MANILA, 8 August 2005 — Remember the days when the old folks used to cook coconut milk on weekends to produce sweet, delicious latik as toppings for native delicacies such as bibingka, biko and maja blanco? It sure was a treat as grandmothers massage coconut milk's by-product we call langis ng niyog or coconut oil on kids' scalp and hair.

A doctor walks us down memory lane as she tries to vindicate the humble coconut against questionable therapeutic reputation it is earning nowadays.

She is neither a quack nor a nut but a medical doctor who actually prescribes the use of coconut for weight loss, total health and beauty treatment for her patients. Dr. Vermen Verallo-Rowell currently chairs the Dermatology Department of the Makati Medical Center and a clinical and research-oriented dermatologist and dermatopathologist.

Convinced of the therapeutic effects of the lowly coconut, she launched her book titled Rx: Coconuts! (The Perfect Nut) at the Filipinas Heritage Library recently. Dressed in green, the still svelte and flawless doctor at 66 narrates how her quest began when she came across a lecture by Dr. Jon Kabara in Beijing, China, on coconut monoglycerides and its use as a natural preservative for cosmetics. The coconut doctor uses coconut and its derivatives for herself and her family’s diet. She prescribes it to her patients as well.

She conducted her first study on coconut monoglyceride as an antiseptic, got unexpectedly good results and proceeded to do more clinical studies on the coconut. Her book contains the results of her studies as she attempts to debunk the common myth that coconut oil is bad oil.

Verallo-Rowell was so committed to coconut and writing her book on the subject that her husband, in his speech, expressed his relief that the book was finally done. He said that his wife still found the time to write the book amid her busy schedule. She wrote the book between two to four in the morning, which made him awake at times.

In a nutshell, here are the reasons that made Verallo-Rowell a coconut convert:

1. Coconut oil, coconut water, coconut meat and other derivatives have a multitude of uses and benefits;

2. With medical literature and her own clinical studies to support, she found out that coconut oil contributes to one’s overall health (cells, antioxidants, heart, cancer protection, weight loss, and skin health);

3. Coconut oil is not a bad oil despite claims that all saturated fats are bad. Furthermore, since it is plant-based, it is 100 percent free of cholesterol;

4. Coconut and its derivatives have disinfectant, anti-viral and antibiotic properties; and

5. Coconuts are inexpensive and accessible especially to low-income Filipinos. It grows in one’s backyard, particularly in the rural areas.

Verallo-Rowell’s book contains special guides on how to use the coconuts and its derivatives with easy to understand instructions. There are also data on the different kinds of fats, the role of the coconut in improving skin and hair, forms of the coconut, and coconut recipes kitchen-tested by chefs. It is complete with comparative tables on calorie differences among different oils.