In my quest to be informed about the value or non-value of what I'm ingesting and digesting, I spend significant amounts of time researching all types of food, their nutritional value and other benefits, especially the ability of a food to heal. This process has ranged greatly to include learning what foods will help me heal quickly when ill, which foods to avoid, how to prepare a meal to receive the maximum health benefits without losing its taste, proper proportions per meal and per day, food combining for maximum efficiency, and more. I have experienced real benefits of food healing as part of my strategy to live well.
After hearing many ramblings around Los Angeles from various sources about the incredible benefits of coconut water, being handed a glass of it by a friend last weekend, and then seeing it on sale at my local supermarket, I purchased 4 boxes of Vita Coco coconut water this week and figured I'd give it a try. Their ad states it is "all-natural, super-hydrating, fat-free, cholesterol-free, nutrient-packed, potassium-stacked, mega-electrolyte coconut super water". I drank a half a glass of it this morning and had an immediate auto-reflex reaction response to vomit. My next response was... "What?!?!?" Things that are good for me usually don't trigger such immediate negative responses so I immediately ran to the computer and started googling the benefits of coconut water.
I was quickly surprised to discover that the first 20 items on my search were not linked to valid sources of food or scientific information. I found mostly blogs and a few health articles and read through a few, quickly discovering that amongst the many health benefit claims made about coconut water, the only information I could validate is that it is a good source of potassium, 600mg per 8 oz. serving vs. 537mg per cup of raw banana according to the
USDA National Nutrient Database. There has been little other evidence to support any of the other claims about it's benefits, which varied from being a good cure for a hangover, a post-workout replacement drink for sports drinks and the most drastic and wild claim was that it eliminates intestinal worms. That is quite a claim to make with no evidence to support it!
Of the research I did, I found this article the most interesting and worth sharing:
Sometimes you feel like a nut: Coconut water as a health elixir
My final analysis of the day being that while coconut water is a good source of potassium, may have other unsubstantiated benefits, and some may truly enjoy the taste, it is decidedly a
superfood. That may sound good at first, but the word superfood has no legal definition and is commonly used as a misleading marketing tactic which has been
banned in the E.U. "unless it is accompanied by a specific authorised health claim that explains to consumers why the product is good for their health."
All things considered, I think I'll stick with bananas! They're much easier to crack into.
