It seems like everywhere I turn lately, I run across another "___ Uses For Coconut Oil" list. Sometimes when things are HYPED that much...my skeptic's radar goes into overdrive. But, the more I read about it, the more it DOES seem like it can do anything! I have read so much about Coconut Oil in the past week, my head is spinning! But despite research overload vertigo...I have managed to glean some of my personal favorites from the HUNDREDS I read about and thought I would share them with you. I haven't personally TRIED all of these...but wouldn't hesitate to do so.
a couple I HAVE tried:
***Homemade Coconut Oil Toothpasteby Crunchy Betty
3 Tbsp coconut oil
3 Tbsp baking soda
25 drops peppermint essential oil
1 packet stevia
2 tsp vegetable glycerin (optional)
Put the coconut oil and baking soda in a bowl and mash up with a fork until blended. Add the peppermint essential oil, stevia and optional vegetable glycerin and continue to mash and stir until you’ve reached toothpaste consistency.
This recipe surprised me! I was anticipating it tasting pretty nasty...but it was minty fresh instead! AND it left my teeth feeling clean and "slickery". (yeah...I made that word up.)
5 stars from me!!!
I only use mineral makeup foundation. But sometimes I feel like my skin could use something with a little moisture to it to use as a base. So I tried this tip and I LOVED it. I used the "liquid" foundation first...then finished off with the powder and got such a nice, even coverage! I wouldn't use it for everyday, but for special occasions....DEFINITELY!
more i WANT to try:
***Frizzy Hair Remedy. After washing and conditioning, rub a small amount between palms and smooth over wet hair, style as usual
***Deodorant - already blogged about
***Eye Makeup Remover - already blogged about
***Healthy "Magic Shell" ice cream topping. Melt any kind of chocolate and mix in some coconut oil. Pour it on your ice cream and it hardens just like the magic shell stuff.
***Condition your wooden cutting boards.
***Keep a little container in your purse for lip moisturizer.
***Add a spoonful to your dog or cat’s food.
***Use on your baby’s diaper rash or cradle cap.
***Use to help reduce visibility of stretch marks or to prevent stretch marks.
***For nursing mothers, use coconut oil on your nipples to prevent cracking and irritation.
***If you’re prone to nosebleeds, coat the inside of your nostrils with coconut oil regularly.
***Ear infections. Tilt your head to the side and put a few drops in (or a small chunk if you don’t want to melt it… your body heat will soon melt it).
***Homemade VapoRub: 3 Tbs. Coconut Oil - melted; 3-5 drops Tea Tree Essential Oil; 6-10 drops Rosemary Essential Oil. Place oil into a small container and add in essential oils. Then just rub on chest, under nose or on to feet.
***Insect Repellent. Mix with peppermint, lemon balm, rosemary, or tea tree oil
***Mix with baking soda for a non-toxic “Goo Gone”.
***Got gum stuck in your hair? Try using coconut oil to remove without cutting your hair.
Use instead of WD-40.
***Mix with butter and toss your popcorn in it.
***Chocolate 'bark' with Virgin coconut oil
4 T. (1/4 cup) Virgin Coconut Oil
1-T. Cocoa Powder
1/4 t. lowcarb sweetener, such as stevia
2 oz sliced almonds optional
2 oz coconut flakes optional
Melt the coconut oil to a liquid LOW heat, add in cocoa powder and sweetener. Stir to combine and blend well. Blend nuts and flakes into chocolate mixture (Optional). Pour onto a plate with wax paper on it put in refrigerator or freezer on LEVEL shelf and let set 10 minutes or so. It will harden quickly and breaks up easy, put in a plastic bag and keep in refrigerator or freezer.
***Strengthening Nails. Add a drop of lavender to a little dish of coconut oil and rub it into your nails and they will be strong and lovely.
***As a treatment for Alzheimer's and dementia patients.
***Mix it with sugar for an exfoliating sugar scrub.
***Melt a tablespoon of it and pour it into your smoothie. 1 cup full-fat yogurt, 1/2 cup strawberries, 2 Tbsp maple syrup, 1Tbsp melted coconut oil. Delicious and healthy.
***Use coconut oil as a natural guitar string lubricant and string cleaner.
***Use coconut oil instead of the pricey toxic shampoos to get rid of lice.
***Mix garlic with coconut oil and it makes whatever you're cooking taste buttered!
***Rub it on fresh tattooes. Helps with the healing process.
***Use coconut oil mixed with baking soda for a moisturizing and brightening facial scrub.
***Sore Throat Remedy. If you feel a sore throat coming on, let a spoonful of coconut oil dissolve on your tongue and coat your throat. Sore throat should be gone by the next day!
***Sunscreen
Spoon 3 tbsp. of shea butter into a medium bowl. Add 6 tbsp. of coconut oil to the shea butter. Whip the two ingredients together using a wire whisk.
Add 2 tbsp. of zinc oxide to the mixture and blend with the wire whisk.
***Use it on cold sores!
***Use to condition your wooden cutting boards.
***Keep a little container in your purse for lip moisturizer.
And last but certainly not least....and possibly my VERY FAVORITE...
SOURCES:
http://www.crunchybetty.com/a-millionish-uncommon-and-not-so-uncommon-uses-for-coconut-oil
http://www.deliciousobsessions.com/2012/01/52-uses-for-coconut-oil-the-simple-the-strange-and-the-downright-odd/
http://healthimpactnews.com/2011/80-uses-for-coconut-oil/
http://www.hybridrastamama.com/2012/01/160-uses-for-coconut-oil.html
http://www.livestrong.com/article/278326-how-to-use-coconut-oil-as-a-sunscreen-deodorant/
Loco for Coco - nut Oil is today's.....
Where can I buy coconut oil? I don't think I have ever seen it in stores that I frequent.
ReplyDeleteCoconut oil on warm fresh bread with honey is delicious! I still love washing my face with coconut oil, a tip that I got from you...my skin thanks you and so does my bank account!
ReplyDeleteI love your posts! I follow a similar toothpaste recipe however instead of stevia I use Xylitol which is actually in our chewing gum to help prevent tooth decay. Xylitol is sweet and tastes good...I use it to sweeten almost all of my tea, baking etc instead. Hope this helps!
ReplyDeleteI used some coconut oil to get some weird sticky gunk off my front door. Goo Gone didn't get that stuff off, but coconut oil did!
ReplyDeletePut some in your mug of hot chocolate.. it is FANTASTIC!
ReplyDeleteyou can buy the coconut oil at health food shops....buy organic.....it is fabulous
ReplyDeleteLove the toothpaste idea. What do you keep it in?
ReplyDeleteI know this is a sidenote, but recently when makIng oatmeal for breakfast, I realized I forgot to pick up milk the previous night :/ I used half a can of coconut milk, mashed strawberries and bananas and got rave reviews! I'm starting to think coconuts are the cure to everything!
ReplyDeleteI love coconut oil! SO many ways to use it. Now I will try your toothpaste. Thanks, Jillee
ReplyDeleteI have tried many brands of Coconut Oil and they are not the same. The best I have ever found was from www.nutiva.com it is extra virgin cold pressed coconut oil and smells incredible when you open it up. I do not work for Nutiva but wanted to share about the wonders of their oil. Thanks Jillee for another amazing post. I read your blog daily! :)
ReplyDeleteI knew Coconut Oil is good for a few things, but your list is impressive :-) I will try quite a few of them.. Thanks for the post!
ReplyDeleteThis is perfect timing for the jar of coconut oil I just bought. FYI, I stopped in my local Asian foods store and scored a 16oz jar for $5.49. The same size jar is $9.99 at my local grocery store.
ReplyDeleteThis site is amazing. I am definitely going to be reading through the old posts. Thanks for the info!
ReplyDeleteHi Jill,
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad I found your blog. I can't wait to try this toothpaste, I've been looking for a good toothpaste recipe. I love the deodorant recipe, I'm pleasently surprised at how good it works. Thanks for all your great research!
Terez
I just started using coconut oil for oil pulling as I have enamel loss on my back teeth. Not sure if it's working yet, but I'm hoping. I also used it as a hair mask and was amazed at how soft my hair was afterwards. I also love to use it in cooking.
ReplyDeleteI make my own tooth paste. I thought I would try this recipe. So last time I made tooth paste, with coconut oil. I have to say, I don't like it. It's just too oily and it's hard to get it to stay on your tooth brush and when you first put it in your mouth its just a big glob of oil that is hard to spread over your teeth. I will stick to my tried and true recipe. Any body want it....
ReplyDeleteI'd love to try it kathleen!!
ReplyDeleteCoincidentally, I just decided to make this last night after reading about it on another website. I even cut down the baking soda a little bit and still found it to taste absolutely awful :(. This morning I brushed my teeth with just plain coconut oil and it wasnt as bad. I ordered something called Peelu fibers that I am going to try adding to it instead of baking soda because I really dont want to use store bought toothpaste with glycerin anymore!
ReplyDeleteThis is a freakish coincidence! (or not, ;) lol!) I just got done googling Coconut oil for hair treatments before clicking on your blog today.. I work at a salon (though not a hairdresser) and I am so fickle about what I want to do with my hair.. you name it, I've done it over the last year.. Hilights, perm, all over dark color, and last but not least, today I had one of the stylists put a perm on my hair and comb it out to straighten the frizz that it had morphed into (my perm was about 5 months old..) I cringed and prayed my hair wouldn't fall off.. as I dried it, I noticed this 'goopy gummy' feel about mid-length down from my hair shaft.. (you know how worn out elastic feels? yeah, not good) The stylist trimmed the worst of all this damaged part off and added all these miracle serums and recommended I keep it conditioned.. The damaged parts were where I had the hi-lights/colored over/permed/unpermed sections.. yeah.. too much on my hair.. Advice ladies: don't do that to yourself! In conclusion.. I remembered your posts about the coconut oil with the shampoo/conditioner (and revised version) so here I am, looking for a solution to my over-processed hair.. Can't wait to try some of these!! (so sorry this was a terribly long post)
ReplyDeleteThe cinnamon toast is good- I have it every morning!
ReplyDeleteI think you meant peppermint extract from the baking isle (not peppermint essential oil).
ReplyDeleteKathleen - I am interested in your recipe if you are willing to share :)
ReplyDeleteI have found coconut oil at Wal-Mart in the food section in the baking section and at the Amish markets.
ReplyDeleteJill..I had to post immediately! I know just the thing to keep your homemade toothpaste in! As I was making my lunch this morning, I had an almost empty container of Hellmann's Real Mayonnaise in the 9 oz. squeeze bottle. Frustrated that I couldn't squeeze out the last drop of mayo, I took a good look at that container and viola!!! Remove the label and you have a clear squeeze container!! Sharing a hint with Jill is my "One Good Thing"! God Bless YOU!!
ReplyDeleteI have to ask a "silly" question.....I hate coconut and the smell just gags me.......so does coconut oil and coconut water all taste and smell like the shredded coconut and the stuff they put in suntan oil(Hawaiian Tropic)??????
ReplyDeleteI see a lot of all kinds of recipes using coconut this and that...I need to know the answer>>>>PLEASE?????
I just keep two tiny bowls together for toothpaste one with baking soda the other coconut oil. Been using the combo for years. I used to mix them, but got lazy AND I'm a scrubber. So a lot of times I just use the coconut oil because the baking soda can be pretty harsh for me. My dentist always told me it's the brushing not the toothpaste anyway.
ReplyDeleteA handy tip. If keeping coconut oil in your purse. make sure you container seals very well and remember in warmer weather it will melt and will no longer be in solid form. I made this mistake years ago.
Is a awesome cuticle cream as well. My main uses are for it's health and nutritional benefits so I make sure I add a good healthy spoonful to my coffee or tea.
Prissila, She did mean Pepermint Essential oil, using the DoTerra oils she shows in the pictures, they are perfectly safe because they have not been cut with any other oils, ie. mineral oils ect. They are truely pure where as many other Essential oils are not recomended for ingestions, DoTerra's can be for this reason. They are great, try them!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the links. I've been interested in coconut oil ever since I started using it to make our own homemade bar soap. I buy it in the 5 gallon buckets because it is cheapest that way but I need more uses for it. It is great knowing I can use it for all the non-ingestible recipes and save my good organic stuff for things like toothpaste and what not. Off to read and bookmark so I can make stuff in the next week.
ReplyDeleteP.S. Coconut oil makes an assume lube if you aren't a fan of KY. ;)
I knew a man that ate coconut oil three times per day before he ate. He lost eighty or so lbs. this way.
ReplyDeleteI discovered coconut oil a couple months ago and LOVE it. I agree that Nutiva is the most delicious brand I've tried. I have been oil pulling almost every morning for about a month (swishing about 1 Tbsp for 15 min.) and my teeth are getting whiter and feel slick like after a dental cleaning. Hoping the dentist notices the improvement on my next visit.
ReplyDeleteIf you don't like the taste or smell, stay away from the extra virgin brands. The Lou Ana brand is tasteless and odorless and is available at Walmart and other grocery stores.
For those that weren't happy with the taste of this...it's definitely not your "regular" toothpaste...but I found it quite nice after the addition of the peppermint essential oil and the stevia. And like the comment just above this...loved the slick feeling of my teeth afterwards. :-)
ReplyDeleteSo funny! I've been doing the homemade shampoo for two weeks now (yours of course but that's another post) and I've been missing my store bought hair frizz serum. Two days ago, saw my coconut oil and said, "F it. We use it in lotion and lip balm..." Tried it; so awesome! Love the way it makes my hair feel. But of warning though: a dab'll do ya! First day I used too much and ended up wih somewhat oily hair. Yay coconut oil!!
ReplyDeleteLove this list! I use coconut oil for many things but my favorite use is as a shaving lotion...it works great and there is no need to moisturize afterwards. Also, I use it when I feel an ear infection coming on.
ReplyDeleteDo you have more information on using it as a treatment for people who have Alzheimer's and dementia?
It's also great to pop popcorn with instead of vegetable oil. It gives it a nice light flavor, not too coco-nutty at all.
ReplyDeleteI get mine at Trader Joe's. I can't wait to try all these wonderful ideas! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing all these ideas!
ReplyDeleteSuch a fantastic recipe - I will have to try! Just wondering how long you keep it packaged for - and what do you keep the paste in?
ReplyDeleteAlso, I'm looking for a natural deodorant - let me know of any recipes you might have :-)
Joelyne
x
p.s. just found this. What do you think?
ReplyDeletehttp://1greengeneration.elementsintime.com/?p=596
I will vouch for coconut oil as I lice treatment. The nurse at my daughter's school recommended it. You will need to rub in a fair amount and comb through with a nit comb, repeat twice more at one week intervals. It worked so much better than the lice killing shampoos we had tried before, and it is good for your hair!
ReplyDeleteAs a MAN I can vouch for Coconut Oil, in fact I've used it this morning, 1 teaspoon taken for my sore throat caused by my overnight snoring...grin..
ReplyDelete1 Tablespoon placed in hand to melt and then rubbed onto my head, NO, not for hair treatment, I don't have any, grin...but I DO suffer from lumps and sores on my head caused by long time sunburn, the oil calms the soreness and clears the lumps and sores, although this does take quite awhile, but anything is better than surgery that I used to go through.
Thank you Coconut Oil !!
Brian
I use coconut oil as a moisurizer Under my makeup and as a night cream. My skin has never looked better !
ReplyDeleteone of my favorites is a combination of two you mentioned: air popped popcorn, coconut oil, cinnamon sugar. UNBELIEVABLE.
ReplyDeleteWe use it in alot of cooking. LOVE using it to pop popcorn. Can't believe the taste. Thanks for the neat list! I'll definitely try some of them.
ReplyDelete