Coconut Oil: overcoming TP taboos

[Big Effort]

Where is the Coconut Oil thread?

I read your post with great interest the other night re coconut oil and tonight tried to find it to read in more detail- but either it's me or its been moved and I cant find it!

Yes, it was moved. Apparently Coconut Oil is a "resource" and as such posts on this substance get moved down here to the bowels of the forum.

In response to your question as to which brand of coconut oil I bought, it is here:
http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/pages/categories.asp?cid=182&searchterm=coconut oil&rdcnt=1
I notice the two pots for the price of one is now over. I bought the one on the left in green tub.

Here is another one that looks even nicer, organic, fair trade, cold pressed....
tp://www.hollandandbarrett.com/pages/product_detail.asp?pid=3889&prodid=4540&cid=182

Can anyone tell me where you can get larger quantities...... I understand the local Indian corner shop sells it....... as I'm in France, not too many Indian corner shops. However there must be less expensive sources. Can anyone share their source?

Update: Mum spoke to son in Oz for 47 minutes yesterday (her birthday), very chatty and laid-back, no loss of words. Humour is better too. However am anxious not to overplay role of coconut oil yet, this could just be the 'brithday effect'.

 

[Karjo]

I would think if it isn't prescribed by her Doctor, the nursing home will not administer it.

Also, if you are going to give it to her yourself, it is your duty to make them aware of the fact.
It has been known to cause bowel upsets.

My duty???!!!! Please don't tell me what my duty is...............

I wouldn't think any doctor would prescribe it, it's like saying the caffeine in coffee may help cognition, but best not give her a cup of coffee incase she is up all night. The fact is the amount of smelly pants, trousers etc I find hidden in wardrobes etc I really don't think the nursing home would notice, its me that gets the brunt of that end of things.

 

[garnuft]

Because if you expect somone to look after someone to the best of their ability, they must be in possesion of the facts.
They must know, what has been ingested, what good things have happened in the day, what bad things....
How are they to know and understand the person they care for otherwise?
.......
yes....Duty.

 

[Karjo]

My mum is prescribed a huge cocktail of drugs, some of which could kill her. No one has ever considered it their duty to explain to me what she is given and why she has been it. Even when i ask i never get a straight answer. So I would respectfully ask that you please don't tell me what my duty is, i find it a bit offensive.
Please feel free to offer advice which can be taken or not, but I feel really quite cross at a complete stranger telling me what my duty is.
Maybe i am having an off day and need a dose of oil myself.

 

[garnuft]

You are expecting someone to look after your Mum.

They need to know what she has ingested.

They don't have to explain to you, the Doctor has prescribed it for your Mum.

If you have issues about the drug regime I would think surreptitious additions by yourself would be most unhelpful.

I'm sorry you find my response to your post on a public forum offensive.

I didn't intend it.

 

[Big Effort]

Ouch, Gwen! Are you having an off day?????
Come on now, who are we to judge others, esp. when we don't walk in their shoes.
Peace rules, OK? Mutual respect too.
Night Gwen. Nite Karjo. No hard feelings huh. Just each to their own opinions.
Bonne nuit.

 

[ockc]

Coconut oil shots

For anyone who is using it this way, or even added to food I'm sure you have found the solid oil fiddly to measure & melt quickly. After a couple of days of frustration I had a brainwave! I bought a couple of silicone ice cube trays, placed the jar of solid oil in a jug containing boiling water to melt, using a tablespoon measure poured measured amounts into the silicone tray & left it to set. Once solid these pop easily out of the silicone & are in handy 1tablesoon measures ready to use as you see fit! I store mine in a glass jar. This makes giving Dad oil really quick & easy, drop a cube in a glass shot glass, put the glass inside another glass containing boiling water, it melts in a minute or so & is down in a second or two. I hope this helps someone.

Thanks for the tip!

 

[Big Effort]

Mum's sense of fun/humour is back

Hi everyone,

I would not like to raise hopes or suggest that coconut oil is a miracle 'cure'. In fact I can categorically state I don't see Mum cured, more each coconut oil 'dose' seems to work for a finite time.

Also my brother seems so much recovered mentally, is able to talk to her, and this may also be playing its role in lifting her spirits. I consider it a co-factor in her improvement.

Mornings are currently the worst, presumably because the coconut oil 'lift' has worn off during the long night. She is slow off the mark in every way in the morning, hence my comment that the oil isn't curing/fixing the Alzheimers. She cannot dress herself, she doesn't seem to be able to hold a thought, nor does she know, say, where her coat should be hung up.

Once this stuff is doing its job, she perks up considerably. The best thing about her is her new-found sense of laughing at herself. She used to be snappy and feel got at whenever a cognitive failing was apparent = all the time. Today at lunch she wondered if she should put her bread and salad into her tea????? She looked at us oogling her, and burst out laughing at her self. This is something we treasure, as Mum used to be upbeat and knew how to laugh at herself and she looked on the bright side.

Another cappucino plus oil is currently going down the hatch with relish. I think she also likes the idea we are trying to do something positive about her memory. So now she is snuggled up on her chaise longue, with cozy fire, dog on lap, and is watching Downton Abbey with genuine pleasure.

P.S. Thanks everyone who continues to PM me. However, there is huge interest in coconut oil, and I think it would be most beneficial if you overcame your TP bruises and just post here what you think and what you want to know.

We all know coconut oil is not endorsed by Alz Org. We also know coconut oil is not yet recognised as a 'treatment' or remedy. But Mum is regaining shadows of her former self. We are glad of that and so is she.

 

[zigandzag]

HI Big Effort - I was one of the folk who PM'd you as you know and you've been most helpful - thank you. but I did struggle to find the link as it had been moved.

You said stand up and take the bruises - so I am here - backing you up instead of hiding behind a PM!

Like everybody else on this forum I don't know if coconut oil is going to help my mum or not.... but I do know it cant do her any more harm than this awful disease is doing her - so why not?

Like everyone else I have my mums vested interest at heart and if I thought for one minute that it was having an adverse effect on her in any way then I would stop it immediately. But if I don't try it I will always wonder... can it/would it have helped her? Can it make her life just a tiny bit more tolerable - maybe not? and maybe I am kidding myself but I can't live with that guilt of not trying - so I'm in! I know my mum would also agree with me that its worth a try if she was able to make the decision.

I'd be really grateful if you could reply to my PM when you get a mo BE as I would like to know the exact stuff that you are using as the link you kindly sent me as 16 variations on it and I presume that if you put the exact link in here that it will be removed... sigh....

Thank you again for your help and advice - I am most grateful and I really hope that your mum continues to show slight improvements - god knows in this dark tunnel that we are all in we need to see a bit of light every once in a while.

Thanks
x

 

[Big Effort]

Hello Zigandzag,

Good that you posted here.

Here is the link for the stuff I bought:
www.hollandandbarrett.com/pages/categories.asp?cid=182&searchterm=coconut oil&rdcnt=1

I bought the coconut oil in the green container on the top left. I found it to be delicious, but as I am a beginner in the coconut oil trek (just a few days in to giving it to Mum), it would be great to hear from others where they source theirs. This used to be available on a get two for the price of one basis, but I notice this offer has now ended.

Keep watching this thread, because others have PM'd me with where they buy their coconut oil, and they too may feel prepared to venture back on to the TP stage, and when bought in quantities of 10 pots or so, the prices can be very competitive.

Do bear in mind that several people have posted earlier on this thread having noticed NO BENEFIT for their loved one. It isn't my aim to promote coconut oil as a cure or fix all, just to have a space where people can honestly share their positive and negative experiences.

Obviously I am glad I took the plunge (thanks to people here who contacted me privately), and Mum is benefitting, and she is laughing much more - that makes us all happier. Wishing you best possible outcomes in your attempts to help your mother. Kindest regards, BE

 

[Callieflower]

Coconut oil.

Hi, My Mam has been taking coconut oil supplements for a few weeks now and they have made no difference. I will always be able to say we gave it a go.

 

[ockc]

Little question

Hi, My Mam has been taking coconut oil supplements for a few weeks now and they have made no difference. I will always be able to say we gave it a go.

When you say 'supplements', what sort of quantity do you mean? We have noticed a significant difference with my father since we started to give him a low carbohydrate diet and 6 tablespoons a day: 2 with porridge for breakfast, 2 with soup for lunch and 2 with dinner or yoghurt in the evening.

Previously, with 2 tablespoons per day and a normal diet for several weeks, he was improving relatively marginally each week.

 

[ockc]

I would like to know the exact stuff that you are using as the link you kindly sent me as 16 variations on it

We're currently using Coconoil, particularly their organic virgin coconut oil although we use KTC Coconut oil for cooking. We've just noticed that Merit Virgin Coconut oil is available in the UK: http://www.excelcombine.co.uk/ . Might explore them after we near the end of our latest batch of 12 tubs of Coconoil!

Always happy to hear about better and/or cheaper alternatives.

 

[Big Effort]

Synchronicity, Placebo Effect and Mind-over-Matter

I am on a kind of personal retreat as of today..... working on receiving Insights. Listening in.

This morning at 5.30 the first message flowed in. I have been wanting to write my concerns about the Placebo Effect of using coconut oil, but for the past 10 days or so the phrase 'Placebo Effect' would not come to mind. So I didn't post. Actually I wanted to draw attention to the possibility that the improvement in Mum's verbal fluency and her re-found sense of humour might possibly be placebo effect (i.e. wishful thinking in our case).

At crack of dawn I was reading Dr Eben Alexander's book "Proof of Heaven: A neurosurgeon's journey into the afterlife" when a different enlightened scientific explanation of the placebo effect jumped off the page.

".... the crucial power of belief in facilitating 'mind-over-matter'. I was often bemused as a medical student over the confounding power of the placebo effect - that medical studies had to overcome the 30% or so benefit that was attributed to a patient's believing that he was receiving medicine that would help him, even if it was simply an inert substance. Instead of seeing the power of belief, and how it influenced our health, the medical profession saw the glass as 'half-empty' - the placebo effect was an obstacle to the demonstration of treatment." [page 155-156]

As a student of psychology, I also saw the placebo effect as a nuisence, something that 'wrecks' perfectly good research by muddy-ing the waters. Dr Alexander, after his near death experience, has come to seriously challenge this 'scientific approach' for it leaves no gaps for god/beliefs/miracles and so on. Who says the only forces affecting scientific research are material, earthly ones? The scientists, that's who. What if Alexander is right, and the placebo effect is actually the measurable force of belief, of mind-over-matter. Then it isn't sheer fluke, coincidence, something to be filtered out of research findings as an annoying interference, but it might be evidence of healing beliefs/influences at work.

 

[stanleypj]

Interesting. I can see the possibility that one's own be hope/wish to see improvement from a particular treatment could have a very positive effect. Indeed, I believe there was some research where people were told that they were receiving a placebo and the 'treatment' was still found to have a positive effect.

However, an important question here surely is whether your mum knew (and remembered) she was having a new treatment. Sorry if you've mentioned this already.

 

[Big Effort]

Hi Stanley,

Thank you for entering into the debate!

However, an important question here surely is whether your mum knew (and remembered) she was having a new treatment. Sorry if you've mentioned this already.

The intriguing thing here is who is responsible for the healing (assuming coconut oil is not beneficial and we are talking of placebo effect - all pure speculation!). Mum does know she is taking coconut oil to improve her memory. Does she remember? Possibly not, can't really tell except to say she approves when I remind her.

I would suggest the healing effect (as in placebo effect) is more likely to be coming from me - she is getting very difficult to manage at this stage, total chaos whereever she goes at the moment. Also my father would not want her to be in such a state of mind, no dignity in this at all. He could be behind this (read Dr Alexander's book to understand more about the notion of deceased loved ones and their caring role). Or it could be her higher consciousness, because Mum never wanted to lose her marbles, and if she knew she would put an end to this immediately: so perhaps her higher consciousness is playing a role.

Just some postulations. Not intending to be scientific or too serious. Just opening my mind to other possibilities.

 

[Big Effort]

Update: Mum laughs much more

Haven't posted here in a while. Coconut oil really enjoyed when added to a smooth, frothy cappucino.

Mum is laughing so much more. The absurd defensiveness, the "I am right, you are wrong" stance is way less. She and my husband laugh at her funny comments, non-sensical stories, so much more pure enjoyment of the ridiculous.

The treatment continues, and I am slowly weaning her off useless carbs.

 

[Anongirl]

Hi BE. I'm watching this thread with interest. My mum started coconut oil on Mother's Day. It was suggested by a friend. I'm interested to see if there is an improvement because I'm getting increasingly worried. Lets see...

 

[Big Effort]

One Missed Dose.... aargh!!

Hello Anongirl,

Glad you find this thread interesting. I just wish I had started Mum on coconut oil three years ago - that would have given her greater quality of life. Now I am doing it as a last resort as we will try anything to keep lines of communication open!

I must point out that the improvement we see is transient, each dose seems to 'oil' some mental cogs and the result is a net improvement in ability to produce words. I do not observe any cumulative effect. But balanced against Ebixa/Memantine which she has been taking for 3 years...... well, I never noticed anything, no effect whatsoever, except cost to the health service (I think it costs about €73 a month - need to check that). So to me, coconut oil is cheaper, has a measurable effect, and I wish, I wish, I wish I had started this when she started the Ebixa.

Yesterday was a tough day for me (as are all days at the moment, I really am floundering in a maze of grief) and I forgot to give her her afternoon cappucino with oil. Dinner time here was disasterous, we simply could not understand anything. She produced a word or two, no nouns (everything is 'the black thing' so could be tea, poo, computer or her heater as they are all dark), a verb here and there, punctuated by "you know", and lots of meaningless hand movements, lines drawn on the table, knocks on the table which stand for words. Both husband and I did our best to decipher, but it did appear to be random, disjointed, partial thoughts.

[Unfortunately displays like this knock the stuffing out of me, and there isn't much stuffing left in this old bird! So I am awash with grief today again.]

Needless to say, I have given her her morning cappucino and 'dose', put on an old timer DVD and left the oil to do its work. Very crotchety, total denial of anything wrong, cross with me and so on.

This all because I forgot a dose of oil. Now, I ask you all, if you forgot their conventional meds, (memory meds), would you observe such a descent in ability?

Think of me today, Anongirl, these are very difficult times emotionally for me - even well-adjusted hubby finds this tough. Hugs BE

Update, 11.30 two hours after coconut oil dose. Amazing. I left her with her oil n' cappucino at 9.30. Eyes were shut (like shutting out the world, especially dreadful, monsterous me), with her old time DVD. Went back now with refreshments and she is chuckling, open to me, may even have perceived that I have been crying. So it isn't just verbal skills that improve, her mood, her perceptions are definitely more evident. Reminder, she didn't have her afternoon dose yesterday which seems to have been the cause of the plummet in verbal skills.

 

[Big Effort]

Now reading and using chopsticks!

I suppose I am very reticent to raise false hopes, and I myself didn't expect any miracles with Mum, as she is pretty advanced in her Alz. However, today we took her out to her favorite restaurant (Chinese) for a meal. I could hardly believe my eyes, but Mum used chopsticks right throughout the meal. No prompts, no invitation, nothing. She has always been adept at using chopsticks, but for the last three years just ate the first mouthful with chopsticks and then moved on to knife and fork. Imagine my astonishment as she ate the entire meal, no mess and no problems with chopsticks. That is a real change for the better.

Secondly, she certainly hasn't read a book through for at least six (?) months, hard to tell exactly. She does start books and she has about 6 that she starts, reads the first couple of pages, puts down and forgets, and then she'll pick up another one. This week I see she read a book at least half way through in one session.

And she continues to laugh so much more. She does ridiculous things and gives pretty senseless answers, and when she notices we can't understand, it makes her really laugh, proper belly laughs! I'm so glad.