Coconut oil may benefit your skin in a variety of ways. It may help moisturize your skin, relieve inflammation, accelerate wound healing, and treat acne. But it might not be suitable for everyone.
Coconut oil is a type of fat that has been touted for its health-promoting properties.
Several studies have even found it might have benefits for skin health as well.
This article looks at the evidence to examine whether coconut oil is good for skin.
What Is Coconut Oil?
Coconut oil is a highly saturated oil that is traditionally made by extracting the oil from raw coconuts or dried coconut kernels (1Trusted Source).
At room temperature it’s solid, but when heated it can soften or even melt.
It’s frequently used in cooking or applied directly to the skin and hair.
Coconut oil is rich in medium-chain fatty acids, which are a form of saturated fat. In fact, these medium-chain fatty acids make up about 65% of its total composition (2Trusted Source).
The fatty acids found in coconut oil include (2Trusted Source):
- Lauric acid: 49%
- Myristic acid: 18%
- Caprylic acid: 8%
- Palmitic acid: 8%
- Capric acid: 7%
- Oleic acid: 6%
- Linoleic acid: 2%
- Stearic acid: 2%
Although coconut oil is about 90% saturated fat, it does contain small amounts of mono and polyunsaturated fats as well. One tablespoon contains about 12 grams of saturated fat and 1 gram of unsaturated fat .
