Sunil C. Perera in Colombo

Sri Lankans can now enjoy pure and highly developed coconut and edible oils after completing vast researches done by Mr.Manjula Narayana , who is handling local coconut oil manufacturing company and the largest edible oil industry–NMK Group .

“At present Sri Lanka needs over 100000 metric tones of Coconut oil per year , but the local manufacturers could supply nearly 80,000 metric tonnes of coconut oil .But most of the Coconut Oil does not meet the standard quality and hygienic conditions that are required for a healthy life."Therefore the local coconut producers are not getting a reasonable price for their produce.Then I thought to develop the healthiest coconut oil using the newest technology" , he said after the media raised questions about his edible oil products.
According to Dr. Bruce Fife, a naturopathic doctor and the author of the book 'The Healing Miracles of Coconut Oil', the Coconut oil is the healthiest oil on earth. Modern esearch seems to back up this bold statement. Once wrongly accused of increasing cholesterol levels, coconut oil is now actually being used by doctors in the treatment of a variety of disorders. Clinical studies have shown that coconut oil has anti-microbial and anti-viral properties, and is now even being used in treating AIDS patients.

Studies conducted in the Philippines last year showed that coconut oil does indeed reduce the viral load in AIDS patients. 
Lauric acid is a medium chain fatty acid which is abundant in coconut oil and is considered responsible for many of its health benefits. Coconut oil is about 50 percent lauric acid.

The only other abundant source found in nature is in human breast milk.
Dr. Jon J. Kabara, PhD. and Professor Emeritus of Michigan State University, says, "Never before in the history of man is it so important to emphasize the value of lauric oils.

The medium-chain fats in coconut oil are similar to fats in mother's milk and have similar nutriceutical effects."

Dr. Mary Enig, a nutritionist/biochemist and one of the world's leading authorities on fats and oils, goes on to say, "Approximately 50 percent of the fatty acids in coconut fat are lauric acid. 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 heliobacter pylori, and protozoa such as giardia lamblia. Some studies have also shown some antimicrobial effects of the free lauric acid."

Mr.Manjula Narayana , who was born in Kurunegala which is a part of the coconut triangle, started his carrier as a commodity vendor without multinational support. In 1978 he had entered the coconut and sugar business and still maintains an active role in the edible oil industry, locally and internationally.
“I didn't have enough money to invest in an edible oil project. So I strategised to raise the capital to start the project.At first I did paddy business and then a motor bike business and later on I moved to Sugar business", he said.
“I obtained international knowledge regarding edible oil projects from Japanese companies who are in edible oil trading and related businesses. I met Mr.Yamaguchi, who is a leading economist in Japan and he helped me to meet Japanese multinationals. Earlier Sri Lanka had produced low quality coconut oil which comprises of acids and smell. Now we're producing 'Marina Cooking Oil' and 'Coconut Oil',using physical refining-without any chemical process-to remove the acids and smell.For this process I use my newly setup factory at Nugape, Pamunugama",he said.
According to Mr.Narayana who is still with the International Edible Oil manufacturers could win overseas market specially in Asia.
“We are exporting Edible oils to India, Bangladesh, Nepal and other SAARC countries, he said at the interview.
Replying questions raised by the media he said Marina is his trade name for coconut and cooking oil which comes to the local and international markets from 16th of this month.
“We are using manual refining process to manufacture coconut oil and cooking oil which lacks chemicals. Marina refined oil-RBD is manufactured from selected Copra via physical refining process under strong quality assurance .Its medium chain fatty acid composition yields a low-calorie fat which stimulates metabolism and escalates energy levels. Its inherent antimicrobial properties help to maintain the body’s natural immune system. Being a stable oil it is the traditional choice for frying and deep frying, he explained.
Commenting on cooking oil he said Sri Lankans also uses Palm oil varieties for their cooking purposes. However NMK manufactures refined Palm oil and is cholesterol free. It has a high content of unsaturated fats and its excellent high temperature stability makes in the ideal choice for repeated deep frying and shallow frying.
We will offer introductory price for our products and the company plans to introduce 20 liter disposable container which could assist the vendors to sell small quantities for the customers. 
He said the NMK has an island wide distribution network and plans to introduce more economical small pack for various social segments.  
Giving more examples and researches on Coconut oil he said the Coconut oil has been used in many tropical areas for many years. In those areas, the islanders were almost disease free and literally fat free. In the 40's, scientists tried to tell everyone that coconut oil was bad for us and that all it would do was clog our arteries and make us fatter.

Cows and other livestock were being fed coconut oil since it was thought that it would help to make them fatter. The result was the opposite. The livestock didn't get fatter, they got more lean. Researchers decided to look more into this oil and found out that it slims instead of fattens. It is one of the best natural diet supplements you can find in the market and very low cost compared to other supplements. It is easy to get, has hardly any side effects) and can be used externally too. 

This means that it makes it easier for your body to absorb and becomes energy instead of having human body store it in fat cells. Even when you try to compare it with low-fat diet foods, it is easier to burn! Animals in one study stored over 50% less fat, compared to animals that were given low-fat foods or foods that have LCT or long-chain triglyceride.

Because coconut oil is a MCT, it is turned to energy a lot faster. 
Showing a recently publicized statement on coconut sector he said a recent study has shown that in Sri Lanka, whereas 91 per cent of the poor still consume coconut as their main source of fat, only 70 per cent of those earning more than Rs. 5,000 use coconut oil. 

The amount of coconut consumed is less than 5 years ago for 75 per cent of those surveyed. Thus study also found that one of the reasons for reduced coconut consumption was a misconception that coconut fats are bad. The misconception has arisen due to the fact that coconut fat is mainly saturated fat, and saturated fats are synonymous with atherosclerosis, ischaemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease. 

There remains the question whether coconut fats have actions other than those in relation to lipid hypothesis of atherosclerosis, ischaemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease which need to be considered when answering the above question. Ischemic heart disease to answer that, one would have to first look at coconut consumption and possible relationship to the prevalence of ischaemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease in Sri Lanka. Kaunitz states that the Demographic Yearbook of the United Nations (1978) reported that Sri Lanka has the lowest death rate from ischaemic heart disease. 

Sri Lanka was quoted as being the only country giving reliable data where coconut oil is the main dietary fat. This was at a time when average coconut consumption was around 130 nuts/person/year. 

Under the circumstances, are coconut fats the culprit or have they been given a bad name simply by virtue of its fat being greater than 90 per cent saturated fat? 

Epidemiologic studies both in Sri Lanka and elsewhere, have failed to clearly establish a relationship between coconut fats, atherosclerosis and ischaemic heart disease. 

The classic study by Prior among Pacific islanders whose diet contained large amounts of coconut showed a low prevalence of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and arthritis. 

Case control studies comparing the diet of patients with ischaemic heart disease and controls have come out both for and against a causative role for coconut fats. 
The possible role of coconut fats in disturbances of lipid metabolism is also not well established. Many allopathic medical practitioners seem to think that, as coconut fats are saturated, they elevate plasma lipids in the same manner as the saturated fats from animal sources. 

Adding to the misconception is the fact that many of the animal studies on the role of coconut fats in lipid metabolism have used hydrogenated coconut oil. This is an unnatural form of coconut oil that is purposely altered to make it completely devoid of any essential fatty acids. 

The conclusion that can be drawn from such animal research is that feeding hydrogenated coconut oil devoid of essential fatty acids enhances the formation of atherosclerosis markers. However, coconut oil, unlike much of the soybean and corn oil consumed both here and abroad, is free of hydrogenated fat and hence transfatty acids. 

In human feeding studies, coconut fats without doubt elevate high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. The effect on total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol is probably neutral. It is also possible that women may react differently to men when fed a coconut diet. 

A Sri Lankan study found that the risk of coronary heart disease as assessed by the body mass index, ratios of total cholesterol to HDL-cholesterol, and LDL-cholesterol to HDL- cholesterol, was significantly lower in subjects in rural areas, who were agricultural workers with a high degree of physical activity, subsisting on a diet consisting mainly of plant food, despite a higher consumption of coconut, a saturated fat. 

This study also suggest that hyperlipidaemia is more common among urban dwellers than among the rural population. This difference was attributed to lower fruit, vegetable and fibre content in the diet and lower physical activity among the urban population. 

Virgin coconut oil when fed to rats is reported to lower lipid levels in serum and tissues, and LDL oxidation. 

This property of virgin coconut oil is attributed to the biologically active polyphenol components present in the oil. Other studies have shown that consumption of a solid fat rich in lauric acid gives a more favourable serum lipoprotein pattern than consumption of partially hydrogenated soybean oil rich in trans-fatty acids. 
A 1993 study comparing a high fat diet (50 per cent of total energy) to a low fat diet (20 per cent) suggested that the high fat diet might increase blood thrombogenicity by virtue of augmented postprandial activation of factor VII. A more recent 2003 study showed that a lesser increase in FVIIa occurred after the consumption of saturated fats, than after unsaturated test fats. 

Others have attempted to study the effects of individual fatty acids on whole blood aggregation and concluded that compared to oleic acid, lauric, myristic or palmitic acids do not effect in vitro whole blood aggregation induced by collagen ADP-induced aggregation. 

Compared to a high unsaturated fat or high polyunsaturated fat diet, a coconut oil-based diet lowers postprandial t-PA antigen concentration, and this may favourably affect the fibrinolytic system and the Lp (a) concentration. 

“What of other benefits that may accrue from eating coconut oil? Many of us may not be aware of the close similarity among the medium chain triglycerides in coconut fats, human breast milk and the secretion of sebaceous glands, all rich in lauric acid. 

Monolaurin and even lauric acid have been shown to be bactericidal, particularly against Helicobater pylori, Vibrio cholerae, Salmonella typhi, Shigella sonnei and enterotoxigenic Escheichia coli. coconut oil also helps the body to increase absorption of calcium and magnesium ions. 

It has been suggested that coconut oil is used to supplement treatment of rickets in poorly developed countries, alongside infant formulae supplemented with these inorganic ions. 

No work has been done with coconut fats per se. However, it is interesting to speculate whether monolaurin and lauric acid released by pre-gastric lipase may contribute to the reported low incidence of Helicobacter pylori infection in Sri Lanka compared to other South Asian countries. 

Current understanding based on the effect of dietary lipid manipulation upon immune system function indicates that fatty acids are involved in the modulation of the immune response through complex pathways. 

The problem with many animal studies is that they use hydrogenated coconut oil. One study where non-hydrogenated coconut oil was used showed that lipopolysaccharide-stimulated TNF-alpha production by macrophages decreased with increasing unsaturated fatty acid content of the diet. 
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