Coconut? - Diet & Nutrition Message Board

LS289 · 10-03-2004, 11:58 PM

Ate a bunch of shredded coconut today with chopped almonds and I was wondering...how does coconut pan out nutritionally? It is high in fat, but is that monounsaturated (like avocado) or am I just kidding myself?

breakfast: coffee, apple
lunch: chicken caesar salad with fat free ranch dressing
snack: skinny carb ice cream bar, chopped almonds, shredded coconut (about 1/3 cup!)
dinner: sliced turkey breast meat, broccoli (2 cups), 1/2 tomato
snack: blueberries, coffee

zip2play · 10-04-2004, 06:01 AM

LS,
Even the unsweetened dried shredded or flaked coconut meat is a high calorie, amost ALL fat (88%) food best used in small quantities as occasional treats....and of course the SWEETENED stuff just adds sugar to the fat.

The fats are almost completely SATURATED.

It has some advocates who claim that the particular distribution of saturated fats (lauric and myristic acids) is not nearly as harmful as the heavier saturates like stearic acid which makes up the bulk of animal fats.
I don't quite swallow it, and see it as a way for some people to peddle the VERY expensive coconut oil as a health supplement, though I will agree it's healthiER than butterfat or lard.

My recommendation is to use coconut in small quantities as a food additive for it's delicious flavor, but not as a day to day foodstuff.

LS289 · 10-04-2004, 08:12 PM

Thanks, Zip. I definitely don't eat it on a daily basis, but it's good to know that it's not the best food out there. I guess it's too late to feel bad about eating it yesterday, though.

Losec20mg · 10-04-2004, 09:16 PM

you should replace the coffee with 1% milk instead..and, drinking coffee right after eating is not a good thing to do..altho millions of people do but, its not ok..you should eat an orange fruit after your meals to help the absorbtion of the nutrience..this is why coffee should be taken three hours after a meal..and, it should be pure black espresso coffee with no sugar, try putting honey in there..

Magpiezoe · 10-08-2004, 02:20 PM

A 2'X2' piece has 159 cal., 15 g. total fat, 1.5 g. protein, 4 fiber, 6.85 carb., 6 g. calcium, and 160 g. potqassium according to the USDA's free Internet database.