Not all coconut oils are created equal

I’ve been on the hunt for a great brand of coconut oil in recent months.  I’ve used the Nutiva, Barleans Organic, Swanson brand, and Garden of Life Coconut oils.

I was more impressed with certain ones and disappointed in others. Some had a good coconut smell while with others you could barely smell the coconut. Honestly, not all coconut oils are created equal.  You’d think they were, right?  But no.

Coconut oil itself is great for haircare.  If you want some type of butter or whip that you’ll use for your hair, I would suggest making coconut oil a significant percentage of that whip.

Commercial grade coconut oil is actually made from the dried coconut meat which has either been smoke dried, sun dried or kiln dried. (1)  Companies who don’t care or who don’t know how to make it the correct way will often use heat and chemicals to “purify” it.

Coconut oil used to get  a raw deal.  The ‘common wisdom’ used to be that coconut oil was fattening and bad for your health.  NOT true.  

As it turns out, it may be one of the best oils you can use for a number of reasons, so long as its produced in a good way.

It’s one of the best oils for your body, and most people’s hair actually absorbs coconut oil well.  I told you earlier in a tweet  I oiled by hair with straight coconut oil after a long time of not using it straight (with nothing else on it). 

After I oiled my scalp with coconut oil and massaged a little bit throughout the hair,  my hair felt soft for almost 2 days. Other than using shea butter, my hair almost never does that with a straight oil/butter.

The lauric acid in coconut oil is thought to protect the scalp and the hair roots from microbial action. (2)  The oil is good for styling and conditioning the hair.  Maybe that’s why it had my hair so darn soft?

Some folk report bad experiences with coconut oil.  Some people say its comedogenic (aggravates acne; clogs pores), but I use other oils on my face so I can’t tell you one way or the other.

Some people even say it makes their hair hard.  In all the times I’ve used coconut oil, it has never made my hair “hard”.

Maybe those people used too much or overdid it on the “protein” treatments.  Its also quite possible that those folk were using a low quality coconut oil and expecting superior results.

Long story short, to a number of people who have emailed me to ask about it, I’m still looking for the best brand of coconut oil.

Question What is your experience with coconut oil?  Do you use it?  Which brand is your favorite?

1 http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/what_is_virgin_coconut_oil.htm
2 http://www.organicfacts.net/organic-oils/organic-coconut-oil/coconut-oil-for-hair.html#.UGembVHtayU