Coconuts for Immune Defense

(The FDA has not evaluated this information. This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. If you have a specific health condition, like an infection, consult a qualified physician. Coconut derived fatty acids and monoglycerides are nutritional supplements, NOT drugs.)

What does Mother Nature put in coconuts for your immune defense?

What viruses does monolaurin destroy?

How does monolaurin work?

What fatty acids and fatty acid glycerides are active in immune defense?

What bacteria do lauric acid and monolaurin help destroy?

What are some specific examples of what these fatty acids do with a bacteria?

What fungi, yeast and protozoa does monolaurin help destroy or inactivate?

What does the monolaurin do to the ecology in the digestive system?

What viruses does capric acid or monocaprin attack?

What bacteria does capric acid or monocaprin attack?

References

BACK

What does Mother Nature put in coconuts for your immune defense?

Coconut meat

Dessicated coconut provides nutrients and a source of energy for your immune defense.

It also contains the raw materials your body uses to mount its antimicrobial defense.

It contains 69% coconut fat.

Creamed coconut is similar to dessicated coconut in its nutrients and defense building blocks.

Coconut milk

Coconut milk also provides nutrients and a source of energy for your immune defense.

It contains about one-third the amount of fat contained in the dessicated coconut.

Antimicrobial fat content

Lauric acid makes up about half the coconut fatty acids.

Capric acid makes up about 6 to 7% of the coconut fat acids.

It tends to slightly lower serum cholesterol.

Lauric acid

Lauric acid is a medium chain fatty acid.

Significant levels can be found in mother's milk.

A mother's diet plays an important role in the amount of lauric acid found in the milk.

Lauric acid has a neutral effect on serum cholesterol.

What viruses does monolaurin destroy?

Monolaurin destroys lipid-coated viruses:

Cytomegalovirus (CMV)

Herpes simplex-1 (HSV-1)

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)

Influenza

Measles virus

Vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV)

Visna virus

How does monolaurin work?

Monolaurin's defensive activities

Monolaurin is a monoglyceride

Monolaurin has antiviral, antibacterial and antiprotozoal activities.

Monolaruin destroys lipid-coated "bugs."

Monolaurin inactivates lipid-coated viruses.

These viruses can coat themselves with lipids from your cell membranes.

Monolaurin works through cell lysis (breakdown and rupture of the cell).

Monolaurin causes the double layer of fats that envelope the virus (lipid bilayer) to break up.

Monolaurin dissolves (solubilizes) the lipids and phospholipids in the lipid envelope of the virus.

Monolaurin interferes with the chemical communication systems of the virus.

Monolaurin interferes with signal transduction of the virus.

Monolaurin interferes with the growth and reproduction of the virus.

Monolaurin interferes with the assembly of new viruses that can spread and infect other of your cells.

Monolaurin interferes with the maturation of the virus.

What fatty acids and fatty acid glycerides are active in immune defense?

Active forms of fatty acids

Free fatty acids are active in the defense against viruses. Caprylic acid has eight carbons (C-8), capric acid has 10 carbons (C-10), lauric acid has 12 carbons (C-12) or myristic acid has 14 carbons (C-14).

Monoglycerides are active in the defense against viruses. Monolaurin, for example, is more powerful than lauric acid.

Diglycerides are inactive in the defense against viruses.

Triglycerides are inactive in the defense against viruses.

What bacteria can lauric acid and monolaurin help destroy?

The best defense is a good offense.

Eating foods with the essential fats can build your nutritional defense against these bugs if they infect you.

Good nutrition, good hygiene and good health make up the strongest offense-defense.

Monolaurin helps destroy or inactivate a number of bacteria that cause illness in people.

Chlamydia trachomatis (lauric acid, capric acid, and monocaprin are active against this bacteria)

Hemophilus influenzae

Heliobacter pylori

Listeria monocytogenes

Staphylococcus aureus

Staphylococcus epidermidis

Streptococcus agalactiae

Group B gram positive streptococcus

Groups A, F, G streptococci

Other gram positive bacteria

Monolaurin does not destroy or inactivate all bacteria

Escherichia coli

Salmonella enteritidis

What are some specific examples of what these fatty acids do with a bacteria?

Helicobacter pylori

Helicobacter pylori is rapidly inactivated by lauric acid and the medium-chain monoglycerides.

Bacterial resistance does not develop to these natural antimicrobials.

Listeria monocytogenes

Monolaurin was more potent than alcohol.

It was 5000 times more inhibitory than ethanol against Listeria monocytogenes.

Staphylococcus aureus

Decreased growth of Staphylococcus aureus with 150 mg. of monolaurin per liter.

Decreased production of toxic shock syndrome toxin-1 with 150 mg. of monolaurin per liter.

What fungi, yeast and protozoa does monolaurin help destroy or inactivate?

Fungus

Several species of ringworm (Isaacs et al 1991).

Yeast

Candida albicans

Giardia lamblia (It is killed by free fatty acids and monoglycerides taken from hydrolyzed human milk)

What does the monolaurin do to the ecology in the digestive system?

Good bacteria (digestive flora)

Monolaurin does not appear to have an adverse effect on "good" bacteria that live in the digestive tract.

Bacterial invaders (pathogens)

Monolaurin inactivates or kills many of the bacteria, fungi, protozoa, or viruses that invade the digestive tract.

What viruses does capric acid or monocaprin attack?

Human immunodeficiency virus-1

Monocaprin hydrogel

Herpes simplex virus-2

Monocaprin hydrogel

What bacteria does capric acid or monocaprin attack?

Chlamydia trachomatis

Capric acid

Monocaprin

Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Monocaprin hydrogel

References

Bergsson G et al. (1998)

In vitro inactivation of Chlamydia trachomatis by fatty acids and monoglycerides.

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 42:2290-2294.

Boddie RL and Nickerson SC. (1992)

Evaluation of postmilking teat germicides containing Lauricidin, saturated fatty acids, and lactic acid.

J Dairy Sci 75:1725-1730.

Crouch AA et al. (1991)

Effect of human milk and infant milk formulae on adherence of Giardia intestinalis.

Trans Royal Soc Trop Med Hygiene 85:617-619.

Dodge JA and Sagher FA. (1991)

Antiviral and antibacterial lipids in human milk and infant formula.

Arch Dis Child 66:272-273.

Enig, MG.(1998)

Lauric oils as antimicrobial agents: theory of effect, scientific rationale, and dietary applications as adjunct nutritional support for HIV-infected individuals. in Nutrients and Foods in AIDS (RR Watson, ed.).

CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL pp. 81-97.

Erasmus U. (1993)

Fats that Heal, Fats that Kill

Alive Books Burnaby BC, Canada

Fletcher RD et al. (1985)

Effects of monoglycerides on mycoplasma pneumoniae growth, in The Pharmacological Effect of Lipids II (JJ Kabara, ed.).

American Oil Chemists' Society, Champaign IL pp.59-63.

Hernell O et al. (1986)

Killing of Giardia lamblia by human milk lipases: an effect mediated by lipolysis of milk lipids.

J Infect Dis 153:715-720.

Hierholzer JC and Kabara JJ (1982)

In vitro effects of monolaurin compounds on enveloped RNA and DNA viruses.

J Food Safety 4:1-12.

Hornung B et al. (1994)

Lauric acid inhibits the maturation of vesicular stomatitis virus.

J Gen Virol 75:353-361.

Isaacs CE and Thormar H. (1986)

Membrane-disruptive effect of human milk: inactivation of enveloped viruses.

J Infect Dis 154:966-971.

Isaacs CE and Thormar H. (1990)

Human milk lipids inactivated enveloped viruses. In Breastfeeding, Nutrition, Infection and Infant Growth in Developed and Emerging Countries (Atkinson SA, Hanson LA, Chandra RK, eds.).

Arts Biomedical Publishers and Distributors, St. John's NF, Canada

Isaacs CE and Thormar H. (1991)

The role of milk-derived antimicrobial lipids as antiviral and antibacterial agents. In Immunology of Milk and the Neonate (Mestecky J, et al, eds.).

Plenum Press, New York

Isaacs CE and Schneidman K. (1991)

Enveloped viruses in human and bovine milk are inactivated by added fatty acids(FAs) and monoglycerides(MGs).

J FASEB 5: Abstract 5325, p.A1288.

Isaacs CE et al. (1990)

Antiviral and antibacterial lipids in human milk and infant formula feeds.

Arch Dis Child 65:861-864.

Isaacs CE et al. (1994)

Inactivation of enveloped viruses in human bodily fluids by purified lipids.

Ann NY Acad Sci 724:457-464.

Kabara JJ. (1978)

Fatty acids and derivatives as antimicrobial agents -- A review. In The Pharmacological Effect of Lipids (JJ Kabara, ed.).

American Oil Chemists' Society, Champaign IL

Oh DH and Marshall DL. (1993)

Antimicrobial activity of ethanol, glycerol monolaurate or lactic acid against Listeria monocytogenes.

Int J Food Microbiol 20:239-246.

Petschow BW et al. (1996)

Susceptibility of Helicobacter pylori to bactericidal properties of medium-chain monoglycerides and free fatty acids.

Antimicrobial Agents Chemother 40:302-306.

Projan SJ et al. (1994)

Glycerol monolaurate inhibits the production of beta-lactamase, toxic shock toxin-1, and other staphylococcal exoproteins by interfering with signal transduction.

J Bacteriol 176:4204-4209.

Reiner DS et al. (1986)

Human milk kills Giardia lamblia by generating toxic lipolytic products.

J Infect Dis 154:825-832.

Thormar H et al. (1987)

Inactivation of enveloped viruses and killing of cells by fatty acids and monoglycerides.

Antimicrobial Agents Chemother 31:27-31.

Wang LL and Johnson EA. (1992)

Inhibition of Listeria monocytogenes by fatty acids and monoglycerides.

Appl Environ Microbiol 58:624-629.