Emerging From the Fog

We live in the "Hilltowns" south of Albany, NY. Because we are at a slightly higher elevation (1300 ft) we have a lot more fog than lowlanders do. On the foggiest of nights, we make sure to take the main roads which have a bright white line on the side to guide us home. It's always a relief when we get to our driveway safely.

On Friday evening (which happened to be a clear, star-filled night) we went to dinner with a group of neighbors - people we see in passing, but with whom we don't always have the chance to converse at length. One such woman is K, who shared with me the "brain fog" she had been experiencing months before.

K is 48 and a busy mom and musician. She says that about 6 months ago, she began having trouble concentrating, finding the right words when speaking and just felt like everything was fuzzy and out of focus. She saw her doctor who tested her hormone levels, which were acceptable. The doctor started her on low dose progesterone anyway, but K didn't notice a big difference. So, she did some research on the internet, and found that some experts suggested taking coconut oil twice a day for brain fog.

She started the coconut oil, and within a few days was no longer feeling fuzzy-headed. She could hold normal conversations, was less forgetful and had more energy.  Occasionally she forgets to take the oil and notices a difference - for this reason, she carries coconut oil capsules in her purse, in case she forgets her second dose of the day.

K doesn't know what caused her brain fog in the first place, but I do know that in spite of being gorgeous and thin, she is always dieting and seldom eats fat. Perhaps in K, these symptoms were caused by a nutritional deficiency. After all, fat is necessary for every cell in our bodies and is crucial for brain cells and hormone production.

The important thing is that K found coconut oil and was able to emerge from the fog.

The Rebirth of a Blogger

Okay, so I admit it. I've been a terrible blogger so far. I feel a bit embarrassed when I go to other blog sites and see the beautiful writing and ideas that people share. These writers are not only talented, but committed. They take time from their very busy lives to impart their wisdom and experience to others. What a gift!

I started out trying to share what I've learned about coconut oil with others on this blog. However, about 5 months ago (the date of my last post), I realized that others have done this way better than I could. I had already read a lot of information online about coconut oil and it's many uses. One of the best sites is Bruce Fife, ND's website, http://www.coconutresearchcenter.org/  I also read Dr. Mary T. Newport's book, "Alzheimer's Disease - What if There Was a Cure?" This wonderful book describes how Dr. Newport accidentally came across a nutritional treatment for her husband's Alzheimer's disease that has changed both of their lives for the better. It also goes into a great deal of detail about how the MCT oil in coconut oil is able to provide nourishing ketones to the starving brains of people with dementia. I knew I had to spread the word about this miracle, but it seemed like a blog with no followers was not going to be my vehicle.

Once I had finished the book, I bought copies for everyone I knew who I thought could use the knowledge. But I still wanted to do more. About 3 months ago, it hit me. My husband Keith is a talented video producer and I'm a nurse/researcher/writer.  Why not do a documentary on this subject to tell the world about it?

The only problem was - how to fund such a thing.  Keith loves what he does, but as he says, he's always doing one video piece for one client.  First, he has to sell the client on the idea, then convince them to pay him to shoot and edit the video. We couldn't think of any one entity that would want to fund a short documentary on this subject.

Then we learned about crowd-funding!  There are several sites online where you can pitch your project and ask individuals to help fund it. We chose to use indiegogo after seeing a story on the news about a poor school bus monitor who had been harassed by the students on her bus. They were so disrespectful of her, that they actually posted a video on YouTube of the harassment. Some kind soul started an indiegogo fund in the bus monitor's name and raised thousands of dollars for her.  Amazing!

So, rather than blogging, I've been working on this documentary and the Indigogo pitch for it.  You can see it at the link on this page. We have decided on a short-form documentary - just long enough to tell how coconut oil works, convince people to try it and show them how to use it. We've already got Dr. Newport lined up for an expert interview and we're working on getting other experts and patient/caregiver testimonials.

In order to get more people interested in our campaign, I've started linking to blogs on Alzheimer's and other dementias. What I have found while reading these blogs is inspiring.  People who are struggling to care for loved ones or who have the early stages of dementia, are giving of themselves to help others living with the same problems. Their selflessness and dedication inspire me.

So, as a blogger, I am born again.  I will try to live up to the examples set before me.

So, What’s So Great About Coconut Oil?

I’m so glad you asked!

What first got me interested in coconut oil was reading about its antifungal properties when used on the skin. I started using coconut oil soap and noticed a huge improvement in my own skin.  I am diabetic and would always get red itchy patches in the creases of my skin. After using this soap for about two weeks, not only were my frequent fungal rashes a thing of the past, but my skin was less dry and very smooth. My husband had had a nasty yellow toenail fungus for about a year - the kind that you usually have to go to a podiatrist for and take massive doses of oral antifungal meds in order to get rid of it. Within a month of using this soap on his feet, the yellow had faded considerably and the new nail coming in seems to be fungus-free.

We found a great local source for coconut oil soap - the Rad Soap Company in Cohoes, NY.  We buy it at our local farmer’s market - the Schenectady Green Market. The company also has a web presence at www.radsoap.com so you can try it for yourself, wherever you are. As far as I know all their soaps contain coconut oil - and they are all homemade.

My favorite is the Love Bar which has a lovely cherry-almond scent. Once we discovered this soap, we started buying it for all our family and friends. Here is some of the feedback we’ve gotten: “the lather is wonderful” - “it’s really helped my son’s acne” - “I love the smell it leaves in the shower!”

I know that this probably sounds like a commercial for Red Soap, but I’m not being paid to endorse it - I truly love it!

Of course the more I read about coconut oil, the more I learned about its many other health benefits. More about those in my next entry.

Easy Ways to Introduce Coconut Oil into Your Diet

Ever since I learned about the health benefits of coconut oil about a year ago, I've been sharing this knowledge with friends, family and even strangers in the supermarket. But I find that many of them have no idea how to go about using this wonderful food.

That's why I've started this blog. I'll be sharing ideas and recipes as I come across them and invent them.

First of all, substituting coconut oil for most cooking oils works pretty well.  You just can't heat it over medium high or it will burn - so, it's not good for traditional stir-frying. It's perfect, however,  for sauteing - eggs, veggies, meats, fish - anything, really.

Another great way to use it is for "buttering" toast, or making grilled cheese sandwiches.

Adding a couple of tablespoons to your bowl of oatmeal is a tasty way to start the day.

I'll be going into more detail about the benefits of coconut oil in later blogs. I've done a lot of research and will be more than happy to share what I've found.