whats true about this that coconut oil can..

Chennai: Can coconut oil reduce the viral load of HIV patients? Initial
trials have confirmed that coconut oil or monolaurin has an anti-viral
effect that reduces the viral level in HIV-AIDS patients to undetectable
levels, University of the Philippines,’ Emeritus professor of pharmocology
Conrato S Dayrit said.
A minimum of 50 ml of coconut oil would contain 20 to 25 grams of lauric
acid, which indicates that the oil is metabolized in the body to release
monolaurin which is an antibiotic and an antiviral agent. Among the
saturated fatty acids, lauric acid has the maximum antiviral activity, he
said. Based on this research, the first clinical trial using monolaurin as
monotherapy on some of the HIV patients was conducted recently. Fifteen
patients were given nearly 50 ml of coconut oil for a period of six
months.

By the end of the first three months of trials viral levels of seven
patients had gone down and by the sixth month viral counts in the others
had gone down substantially, he said. These patients originally had viral
levels ranging between 1960 to 1,190,000.

More and more therapies on monolaurins have to be designed and done before
the definitive role of such coco products can be determined, he said. With
such products the outlook for more efficacious and cheaper anti HIV
therapy will be improved. These monolaurins also have profound use in
cosmetics and is now appearing to be effective for dental cares, peptic
ulcers, benign prostatic hyperplasia, genital herpes, and hepatitis C,
said Dayrit. According to the Ayurvedic classics, coconut oil, nourishes
the body and increases strength, Michigan State University professor
Emeritius and consultant to private industries J Kabara said. The oil was
also valued for its antimicrobial properties. Different preparations of
this oil promote luxurious hair growth and protect the skin from
bacterial, protozoal, and viral infections. Fresh lauric oil is wholesome
to heart and relieves skin troubles.

He also clarified that the campaign against coconut oil was baseless as
coconut oil does not lead to coronary heart disease in human beings. All
evidences presented earlier were based on the researches done on various
species of animals which were given coconut oil along with the necessary
dose of essential fats.

On the contrary, the human epidemiologic evidence proves that coconut oil
is safe.