Health Tips - Coconut Sources

 
Coconut Sources

When you go through young coconuts as fast as my family does, you want to have the best point of supply from which to buy them. It is best to look for places that go through a large quantity of them. When the shipments are frequent, the coconuts are fresher.

If you live in an area where there is a Thai restaurant, they will usually sell them to you by the case, which makes them cheaper per coconut. They are usually the freshest source.

If you live near a Whole Foods Market, they can also be a good place to purchase coconuts. While their prices are higher and the coconuts may not be as fresh as at a Thai restaurant, they will exchange any coconuts that are bad when you open them up. The coconut water from a spoiling coconut tastes sour.

If you are not able to open coconuts yourself, Whole Foods will open them for you. They sometimes also sell plastic containers of fresh coconut water that they opened that day.

There are websites that advertise organic coconuts, which are significantly more expensive. There has been a rumor that Thai coconuts are dipped in formaldehyde to keep them fresh during shipping. In 2006, one LA store owner, Matt Amsden, sent a batch of non-organic coconuts to Michelson Laboratories, a fully accredited lab. They found no formaldehyde in those coconut samples.

It is likely that sodium metabisulfite is used on non-organic coconuts, as it is a common preservative used in food and medication. Sulfites occur naturally in fermented beverages and wines. The FDA requires that any food containing more than 10 parts per million (ppm) concentration of sulfites to be stated on the label. Less than 10 ppm of sulfites, which is the concentration believed to be used on coconuts, is a very low sulfite level.

I do not recommend the factory-packaged coconut waters, as by law they have to be flash-pasteurized up to 120 °F which destroys most of the nutritional reasons for drinking it. There are many reasons to drink freshly-opened-coconut water.

Watch this video if you need help on opening them.

Read all my nutrition tips to find out how easy it is to keep yourself healthy, and how to get healthier faster.

Don’t forget to try my Raspberry Sorbet made from coconut water!

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Dr. Pepi

February 7 , 2010