"I am thinking of adding coconut oil to my diet since I have been reading about the many benefits of it. I am confused as to its effect on herpes outbreaks though. I have read that it prevents outbreaks by being anti-viral, but then I have read that it is one of the highest foods in arginine and should be avoided. I do follow a high lysine/low arginine diet and it seems to really help me. Do you think that the high arginine content of the coconut oil would cause outbreaks then? Or do the benefits outweight the fact that it is high in arginine?"[2]
"I consume 3.5 tablespoons per day and have not had a single OB since I started back in May."[2]
"Lauric acid is a medium chain fatty acid, which has the additional beneficial function of being formed into monolaurin in the human or animal body. Monolaurin is the antiviral, antibacterial, and antiprotozoal monoglyceride used by the human or animal to destroy lipid-coated viruses such as HIV, herpes, cytomegalovirus, influenza, various pathogenic bacteria, including listeria monocytogenes and helicobacter pylori, and protozoa such as giardia lamblia. Some studies have also shown some antimicrobial effects of the free lauric acid. “Health and Nutritional Benefits from Coconut Oil: An Important Functional Food for the 21st Century” Presented at the AVOC Lauric Oils Symposium, Ho Chi Min City, Vietnam, 25 April 1996." [3]
