Antioxidant, Antibacterial, Antiviral and Antifungal properties of Virgin Coconut Oil (VCO)

Abstract

Coconut can be the source for five types of food products: coconut water, coconut milk, sugar, oil, and meat. Medical uses of coconut have been known in India since ancient times. Many coconut parts have medicinal properties. It has antiseptic, anthelmintic, antidotal, diuretic, hemostat, aphrodisiac, astringent, bactericidal, depurative, pediculicide, It is used as a folk remedy for abscesses, alopecia, amenorrhea, asthma, blennorrhagia, bronchitis, constipation, cough, debility, dropsy, dysentery, bruises, burns, dysmenorrhea, earache, phthisis, pregnancy, rash, erysipelas, fever, flu, gingivitis, gonorrhea, cachexia, calculus, colds, hematemesis, hemoptysis, jaundice, menorrhagia, nausea, scabies, scurvy, sore throat, stomachache, swelling, syphilis, toothache, tuberculosis, tumors, typhoid, venereal diseases, and wounds. It is also believed to be anti-blennorrhagia, antibronchitis, febrifugal, and anti-gingivitis. VCO has been brought up as a possible adjuvant therapy in the treatment of COVID-19, and several countries are conducting trials in this area. As highly relevant as this potential application is within the context of the current global COVID-19 pandemic, it is just as important to continue assessment of VCO for its myriad antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory capabilities in potential adjuvant therapies for a wide range of diseases. This paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of these capabilities as well as clinical trials in the existing literature that have assessed VCO’s many therapeutic properties.