

I'll ask Kari to share her chocolate mousse recipe. Here's my first try at sweetened chocolate which will completely replace my need for a Snicker's bar fix:

Homemade Chocolate (chewy like a taffy but softer, smoother, and velvety)

On low heat, melt about a tbs of coconut oil, add 2-3 tbs of honey and stir. Slowly stir in about a tbs of cocoa powder until a chocolatey, velvet consistency occurs (may need to remove from heat before you get to this point).  Transfer to plate and cool (or drizzle over a banana). Enjoy! 

Tan Enhancing Cream Recipe

I flipped through my Nourishing Traditions book a couple weeks ago to find a recipe to try out at my local Weston Price potluck meeting. I stopped at the section of healthy oils and found that palm oil was right up there with coconut oil as a healthy, edible oil.

If it's healthy for the body, it must be healthy for the skin, so I experimented with it. Red palm oil is palm oil in its purest form and, well, it's red! To be more accurate, pure red palm oil applied directly to the skin is more of a salmony, orangey, yellowish oil. Alone it could make a person look jaundiced, but I added a couple other ingredients:

Tan Enhancing Sunscreen #1

1 oz cocoa butter

1 oz olive butter

.5 oz red palm oil (or more, for a stronger color)

What's neat about this cream is that it immediately brings color to the skin. Think "fake tan." It may not please all skin tone types, however, as those with a rose undertone may clash with its yellowish coloring. But the good news is, it penetrates smoothly and easily without the potential for "oops, missed a spot." The cocoa butter gives it a bit of a chocolate scent.

Tan Enhancing Cream #2 : Easier than the recipe above is the red palm oil/coconut oil concoction (photo below). Just mix up equal amounts of both, adding more red palm oil if you want more color. I put this together today and it applied very easily. It was 80 degrees outside so there's potential that this one could be a liquid oil at higher summer temperatures (not necessarily a bad thing).

I'll still play around with ingredients and color but this is a healthy start to using palm oil for the skin.

According to Dr. Bruce Fife in his book The Palm Oil Miracle, there are many benefits of palm oil:

• helps improve skin health and enhances the skin's ability to heal
• it's an efficient way of enriching the skin with vitamin E and carotenes
• helps to fight off the effects of free radicals and keep your skin looking younger
• it's comparable to SPF15 sunscreen

By the way, one potential drawback (I haven't experienced it yet) is that red palm oil can stain clothes. You could instead apply white palm oil on the skin. Palm kernel oil is colorless and won't stain the skin.

Next, I'll try cooking with palm oil!

Ever Have Your 2 Year Old Get A Hold of the Desitin?

I was two and my brother was a year old. Somehow we managed to get a hold of the Desitin when my mom wasn't looking and apparently covered each other with it. My mom still reminds me of it.

This morning I walked into the room to find my own two year old with the diaper rash cream I use on him. Thankfully the ingredients are safe and since he likes to rub it all over his face, I don't have to worry about kissing a fish - it's unscented.

Ethiopian Child in Need of Cortisone Steroid Gets Full Body Shea Butter Application

My sister's family was over today and I had the opportunity to apply my whipped shea butter and coconut oil lotion on her Ethiopian-born 17 month old, Nathan.

Background: Nathan has had extremely dry skin his entire life. His skin is so dry and coarse in some areas that it becomes bumpy, causing him to scratch his skin, which then bleeds. Her doctor advised a Cortisone steroid, and she would apply that to his skin. In a follow up visit, the doctor recommended she increase the Cortisone, as he was still suffering from the scratches and bleeding.

Meanwhile, she has been looking for a natural lotion to protect his skin and relieve the constant need for scratching. We spent a few minutes applying the shea butter lotion all over his body and it appeared to immediately soak into his skin.  I was excited to see how well his skin took to the lotion and my sister asked me to make more for her to take home; none of the other products (Vaseline, Udderly Smooth Cream, etc.) worked as effectively and absorbed as well, sometimes even left grease spots on his clothes.  A couple hours later, his skin felt smooth, but it definitely would need another application of lotion as his skin is that dry. Thankfully, he wasn't itching. We'll be watching how the lotion works over time and I'll be back in the workroom to test out the amounts, possibly adding beeswax for longer-lasting lotion absorption.

whipped shea butter and coconut oil

I finally found a good recipe for whipped shea butter. It wasn't that other recipes were bad, but I really wanted something with as few ingredients as possible. Additional, unnecessary ingredients just aren't necessary. This one called for only shea butter and coconut oil.

I'll probably post a recipe after I pinpoint the exact amounts that I'm happy with, but this definitely looks like whipped cream.

My husband (a.k.a. lotion guy) has been blogging his results of the recipe with his full body application, here.

How to Make Lotion Bars for Gift Giving

How to Make Your Own Moisturizer

I normally have combination skin, but in the winter, my face feels dry, tight and uncomfortable from the harsh weather and indoor heat. Part of my morning routine is to apply this facial moisturizer that consists of coconut oil and beeswax. It has a very light honey scent and absorbs easily into the skin without a greasy feel and can be applied under make up. I also use it in the summertime before and after swimming to keep my skin protected.

Although it's not currently a product I sell on the site, it is so easy to make that you can do it at home.  Make some for yourself and give some away in small jars to friends.

*some people may find it blocks their skins' pores, so discontinue use if this happens to you.

Chocolate Bark Recipe Using Coconut Oil

I just made an amazing chocolate bark using coconut oil.

I've never made chocolate bark before, but it looked so incredibly easy, and with the base recipe using only three ingredients (which I had in my pantry), tonight was the night to try it.

Chocolate Bark

1/2 cup coconut oil

2/3 cup cocoa powder

1/3 cup sugar

½ tsp peppermint oil (optional)

Directions:

1. Over a double boiler on medium heat, whisk coconut oil, chocolate and sugar together for about 4-5 minutes, or until mixture begins to bubble. (Taste for flavor – add sugar if more sweetness is desired.)

2. Remove from heat.

3. If adding peppermint, wait five minutes and then add in peppermint oil and stir.

1. Pour mixture into a large baking dish or rimmed baking sheet that’s lined with parchment paper. Spread smooth with a spatula or spoon. Cover with plastic wrap, foil or a fitted top and freeze for 15-20 minutes, or until chocolate sets. You may break up chocolate and store the rest in the refrigerator until ready to eat.

Other ideas: just before pouring, add in one or more of the following: chopped walnuts, almonds, raisins or other dried fruit, shredded coconut, etc

It was easy to assume this would be good based on the ingredients, but even compared to the Lindt chocolate I recently had, I have to admit that this is even better. This is one of those after dinner sweets that will totally knock the socks off your guests (so make plenty). By the way, it makes a great gift idea.



Where I Buy my Coconut Oil for Cooking/Baking

In a pinch, I can get my Nutiva coconut oil at my local health food store. It costs more, but the store stays open late and I love the ladies in the Nutrition section who can answer any health-related question I have.

Normally, I buy coconut oil at Vitacost, where the shipping is low no matter how much I purchase, and I'm also able to order a few large containers of my favorite protein powder. I buy a few 54 oz certified organic extra virgin coconut oil containers and store the unopened ones in the fridge.

Another excellent brand is Tropical Traditions, where you can find coconut oil without the coconut scent (but you won't find me with that one - I LOVE the coconut smell).  Their website is just about as much fun as browsing YouTube for beeswax-candle-making ideas... a few movies and you'll become the expert on coconut oil production.

Don't forget to read my blog that has uses for using coconut oil in cooking.

Uses for Coconut Oil in Recipes

Summer is over, my coconut oil no longer pours out of its plastic container, and it's time to get the spoon out when I use it for cooking.

By the way, did I tell you about the big faux pax I made this summer when my 32 oz Nutiva coconut oil arrived? It was, as it always is in the summer, pure liquid at room temperature. Because the big container invaded precious cupboard space, I poured some into a long-neck bottle and found a home for the big container in the fridge. My plan worked great to pour from the bottle whenever I needed it - until the weather changed to a cool 70 degrees.  No such luck trying to pour an oil that's solid at the now-room temperature.

So what comes with fall but holiday parties, events, and... plenty of eating?

Here's what works for me to keep myself feeling "full" and less likely to snack on the filler foods:

Coconut Oil Appetite Suppressant:
Add 1 Tbs coconut oil to your favorite hot tea before breakfast, or anytime you're heading out to a calorie-consuming holiday event. You'll feel more full and less likely to fill up on the junk.

Other coconut oil family favorites:

• replace butter or oil with coconut oil when scrambling eggs
• add 1 Tbs to a protein shake
• when cooking beans from scratch, add a few tablespoons to your soaked beans and water, and then cook (I use the crock pot overnight... in the garage so the house doesn't smell). It doesn't require any other spices but salt.
• add a tablespoon to your morning bowl of cooked oatmeal

Email me with your favorite recipe!

From Cracked Skin to Building a Lotion Business

I wasn't looking for an opportunity to run a business.

I didn't even care whether the products I used on my skin were natural, biodegradable, or "green" - I just needed something that would heal the cracks and splits in my fingers that made my daily tasks incredibly painful.

When I figured out the solution, I wanted to help others, and eventually it turned into a business.

It all started with three ingredients: beeswax, shea butter and coconut oil.



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