The Coconut tree is also called the tree of life. It is called this because it truly offers many health benefits and even life saving properties.
There are literally dozens of benefits that can be derived from the coconut fruit and the tree itself. It can quench your thirst, it can offer you nutrition, it has even been reported that there have been times during war when buko (coconut) water was used in lieu of blood plasma! I can’t verify if that is 100% true, maybe it is an urban legend, I can’t say for sure. I can be certain, however, that coconut does offer tons of health benefits, and can be used in many ways.
Have a look at the video below that will show some foreigners (they appear that they may be half Filipino) will attempt to show you how to climb up a coconut tree! It looks like a lot of fun.
What do you think? Are you planning to start climbing coconut trees when you are in the Philippines. You can keep looking, but I doubt you will see me up on top of a coconut tree! Maybe laying down under a coconut tree, though! Sipping on some buko juice? You bet!
Sleeping under a Coconut tree could also shorten your life if one falls on your head, In Puerto Rico the Electric Company would use the Cherry Picker truck to clean all the trees on the beach as a safety precaution, and then sell them to the vendors who would sell them with rum to the tourists. On Diego Garcia (British Indian Ocean Territory) there was a coconut crab with one claw so big it could crack a coconut, avoid them at all cost.
That is very true, Paul. People die every year from coconuts falling on them! Another danger down here is to have a durian fall on you. Durian are much heavier than a coconut, and also have hard spikes on them! ha ha….
As a 10yr old i had a brick fall on my head from an old single story outbuilding i was hiding in, my Mum was concerned but my Stepdad just muttered “Nothing in there to do any damage”, no i didn’t love him either, lol.
Ha ha… now we know what happened to you, Chas! 😉
coconut juice is known to boost your energy and prevent bladder infection. oh, also can melt and prevent kidney and gall stones.
Sounds like those are all good things, Ron Perry!
We try to have young coconut for our guests on their arrival at our resort…free of charge of course.
I love good buko juice!
Hi Bob,
I love these guys!
Coconuts are truly a versatile fruit. In the province, we often use virgin coconut oil for cooking, and also I use it for a natural hair and skin moisturizer.
Also there’s nothing more refreshing as they showed, of cutting open a young coconut to drink the watery juice. Sometimes we scrape the gelatinous young coconut into a glass and add Seven-up for a refreshing dessert on a hot day.
My husband said that as a child he could easlly climb a coconut tree as his feet were hard from running around barefoot. Now he says it would be a bigger challenge as he’s now older and “wiser” to the dangers. Luckily in the province there’s always someone around the yard that can climb up to cut some down for a snack.
I heard once that coconut juice was very pure as you said, and perfect for a convalescent person as it’s very easily tolerated.
Oh I forgot– I love buko pie too mmmm
I enjoy their videos too, Queenie! I will be featuring a few more in coming weeks too.
Coconuts have so many uses! Healthy, and delicious too! Very refreshing.
Hi Bob – My wife buys and uses coconut oil. My wife uses coconut oil like the Father of the bride uses Windex in the movie “My big fat Greek wedding”. If you have seen the movie you will get what I mean. She uses it in more ways than you can imagine and raves about it. The only downside is it quite expensive when produced in the form of an oil and not in the budget of many people.
Hi Brenton – I saw that movie, but have forgotten about the Windex. I’ll have to refresh my memory.
The father of the bride in “My big fat Greek wedding” uses Windex to cure and fix just about everything. It is more a joke the producers have run through out the movie. Example some one had a sore on their arm in the movie so he just sprayed Windex on it. My wife in a metaphoric way uses coconut oil for so many applications.
Ha ha.. I had forgotten about that!
Nothing better than having my father in law climb the tree in the morning for fresh water with breakfast. Last July I switched my cooking oil to coconut oil and my cholesterol went from 220 to 162 by October. I swear by it now. Also there is nothing better than inday inday and chicken binakol 🙂
Hi Dirk – You know, they used to say that coconut oil was very unhealthy, but now it is considered to be a very healthy oil!
coconut juice taste good and is good for your health.
Indeed, Bryon.
Bob,
I use coconut oil to moisturize my feet. It has done a great job with my previously dry feet. My fiancé Anne owns a 126 hectare coconut plantation in the mountains of her home province of Batangas. She’s been telling me how healthy coconut it is to eat, now I tend to believe her. Will have to try cooking with coconut oil when I get there. Take care
In the good old days the theaters used coconut oil to pop pop corn and it was super good, then the know it all health wackos more or less banned it and got every one to use the poison no fats oils and millions got high cholesterol and diabetes. Now coconut oil is OK again and it has become very hard to find here in the great city of Olongapo. It is my favorite cooking oil but where the heck is it other than in the tree?
Funny how these things come and go. One day it is good for you, the next day it is killing you!
Hi Bob, as a child growing up in the Caribbean, the health benfits from the coconut was well known back then (in the 50’s and 60’s) Here’s a few lines about the coconut written and sung by Harry Belafonte in” patois dialect ” Get you coconut water,
And it good for you daughter,
Coconut got a lot of iron,
Make you strong like a Lion…
I rest my case…….
Ha ha… no need to convince me, Rich.R.
It’s fairly simple to make, if you have the time. Mash up some coconut, or put in a blender. Put it, pulp and all, in a pot of water and bring to a boil. When it’s cool, the solids will settle to the bottom, and the oil will float on top of the water. Skim the oil out with a spoon or ladle. If you want to purify it more, just put the oil (without the pulp this time) in fresh water and boil again. Skim the oil from he surface, and store it in a glass jar. May not be as pretty as store bought, but I think coconuts are cheaper than store bought coconut oil?
Take care,
Pete
yes yes, so many health benifts , and acts like super multi vitiam and mineral pill. I am huge fan of the coconut.
Bob,
The coconut trees are very useful , can serve also as coco lumber, we can make walis
tingting from the coconut leaves , my father engaged in copra before thats his major
business before he died, now its not makes good money since my relatives taking care
of that coconut plantation. iam thinking to sell that in the future especially now the coconut suffering decease they getting dried thats the major problem now in Batangas.
i dont have knowledge how to manage that coconut plantation, that is my problem now.
have a nice day.
Hi Anne, I can understand if you want to sell your coconut land. However, see if you can rehabilitate it in terms of bringing it back up to better earnings… you’ll get much more for the land that way!
Good luck.
Good comments, however, pass on the use of coconut water as a plasma expander. It is an urban myth. During the war (WWII) there are noncredible stories of it being used as such. However, it is anything but sterile, pH and osmolarity are WAY off, it would most certainly cause blood cells to clump and burst.
Now anything cooked with coconut can’t be bad! Almost all my favorite dishes se such.
Thanks for passing that along, Steven.
I’ve read quite a bit about the many different types of trees there, and DEFINITELY want some coconut trees where I live. The coconut tree has so many different medical and health purposes, plus uses for even using as a source for cooking fuel. It is truly, the tree of life as you say Bob!
I would LOVE to have many trees, but we’ll have to wait and see what I’m able to find when I get there to the PI.
Your plan is coming together, Scott! You’ll be here in the Philippines putting many uses to the coconut in no time!
From internet sources, testimonials and especially a friend who happens to be a Medical Missionary trained in Nutrition: Coconut Oil prevents and reverses alzheimers. Since, I have this on both sides of the family and cared for my mom for years with this condition, I am sold on coconut oil. I even visited one family that spreads it on toast.
That’s great news, Ed. I hope it works to keep you safe from any problems.
Nice posting about the coconut. Now here in Capiz I use it at night especially when the moon is full and bright. I spread it all over my body and at around 12MN my body transforms into a beautiful sight leaving my lower body while my upper body takes flight.
Hi Bob,
I love Coconut Curries but don’t eat them too often as Coconut Milk is said to be high calorie and fattening.
I am led to believe that most decent brands of Vegetable oil in the PH are in fact Coconut oil, don’t know how true that is.
Those guys in the Video should have used the Bolo to cut foot holds in the side of the tree, lol.
Hmm… would coconut oil be considered vegetable oil? I never thought about that before.