Do I stink from coconuts?

May 28, 2008 3:16 PM

Coconut milk = sewer gob?

Ok, so in the way of background (if even necessary), over the past couple years I've progressively "gone" organic and mostly vegetarian (not for moral reasons, or really health per se... another subject).

As a result I've become very aware of how I smell. Of main concern is breath and sweat. It's interesting to find that (most? some?) healthy people don't stink when they sweat, or have morning breath. I don't, anyway. I usually smell a little like maple syrup from eating fenugreek.

Anyway, about a week ago I drank one of those paper boxes of (organic, and the ingredients read "coconut water") coconut milk. It was good, and I forgot about it. Around this time, though, I wake up with very strange breath. Brushing didn't change it, nor did eating other things, but it went away after 2 or 3 days. I just drank some more and I think my breath stinks again!

I know coconut milk has some unique properties. It's precisely tonic to the human body, and they say that you body doesn't have to process it hardly at all and it goes straight to the blood stream. I've even heard of doctors using it as a substitute for sterile saline (out of the nut it's sterile).

Is it known to make one smell a certain way? Is it a peculiarity of my body chemistry?

Also, now coconuts seem interesting. Know anything about them?

posted by cmoj to health & fitness (11 comments total)

I don't know much about them, but I do have a lovely bunch.

Just to be slightly pedantic, coconut juice/water is the stuff that has the asserted magical properties (e.g., being isotonic [not tonic]), rather than coconut milk.
posted by Clyde Mnestra at 3:54 PM on May 28, 2008

You could have a minor allergy.
posted by electroboy at 4:58 PM on May 28, 2008

Just thinking about this biochemically, if you drink almond milk do you get the same sort of effect? What does the little ingredient panel say - anything besides coconut water?

I'm not sure what's in there naturally besides sugar and water (which is why it goes straight to the blood stream).

Also, how long is the delay from the drinking of the coconut milk to the onset of bad breath?
posted by Kid Charlemagne at 5:33 PM on May 28, 2008

Clyde: What's the difference between coconut water and coconut milk? The box says "coconut water," and I just said "coconut milk" because that's what I call it.

Charlemagne: Never had almond milk. Soy milk does not, if that's relevant to you line of reasoning. It just says "coconut water." And I don't think onset is immediate... but not more than two or three minutes. Also: I had just finished listening to Pretzel Logic when I checked this thread.
posted by cmoj at 6:27 PM on May 28, 2008

Here. Sorry to be abrupt -- on a deadline.
posted by Clyde Mnestra at 6:42 PM on May 28, 2008

Coconut water is the liquid found inside young coconuts, not to be confused with coconut milk. Coconut water is found in the core of young, green coconuts. As the coconut matures this liquid largely becomes absorbed into the nut's flesh. ... It is naturally fat-free and low in food energy (16.7 calories or 70 kilojoules per 100 grams).

Now, what this has to do with your smell, I have no idea. Sorry.
posted by piratebowling at 6:42 PM on May 28, 2008

Coconut water is the liquid endosperm of the coconut, the part you're most likely talking about. Coconut milk is the hard flesh of the coconut that has been soaked in water and is very fatty (while coconut water is fat free) and is usually sold in cans. I suspect your drink REALLY is coconut water, but it's labeled "coconut milk" to avoid people thinking it's a bit of coconut flavoring mixed with water. I often see "coconut water" also labeled as "coconut juice."

Rather than being easily digestible due to "sugar" as it's actually low in calories, my quasi-research suggests that it's due to being medium chain fatty acids, which as opposed to long chain fatty acids (which the majority of sources are), are easily digestible.

This link will satisfy the "learning about coconuts" part of your question; unfortunately, I don't have much help for the bulk of your answer.
posted by artifarce at 6:53 PM on May 28, 2008

Yes, you were drinking coconut water. Coconut milk generally comes in cans, and is essentially pureed coconut flesh. The former is delicious over crushed ice with a couple of ounces of a medium bodied rum and a few dashes of Angostura bitters, the latter you use in cooking southeast asian curries. I have not seen anything about coconut water changing the way one smells, but it is supposed to lower one's blood pressure, among other things.
posted by mumkin at 7:15 PM on May 28, 2008

I drink Zico's Coconut Water and have not noticed the effects you speak of. Have you tried different brands?
posted by bkeene12 at 7:43 PM on May 28, 2008

Ok, It's definitely coconut water, and when I drank some yesterday it happened, but this time for only a few hours. So I'm pretty sure it's the cause, I just don't know why. I'm still gonna drink it though.

But now I'm a coconut-derived liquid authority. Thanks for all the information... I wish I could mark favorites, but the heart of the question remains!
posted by cmoj at 11:57 AM on May 29, 2008

An interesting coconut fact is that it is one of the few plants that produces saturated fat instead of unsaturated fat.
posted by nekton at 9:09 AM on June 24, 2008