How Much Coconut Oil Do You Need?
How much coconut oil is needed to gain protection from infectious disease? There is no hard and fast rule. But if we use mother’s milk as a basis for comparison we can get a good approximation. The amount of MCFA a baby receives in mother ‘s milk is known to be effective in preventing illness. If you extrapolate that amount to an average size adult weighing about 150 pounds (75 kg), you would need to consume 3.5 tablespoons (49 grams) of coconut oil a day to get the same protection an infant gets consuming only breast milk.
If you weigh less than 150 pounds you can reduce that. If you weigh more, you can increase it. However, any amount is beneficial. Even I tablespoon is beneficial. I recommend that for most adults 2-3 tablespoons a day is good as a preventative measure.
If you are struggling with an infectious illness, particularly a serious illness, you may want to increase this amount to 4-6 tablespoons daily. Many doctors have their very sick patients consume this amount.
Coconut oil is not harmful even in very large amounts. I know people who have taken as much as 15 tablespoons a day. But this is only for a few days or weeks at a time. I don’t recommend this much on a day-to-day basis. Two to four tablespoons are generally enough for most circumstances.
Although coconut oil is safe, I need to give a word of warning. If you have not been in the habit of eating much oil, if you suddenly start taking 3-4 tablespoons a day you might experience some intestinal discomfort and diarrhea. These symptoms may occur because your digestive system is not accustomed to processing that much oil. Your body needs time to adapt. I suggest that you start off with no more than I tablespoon a day and gradually build up. For some people even 1 tablespoon is too much. In that case, drop back to 1 teaspoon and work from there. Three teaspoons equal 1 tablespoon. It may take several months before you feel comfortable with 2-4 tablespoons daily.