Nature's Way Organic Extra Virgin Coconut Oil, Pure Source of MCTs, Cold-Pressed, 32 Oz.

I'm very strict with my diet. I eat only organic foods, practice CRON (calorie restriction with optimal nutrition), eat minimal carbs and lots of nutrients. I've tested 7 brands of organic coconut oil -- Nature's Way, Nutiva, Spectrum Naturals, Bronner's, Ziggy Marley Organics, VivaLabs, and 2 small scale raw food companies. Nature's Way and VivaLabs are the best so far.The aroma of Nature's Way and VivaLabs both are wonderful. The texture is much fuller than the other brands. This coconut oil has bolder taste and less watered-down feeling than the other brands. I know that the way coconut oil (and all oils for that matter) is processed is very important. Better processing methods preserve more nutrients, increase the natural flavor and aroma, and improved digestibility. So if you're looking for a good organic coconut oil, this is one by Nature's Way is excellent, as is VivaLabs brand too.Now for some quick facts about how amazingly healthy this stuff is:1) Medium chain fatty acids --> Digest very easily without requiring the gall bladder to do much work. Most fats require the body to work harder for digestion. Medium chain fatty acids energy the blood stream very quickly, with less digestion time than slow or long chain fatty acids, found in other oils. This makes coconut oil excellent for people missing gallbladders, having digestive problems or suffering from chronic fatigue.2) Converts to usable energy very quickly. Coconut oil is a much more balanced and less manic energy than any carbohydrate (fructose, lactose, glucose, etc). Carbohydrate break down quickly and elevate blood sugar and insulin levels rapidly. This creates the surge and crash. With coconut oil, the energy is delivered more slowly and evenly than carbs. Many people feel deeply nourished by coconut oil, like the food energy goes deeper within the body.3) Anti-viral, anti-parasitic, anti-bacterial, anti-fungal. Coconut oil keeps your digestive system very clean inside. It will destroy candida, and common cold bacteria and flu viruses. This helps to balance intestinal (probiotic) bacteria and gives the immune system support. Less sickness and more energy!4) Longer lasting energy without insulin levels being adversely affected. Fats are the cleanest burning energy for our body. Carbohydrates cause insulin levels to raise and crash, which is what creates the "eat every 3 hours" cravings that so many people this is hunger. Healthy fats, like this oil, will not affect insulin and give us much more stable energy that last longer in the body.5) Tastes great. Smells great.6) Can be used topically to make the skin very soft. Coconut oil is absorbed directly into the skin to nourish it (like a food for the skin), unlike most cosmetic moisturizers create a coating on top the skin. These often leave residue or cause long-term dryness by unbalancing the body's innate skin oil balance. Coconut supports the skin's natural oil balance. This also helps to reduce wrinkles!7) Great for hair and can be used as a leave-on conditioner. Like it's skin use, coconut oil will not imbalance the hair's natural oils.... unlike chemical-based conditioners. Plus, because coconut is anti-"everything bad" it will keep the hair clean too. Because there are so many different types of hair (dry, cracking, split ends, oily, curly, straight, etc) experiment with what works best. Try applying the oil only the the ends for extra protection from split ends. Or only to the scalp to stop dandruff (caused by scalp bacteria, often candida) or prevent hair loss.8)Natural soap for the body. Myself, some of my friends and others use coconut oil as a soap for the body. Most bar soaps and liquid bath soaps remove the skin's natural oils and create dry skin. In fact, most people have dry skin and fail to see that the bath soap is causing it! We still need to clean our skin, but using coconut oil is better than soap in many cases. You may want to soap under the armpits, between the legs, on the hands and feet. But for the arms, legs, and torso (areas prone to dryness) try using only coconut oil.Here's the protocol that I use. 1) Dry skin brush my entire body before stepping in the shower, to remove dead skin cells and increase blood flow to the skin (redness is good). 2) Rise the body with hot water to open the pores and increase blood flow to the skin. 3) Use a wet cloth or your hand to rub the skin rinse clean any loose skin cells. 4) Turn off the water and use your fingers/hands to rub a light layer of coconut oil everywhere (minus your head hair). A light layer is all that is needed. Apply with your skin still wet and you'll see the water bead up. 5) Turn back on the water, this time to warm/cool, and rise off the excess coconut oil. Run your hand lightly over your skin to spread the excess coconut oil into places that may have less, and to help remove the excess altogether. Lightly is the key - you don't want to remove the oil completely. 6) Exit the shower and lightly tap dry your skin with a towel (do not rub your take off the oil) or air dry. The skin will absorb the coconut oil in a few minutes. Your skin will be soft to the touch and not oily. Don't worry, coconut is not like other oils - it won't stain your clothes or make them smell rancid.9) Sunscreen and suntan lotion. Coconut oil protects the skin from the effects too much sunlight. Technically, coconut oil does not block the sunlight, like a UV sunblock would. Instead it prevents the harmful chemical reaction skin bacteria and skin fungus can have when exposed to the suns UV rays. It also moisturizes the skin, reflects back some light (the shine), and prevents sunburn. Personally, I lay out in the summertime sun in Arizona, Florida and Hawaii and when wearing coconut oil I can be out for 4-6 hours and not burn. In these powerful suns, 30 minutes to 1 hour of exposure without coconut oil and my skin is red and will peel days later. Although coconut oil does not block UV, it does wonders to protect the skin and create a great tan.10) Can be used as a sexual lubricant. Coconut oil is a natural anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial lubricant which helps keep these organs clean and reduce the spread of unwanted problem.11) Coconut oil detox cleanse. The medium chain fatty acids make this and ideal food for detox cleanses because the energy is available with minimal digestive effort, plus all of it's anti-"everything bad" properties. The detox cleanse is a 3 to 7 day process where all carbohydrate foods are removed and coconut oil is eaten as the primary energy source (approx. 14 Tablespoons each day). The oil can be combined with organic lemon water as well. You can find the instructions by Googling "Natural News Coconut Oil Cleanse". This is a very powerful detoxification because the bad guys are being killed by the oil. So be mindful.That's it! I hope you enjoyed this review. The bottom line is that coconut oil is simply amazing! Nature's Way and VivaLabs brands are the best I've found so far. Enjoy!*** Update: I found a good website for coconut oil information and recipes. It has summaries of many studies on coconut oil. Visit coconutdiet (dotcom)

I've mostly used this coconut oil consistently on my skin for a month now. I have eczema and dry skin spots on my torso.So here's my review and my experience... a rant, and advice, I guess.You have to be pretty consistent with this stuff to see results -- if you're starting out with it, I think. I've been using this for a month at least 2 times a day, and it's in the middle of winter when my skin easily gets dry. I stopped using lotion after learning about its ineffectiveness and how it could be in fact harmful (carcinogenic from parabens and such) -- most of the conventional products anyway that we all find easily in our supermarkets.So I've learned that most health products they sell you don't really eliminate the problems at their roots -- mostly just symptoms, and in fact can contribute to cancer (make-up, shampoos, conditioners, lotions, laundry detergent...) This is a very clever business technique, because the customers will always be coming back for more toxic products that eliminate symptoms, but never completely eliminate the root of the customers' problems.I also learned that skin problems can not only be due to toxic chemicals from your conventional lotions, it can be from toxins that sit on the inside of your body from the junk food you've been ingesting -- this includes highly processed foods, toxic medications, the toxins your skin has absorbed over the years, and maybe even the polluted air you've been breathing.(I've been told by a nutritionist that many skin problems can be helped by colon cleansing and perhaps liver cleansing...).What I'm trying to say is that coconut oil can only do so much (at least, in my one month of experience) on the outside, it's helping just one factor out of many that would contribute to better skin health. But I'd say it's definitely better than using my prescribed topical medication which are basically steroids (betamethasone dipropionate I think). The doctor said not to use it for more than 10 days in a row (my medication), that it's bad that the skin absorbs it. *ahem* you know that doctors are not going to recommend anything other than drugs that are mostly toxic? my dermatologist was definitely giving me carcinogens, which I found out from my doctor -- so she started prescribing me steroids. that can't be good either now can it, especially when she told me that my skin shouldn't absorb too much of it?It's okay to absorb the coconut oil though, because it's non-toxic, nourishing for the skin, anti-fungal, anti-oxidant and can be used internally as well. So definitely, it's great for eczema. You have to be patient with it, though -- it's not harsh and strong like my steroid cream that works in minutes. The coconut oil on the first few applications within the first day or two will still leave your skin pretty dry (in my experience), but I think it's just a matter of your skin getting used to it or something. Or maybe it's a matter of getting it so that your skin is actually nourished, after all those years of using toxic malnourishing lotions.With acne, it's meh. I have acne on my forehead, and I learned that it's due to the oil from my hair... or, your forehead naturally produces more grease than other parts of the body. At least for me. I didn't see that big a difference with coconut oil in the past month, but I solved my acne on my forehead problem with a facial cleanse at a day spa, followed by applying organic jojoba oil on it day and night for almost a week now... and the acne's pretty much calmed down a lot.My face was really smooth when I consistently used the old lotions -- while I was switching to coconut oil for the first few weeks, my face was kind of dry. But now it's back to smooth, possibly even smoother.I bought another jar for my mom, just for general use. She used it on some sort of super itchy rash (possibly some sort of infection, I had no idea) that just wouldn't go away for months. In her experience, after applying coconut oil, her rash itched like crazy while it was greasy. But after a few days of application, it was getting better and itching less frequently. When she applied the coconut oil at night, it wouldn't wake her up anymore from the itchiness like it used to.I will continue to use organic extra virgin coconut oil, and stay away from toxic substances. I think I'm also going to start cooking with coconut oil as well.The only downside to coconut oil in my experience and/or from what I've read and researched, are:if you don't like the smellif you're allergicif you're too lazy/impatient to switch from conventional lotions to coconut oilCoconut oil is too good to be true. As a huge developed country we're so far removed that we had no idea that we don't really need drugs. At least for good skin and hair and to slow the aging process, stick to organic extra virgin coconut oil. It's probably the only staple "cosmetic" product you'll ever need -- good health leads to beauty.