Tip of the Month: 7 Uses for Coconut Oil
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Alex Scranton Director of Science |
The average woman uses 9-15 personal care products a day, exposing ourselves to a mixture of over 100 different ingredients. Unfortunately, many common ingredients in personal care products are linked to cancer, reproductive harm, and hormone disruption.
Enter coconut oil, the latest wonder ingredient stealing hearts in the non-toxic movement. When in doubt of your favorite personal care product’s safety, you may be able to replace it with simple coconut oil to reduce your exposure to toxic chemicals. It has good amounts of the antioxidant vitamin E, which is essential for healthy skin, and rates a zero in the Skin Deep database
Uses for Coconut Oil As Is
Deep conditioner for your ends: Coat your fingers with coconut oil and run them through the ends of your hair. Leave on as long as desired, and then wash your hair as normal.
Skin lotion/moisturizer: Coconut oil leaves skin feeling silky smooth after a shower.
Eye makeup remover: Dab some on your closed eyelids, rub in, rinse, and you’re done! This is also a great moisturizer (see above), so just rub in any remaining oil around your eye area.
Great DIY Recipes with Coconut Oil
- Body scrub: Use it as an alternative to jojoba oil in our Grapefruit Sugar Scrub recipe.
- Deodorant from Mind Body Green
- Lip balm from Brit & Co
- Bug repellant from Delicious Obsessions
Check out these other 101 Uses for Coconut Oil from Wellness Mama.
Want more tips like this? Check out our Tip of the Month archive!
I use it to oil the runners on kitchen drawers so they don’t squeak and they slide easily
The BEST eye makeup remover ever!
I also love to slather on my feet at night, put on a pair of socks … no more cracked heels!
I prefer to use organic refined (expeller pressed) coconut oil that is free of the coconut smell 🙂
I have been using coconut oil for many years. Can you say tri-gly-si bonds bonding cells’repair of cells. I slap it on its smooth its texture. I am kookoo for Coconut.
I found mixing it thoroughly when it’s warm and soft 3:1 with a moisturizer keeps it from getting so hard when it’s cool.
I make my own toothpaste with coconut oil and baking soda. Sometimes I add a little bit of activated charcoal or essential oils. Makes teeth really white…My dentist is impressed with the results.
How fantastic is coconut oil? Well, its super how this oil can go from healing, eating, & home improvements all in one! Thats what im sayin. Use it to believe in its super power! I am a coconut user……
I make a candy with four ingredients: coconut oil, cocoa powder, honey, and vanilla. And I make a toothpaste with coconut oil, baking soda, stevia powder, and organic peppermint essential oil; and sometimes I also add Young Living’s Thieves essential oil blend. My teeth feel great! It’s good for sauted veggie, and on a baked potatoe, sweet potato, and added to green smoothies. Great to use on a piece of toast instead of butter.
I’ve melted coconut oil and cocoa butter, 1:1, and let it harden up and love it for rubbing on my skin.
Great ideas for other uses everyone! Thanks for the comments. – Cassidy, Women’s Voices for the Earth
I tried using coconut oil on my hair as a conditioner but then couldn’t get it out of my hair! I put it on the ends of my hair, let sit for awhile, then got in the shower, shampooed and rinsed. After my hair dried, it clumped into hardened bristles from the oil. I had to get back in the shower and wash my hair again, shampooing twice (I’ve never had to lather, rinse, and REPEAT before) and finally got it out.
Am I missing something?
Coconut oil is one of the most diverse things I have in my home. And Costco sells it in a giant container, although their’s does have the coconut taste…which we don’t mind. I use it instead of butter and oil in my baking. The kids love coconut pancakes and waffles!
There is no end of Coconut oil benefits for beauty routine. I apply few drops of coconut oil on face at night before go to sleep and it is a great moisturizer.
I have been using coconut oil for many years. It’s so helpful. I’ve even created my own coconut oil recipe for fixing my crepey skin. It works like charm!