Coconut Water: Myth Or Miracle?

Fat-free, cholesterol-free, low-calorie, super-hydrating, naturally rich in electrolytes -- the touted benefits of America's latest health craze, coconut water, seem endless. Dubbed "nature's sports drink" and "life-enhancer" by marketers, its no wonder why celebrities have replaced their acai berry drinks and Kabbalah water with a juice box.

But with a price tag of $2-3 for a typical 11 fl. ounce tetra pack (equivalent to about 10 sips), is it really worth paying top dollar for, well, top water?

For the uninitiated, coconut water is the clear, nut-flavored (or "sock-flavored") juice stored inside young coconuts. It has long been a staple liquid of Southeast Asian nations, where the fruit is also harvested for its flesh, oil and milk.

In America, the beverage hit the stands five years ago through the two biggest players: Vita Coco, an independent manufacturer which sold $20 million of the juice in 2009 and expects to double that this year, and Zico, a brand backed by Coca-Cola. As fads go, the coconut water industry has burgeoned: Merrill Lynch notes that within five years, the U.S. coconut water industry went from zero to $35 million.

Coconut water's headiest claim is that it is rich in potassium: a typical serving offers 569 mg, which is almost twice the amount in a banana. This mineral helps regulate blood pressure by counteracting the stimulating effects of sodium, of which it contains only 160 mg, and this in turn helps to prevent related issues like stroke, heart attack and hangovers. Compare this to 14 fl. oz. of Gatorade, which contains 'only' 52.5 mg of potassium and 192.5 mg of sodium.

But nutritionists say you should think twice before chugging the stuff, especially after heavy-duty exercise.

Liz Applegate, director of sports nutrition at UC Davis, told Mother Jones that coconut water's high potassium and low sodium combination isn't ideal after strenuous exercise. "Even though the belief is that when you exercise you need a lot of potassium, sodium is more important," she said. "When you sweat, you lose a lot more sodium than potassium."

Applegate says she has never seen any convincing scientific evidence to support anti-aging and kidney health claims. Still, she doesn't dismiss coconut water entirely. "If you like the taste, great," she told MJ. "If you're doing a short workout, great."

"The star behind coconut water is its high potassium content," Andrea Giancoli, a spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, told Fat Fighter TV. "Most people aren't getting enough potassium because they're not eating enough fruits and vegetables."

"I wouldn't believe all the hype -- that it's going to cure diabetes and cancer and hypertension, etc.," she continued. "Unfortunately, that always ends up being the issue with some of these products -- their actual health benefits get lost in the hype."

In another interview with the Washington Post, Giancoi says salty pretzels might be better for you after a hard workout.

"Most people don't exercise heavily enough to need a sports recovery drink. Water is just fine for most people," she told WaPo.

Australian nutritionist Tania Ferraretto told Fiji Times, "While it's a marketing advantage to say it's natural, in the real world your body doesn't distinguish between the electrolytes coming from coconut water or from a sports drink."

"Although it does provide electrolytes and a little bit of carbohydrate, a sports drink is specifically formulated for athletes and the electrolytes and carbohydrates are at the right level," Ferraretto added.

Comments

[Lydia Blogg]

06:45 PM on 10/02/2010

So... just to clarify....it is better to drink something that contains high fructose corn syrup and artificial colors than something that does not contain those?????????? Huh?????

[Richard Kirk]

04:40 AM on 09/20/2010

As a walking traveler I've allowed my salt level to fall so low that my sweat tasted sweet and there was no evidence of salt when the sweat dried. I discovered my pains were less intense and more endurance, so where does Liz Applegate get her salt effects knowledge? Once the cramps disappeared traveling was smooth sailing on calm seas with high wind.

Before people take traditional concepts without proof and explain them as facts, they should make themselves the subject of research. When I was in Mexico drinking it straight from the trees, how great I felt with little sleep for distance walked. Many times it was all I ate and drank and walked 40 to 50 miles a day. I only wish I was where I could drink it fresh from the tree and make a meal from it young meat.
http://www.acaiberrysolution.com/

[ConfuciusSay-]

09:05 PM on 09/14/2010

In Trinidad, coconut water is a widely consumed traditional beverage. It makes an awesome mixer with alcoholic liquors, and goes great with dissolved condensed milk.

I get mine by the litre outside the Coca-Cola factory, from a vendor operating out of the back of a pickup truck. "Ice Cold Nuts" is the sign they all sport, which is really great to show tourists. (The coconuts are usually out in the sun, shimmering in the haze of radiated heat. Just for the irony.) The guys will snap one open in 1.5 seconds with a machete, and you have to stand back or get hit by flying chunks of shell. Straws are for girls; everyone else drinks it straight from the coconut.

[insidmal]

10:48 PM on 09/13/2010

It never even occurred to me as a sports drink, I knew the electrolytes in coconut water as a hang over cure :)

[Jackandcoke]

10:30 AM on 09/13/2010

The article misses an additional benefit of consuming coconut water. It is known to assist with digestion amd mild bloatng. It makes a great morning milkshake along with plain skyr yogurt, Kefir, strawberries and blueberries.

[nomadsborker]

12:12 PM on 08/16/2010

I've read in medical journals that coconut water is used as a traditional diuretic. If so, I can't imagine that too much of this, as with most things, would be good for you. I wish they'd mention how much would be a good recemmended daily allowance, otherwise, could have an adverse effect of dehydration?

[ConfuciusSay-]

09:09 PM on 09/14/2010

Bah, no risk of that- we used to use it as IV fluid back when the bottom fell out of the Jamaican dollar, and the hospitals couldn't afford to import any fluids. It's sterile straight out of the nut, but you need a blood-giving set as a filter.

[BikeFreak]

11:56 PM on 08/15/2010

Quick! Name the movie:

"Are you suggesting coconuts migrate? "

[Elijah A Alexander Jr]

08:33 PM on 08/15/2010

Who knows the body never eliminates anything it needs? I do. In our stool, urine, sweat, mucus, ear wax and every other form of eliminating waste, man's bodies eliminate salt.

I an no old enough to know how the body reacted prior to using iodine to keep salt from lumping in high humidity and rain, the origin of "when it rains it pours", but since adding it high blood pressure skyrocketed. Maybe that is why the body eliminate salt in every means of waste elimination, the toxic iodine.

As a walking traveler I've allowed my salt level to fall so low that my sweat tasted sweet and there was no evidence of salt when the sweat dried. I discovered my pains were less intense and more endurance, so where does Liz Applegate get her salt effects knowledge? Once the cramps disappeared traveling was smooth sailing on calm seas with high wind.

Before people take traditional concepts without proof and explain them as facts, they should make themselves the subject of research. When I was in Mexico drinking it straight from the trees, how great I felt with little sleep for distance walked. Many times it was all I ate and drank and walked 40 to 50 miles a day. I only wish I was where I could drink it fresh from the tree and make a meal from it young meat.

[Lydia Blogg]

06:40 PM on 10/02/2010

FYI - "...iodine to keep salt from lumping in high humidity and rain..." Iodine was not added to keep salt from lumping in high humidity. It was added when iodine deficiency (goiters) became epidemic in the US.

[Elijah A Alexander Jr]

07:45 PM on 10/02/2010

Lydia,
Iodine was used in salt to prevent salt's lumping in high humidity and rain, it also cause a lowering of Goiters in the US once it became a national additive to salt. Because the number of Goiters was lower here it was then discovered to be a treatment for it, not the other way around.

[ssmigs]

05:17 PM on 08/15/2010

I prefer pretzels and beer after a round of golf.

[arigatokyle]

11:51 PM on 08/14/2010

There is noting better for your body than H20

[wm1066]

05:22 PM on 08/14/2010

Save me from the nutritionists who can't tell the difference between natural vitamins from foods and the fake vitamins they make up in their labs!

[dabac1973]

12:10 PM on 08/14/2010

I understand coconut water has so many more health benefits than stated in the article: http://www.vitacocowater.com/

[Edward Standley]

02:40 AM on 08/14/2010

Friend in the Dominican Republic says rum and coconut water has always been the most popular cocktail there.

[Lindsey Gregory]

12:49 AM on 08/14/2010

I've always wanted to try coconut water, but is it really $2-$3 bucks a pop? Can't you get the stuff in cans in the 'ethnic food aisle" at a Kroger's for $.50?

Also, where might one find coconut oil for cooking? Is that a better cooking oil than EVOO?

[Oso Wallman]

11:55 PM on 09/26/2010

yep

[Uproar]

03:33 PM on 08/13/2010

The beset part of going to a tropical place is the fresh coconut water - they chop off the top and put a straw in it, and it's delicious!