Coconut palm

The coconut palm (Cocos nucifera, from coco (Portuguese for kernel, berry) is a tropical palm plant (Arecaceae family) that supplies around 8% of the world's vegetable oils.
Cocos nucifera is the parent plant of Oleum Cocos, the coconut oil also known as coconut butter, a whitish-yellowish oil that is soluble in 90% ethanol but not in water. Coconut oil has a melting point of between 22-28 °C. Coconut oil is well tolerated by the skin. Allergic reactions have been described but are rare.

All parts of the coconut can be utilized: the milk for special sugar (jaggery), the meat for curries, chutney, toffee, sweets, even for the production of barbecue briquettes, the oil as cooking fat or oil; the wood of the palm is used as construction timber, in shipbuilding, and for the production of chairs, loungers, bowls and vases. Coconut fibers from the outer husk of the unripe coconut are used to make sturdy fabrics, e.g. doormats, carpets and ropes. The fibers of the mature coconut are used in the construction industry for sound insulation, thermal insulation, in horticulture as a planting substrate due to its good water retention, as fuel or for the production of fillings for mattresses, upholstery and car seats.

Both the oil and the water of the coconut are used phytotherapeutically. The coconut kernel and coconut water have antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antiparasitic, antidermatophytic, antioxidant, hypoglycemic, hepatoprotective and immunostimulating effects (DebMandal M et al. 2011), see also under coconut oil.

1. Lakshmi C (2014) Allergic Contact Dermatitis (Type IV Hypersensitivity) and Type Hypersensitivity Following Aromatherapy with Ayurvedic Oils (Dhanwantharam Thailam, Eladi Coconut Oil) Presenting as Generalized Erythema and Pruritus with Flexural Eczema. Indian J Dermatol 59:283-286.
2. Shaffer KK et al. (2006) Allergenicity and cross-reactivity of coconut oil derivatives: A double-blind randomized controlled pilot study. Dermatitis 17:71-76.
3. DebMandal M et al. (2011) Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.: Arecaceae): in health promotion and disease prevention. Asian Pac J Trop Med;4(3):241-7. doi: 10.1016/S1995-7645(11)60078-3. Epub 2011 Apr 12. PMID: 21771462.
4. https://www.kokosoel.com/wissen/holz-fasern/