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Casa de Campo, our very own Caribbean paradise is un-surprisingly full of palm trees, which do look very pretty and give Casa de Campo that typically tropical feel – but did you know that coconuts also have AMAZING health benefits and can even be anti-aging! So forget Botox, get drinking coconut water!
I personally LOVE coconut water and having always assumed it was good for me, (on the grounds that it is natural), so I decided to do a little investigating (googling) to find out if that was true… what I discovered made me love it even more!
So here are my top 5 reasons why you should include coconut water in your daily Casa de Campo diet:
1. It’s nature’s GATORADE!
Just like Gatorade or Powerade, coconut water is an isotonic solution or electrolyte – meaning it helps replace fluids and minerals lost by the body during physical exercise (or severe, unpleasant bouts of food poisoning). Many health experts herald coconut water as THE ideal sports drink.
2. It has NO VERY FEW calories!
Need I say more? I think we all understand the benefits of zero low calorie foods and drinks! Ounce per ounce, most unflavored coconut water contains 5.45 calories, 1.3 grams sugar, 61 milligrams (mg) of potassium, and 5.45 mg of sodium. This means that an average coconut has just about 40 calories.
3. It has NO fat – just lots of vitamins and minerals!
Coconut meat contains fat (healthy fat, but fat nonetheless), coconut water on the other hand contains zero fat, just lots of good stuff, such as; sodium, calcium, magnesium, iron, copper phosphorus, potassium, proteins, vitamins C and B.
4. It prevents wrinkles!???
Coconut water contains plant growth hormones, called cytokinins – which can apparently have anti-aging effects on humans. Cytokinins stimulate cell rejuvenation and growth, encouraging old dry skin to be replaced with new healthy skin. As well as drinking coconut water, some people believe it can reduce wrinkles and fine lines by apply it directly to the skin.
5. It reduces nausea
Many articles I read about coconut water claim that it reduces nausea, but none explained why. Nevertheless if this is true, it makes coconut water the ideal drink for pregnant ladies, anyone with a vomiting illness and anyone with a hangover!
Good news eh? So now I imagine you’re desperate to drink some coconut water – I’m certainly craving some, but before you do here are my tips for drinking coconut water:
GET IT FRESH!
If you live in Casa de Campo or the Dominican Republic, there is NO excuse to buy pre-bottle coconut water – get it off a tree! I’m not suggesting you climb the tree yourself (although that would be great exercise) – either get your gardener to get some for you or buy some from the man who sells them on the street.
DRINK IT FRESH!
Open coconut, pour out coconut water and drink it. Don’t wait – the longer you wait to drink it the fewer nutrients it will contain when you drink it.
ADD ICE
This is just a personal preference – I think it tastes nicer with ice!
ADD RUM
Just joking… OK no I’m not, coconut water is awesome with rum and although decidely less healthy with “added alcohol”, if you’re going to treat yourself to a cocktail, surely a “Coco Loco” has got to be one of the healthiest options, right!?
Concerned that I completely made this up? For the record I didn’t, but if you’d like to read more about coconut water and it’s benefits, here are a few links:
http://www.ayushveda.com/womens-magazine/benefits-of-coconut-water/
http://ezinearticles.com/?Coconut-Water-For-Wrinkles—Little-Known-Secret-Weapon!&id=3823147
http://healthmad.com/nutrition/seven-benefits-of-coconut-water/ (This is a really GOOD one)
http://www.foreverlookingood.com/coconut-water-health-benefits