Is coconut water as healthy for you as people say it is?

If you listen to the advice of celebrities like Madonna and Demi Moore, you’ll sip coconut water all day long. Thanks to such high profile backing, coconut water, the clear liquid found inside the coconut (not to be confused with coconut milk, which is produced by grating coconut meat), has soared in popularity. Hailed “the dew from the heavens,” this light, sweet tropical beverage is in the limelight for its potential nutritional benefits.

The beliefs of the “dew.” Zico, Vita Coco, and O.N.E, are some of the coconut water brands that are now mainstream. But coconut water has played a role in traditional medicine for centuries, as it was believed to treat health problems like asthma, baldness, burns, colds, fever, scurvy, tuberculosis, and the list goes on. Today’s coconut water advocates boast that it treats dehydration, clears up bladder infections, dissolves kidney stones, controls diabetes, and boosts immune system, among other things. But what is the truth behind coconut water? Can it truly live up to its expectations?

Dipping into coconut water nutrition. According to a 2009 scientific review published by researchers from Singapore in the journal, Molecules, coconut water does possess unique nutritional qualities. In addition to its unique array of sugars, vitamins, minerals and amino acids, coconut water contains naturally-occuring phytohormones, compounds that play a role in regulating plant growth. For this reason, they are often added to support the growth of many plants like orchids. Recent studies found that these phytohormones have antioxidant and anti-platelet properties, anti-aging effects on human skin cells and fruit flies, and anti-cancer effects on cancer cells. One phytohormone in particular called trans-zeatin has been linked with the potential treatment of neural diseases like Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, the basic composition of coconut water can replenish the electrolytes of the human body excreted through sweat, such as sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium, serving as an effective, natural rehydration drink. In fact, coconut water’s electrolyte levels so closely match that of human blood, that it’s been used as an emergency intravaneous solution for hydration.

While immerging science points out that coconut water does have unique health benefits, it’s a stretch to believe that it’s a panacea that will cure all manner of ailments. But considering that you can gain a load of vitamins and electrolytes that appear to offer optimal hydration for only 46 calories per glass, you might find sipping coconut water to be a better option than today’s pumped up, artificially dyed and sweetened energy drinks.

Coconut Water Notable Nutritients
1 cup (240 g)
Calories 46
Fat .5 g (1% DV)
Carbohydrate 9 g (3% DV)
Vitamin C 5.8 mg (10% DV)
Riboflavin 0.1 mg (8% DV)
Calcium 58 mg (6% DV)
Magnesium 60 mg (15% DV)
Potassium 600 mg (17% DV)
Sodium 252 mg (11% DV)
Manganese .3 mg (17% DV)
Dietary Fiber 2.6 g (11% DV)
Note: g=grams, mg=milligrams, DV=Daily Value

Written by Sharon Palmer, RD, as appears in Environmental Nutrition, July 2010.