There is nothing that can be more convincing than real life experiences. Hence, before discussing various benefits of coconut water for psoriasis, let us read below the real life experiences of two young people. They have shared their experiences- how drinking coconut water helped them a lot in managing their scalp psoriasis and psoriasis on the body. It is obvious that they made significant changes in their diet and lifestyle also. I have collected these real life stories from different discussion forums. In one of the previous post, I have shared real life healing story of Samantha Clock. She also found coconut water very effective in healing her scalp psoriasis.
- Ms. Anonymous is a young lady in her early 20s. She is having scalp psoriasis for last seven years. She tried dermatologists prescribed shampoos and creams, but of no help in the long run. Then she made changes in her diet and lifestyle on the advice of an alternative health professional. She quit dairy and white sugar. She almost quit fast foods. She started doing workout four days a week. She would drink a lot of water and eat fish. By doing all this, she lost a few pounds of weight and her energy level increased considerably. It was good. But, her scalp psoriasis was still there. Then she read about the link between nutritional deficiency and psoriasis. She started taking dietary supplements and probiotics. She would also ensure enough exposure to the sun to get adequate vitamin D. Along with these efforts, she tried a steroid based shampoo recommended to her by a reliable source. This idea back fired. Her hairs got damaged severely. Hair fall increased by multi folds. Then she took the extreme step to share her head. You can imagine how horrible it was for a young girl to get bald. Then luckily, she comes to know about benefits of coconut oil and coconut water for psoriasis. She started drinking organic coconut water (low calorie, no preservatives, no sugar) about 1-2 cans a day. After a month, she started getting her lovely hairs back and surprisingly, psoriasis scales were disappearing gradually. Now, she is using herbal shampoos for washing her scalp and apply coconut oil on her scalp after the bath. Not to forget, she never skips drinking coconut water.
- Mr Brian is a young man in his early 30s. He is suffering from psoriasis for last 15 years or so. He got a case of severe psoriasis. Thick psoriasis scales on her scalp and various other parts of his body. He was started getting psoriasis in his nails also. It was making him really worried. He used to shave his head frequently to scrub all the scalp psoriasis to get some relief. He tried a lot of steroids based shampoos and cream but it was doing no good except emptying his wallet and his scalp (due to loss of hairs). After reading about the benefits of coconut water, he decided to give it a try. He would drink two to three cans of pure coconut water (without any preservatives and sugar) with pulp. After about three weeks, his scalp psoriasis got significantly reduced. After about five to six weeks, all the psoriasis patches were gone from his body. It was an amazing feeling for him. Somehow, after some time, he stopped drinking coconut water and as expected, psoriasis came back. Now, he has started drinking coconut water again. Along with that, he would massage coconut oil on his scalp and other parts of the body having psoriasis patches.
Benefits of Coconut water for Psoriasis
Coconut water is a rich source of electrolytes, minerals, vitamins and other nutrients. It has a cooling effect on your body and it reduces the problem of dehydration. It improves blood circulation by injecting fresh oxygen in your body. Improved amount of oxygen means more energy and positive attitude towards life. Improved amount of oxygen in your body cells help in maintaining the acid-alkaline pH balance of your body by neutralizing higher acidic pH zones.
Some people relate psoriasis to magnesium deficiency. In such a case, coconut water is very beneficial due to its high magnesium content. One serving of coconut water (240 ml) can provide around 14% of your daily requirement of magnesium. Green leafy vegetables, brown rice and almonds are also good sources of magnesium.
Read more: Brown rice benefits for Psoriasis
Magnesium deficiency and Psoriasis
Although the U.S. Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) don’t approve magnesium deficiency as a reason for psoriasis development. But, some people would relate psoriasis to magnesium deficiency.
The main reasons for the deficiency of Magnesium are:
- Low intake of magnesium rich foods like green leafy vegetables, brown rice, almonds, bran, pumpkin seeds
- High intake of processed foods rich in saturated fats. These unhealthy foods prevent absorption of magnesium by the intestines
- High intake of junk foods rich in artificial sugar. Foods rich in artificial sugar would increase the excretion of magnesium by the kidneys
- High consumption of sodas and carbonated drinks
- Low absorption of magnesium by your body due to improper digestion
- High intake of alcohol
- Genetic problems. In some people, genes play a role in causing magnesium deficiency.
Even if you are not sure if you are deficient in magnesium, it is a well acknowledged that psoriasis patients usually have a nutritional deficiency. Hence, drinking coconut water is a good idea for you because of its amazing nutritional content.
Nutritional content of Coconut water
A normal sized young, green colored coconut would provide you around 240 ml of coconut water.
One serving (240 ml) of coconut water provides
| Nutrient | Amount | %age of daily requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Carbohydrate | 9.0 gms | 7% |
| Protein | 1.70 gms | 3.5% |
| Dietary fiber | 2.60 gms | 7% |
| Vitamin B1 | 0.07 mg | 6% |
| Vitamin B2 | 0.14 mg | 9.5% |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.07 mg | 6% |
| Vitamin C | 5.8 mg | 9.5% |
| Sodium | 250 mg | 17% |
| Potassium | 600 mg | 12% |
| Calcium | 58 mg | 6% |
| Copper | 96 mcg | 11% |
| Iron | 0.70 mg | 8.5% |
| Magnesium | 62 mg | 16% |
| Zinc | 0.25 mg | 2.5% |
Coconut water is extremely low in calories and fat. Hence, it is an excellent natural drink for everyone.
The highlights are- 12% Potassium, 16% Magnesium, 9.5% Vitamin C and 7% dietary fibers.
- A lot of people would consider the deficiency of potassium and/or magnesium as one of the reasons for psoriasis development. For them, coconut water is an ideal natural drink.
- Coconut water contains Vitamin C in rich quantities. Vitamin C is one of the best proven anti-oxidant and immunity booster.
- Similarly, the splendid benefits of dietary fibers in elimination problems like constipation and indigestion are quite obvious. Hence, coconut water can help in smooth elimination of toxins from the body.
How much to drink
One serving of coconut water equals to 240 ml (8 ounce). An adult can drink this much amount of fresh coconut water everyday without any problems. If you are deficient in minerals like potassium and magnesium, then you can go up to 2 servings a day- 500 ml (16 ounce).
Samantha Clock, a member of our Psoriasis self management community drinks around 16 ounces of coconut water everyday to manage her psoriasis. Also, in the above two real life experiences, both of the adults drink around 2 cans (2 servings) a day.
If you are suffering from any kidney problem or any heart condition, then you need to consult your doctor before consuming coconut water because high amount of potassium can be problematic for you. In such a case, you should not go beyond one serving a day.
How to get good quality coconut water
A young, green colored coconut provides you the best quality coconut water. As the coconut matures, the coconut water would be replaced with coconut milk. Although the nutritional content of coconut milk is excellent, but, it contains high amount of saturated fats and calories. Hence, coconut water is preferable over coconut milk.
From where to buy
As explained above, we should drink coconut water of green colored, young coconuts. We should avoid coconuts which are matured and contains more of coconut milk than coconut water. You can buy such coconuts from a departmental store near to you.
Alternatively, you can easily buy packaged plain coconut water, free from any added sugar and preservatives. You can buy them from Amazon: –
| USA readers | India readers | UK readers | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coconut water | Click here | Click here | Click here |
Benefits of Coconut oil for Psoriasis
We have discussed enough about the benefits of drinking coconut water for psoriasis. Now, let us spare some time to have a look at the benefits of virgin coconut oil for psoriasis. The term virgin refers to- pure, non filtered coconut oil which is extracted from cold pressing of coconut kernels so that all the inherent health properties of coconut oil remain intact. It is non bleached and free from artificial fragrances. Virgin coconut is an excellent moisturizer for your skin and avoid the problem of skin dryness.
Apart from that, consuming 1-2 teaspoonful of virgin coconut oil everyday can help you in many ways. Virgin coconut oil is a medium chain fatty acid which can be easily processed by your body and doesn’t accumulate in your body. Various benefits of consuming virgin coconut oil are:
- Boost your immunity
- Reduces skin inflammation
- Aids in digestion
- Eliminates constipation
- Helps in fighting Candida (yeast infection)
- Promoted weight loss
