Fuel your life with the purest vitamins
Nov 3rd 2025
Coconut Oil Instead of Lotions for Beautiful Skin
. . . and for protection from the sun
Bruce Fife, CN, ND probably knows more about coconut oil than anyone on the planet. Having observed first-hand the effects of coconut oil on skin over many years, he’s a strong advocate for using it in place of commercial lotions for cultivating beautiful skin.
The problem with most moisturizers, he says, is that they’re made mostly of water. As the water is absorbed it expands your skin, smoothing out wrinkles and making your skin feel dewy fresh. But as soon as the water evaporates or gets carried away in your bloodstream, the dry, wrinkled skin comes right back. Oils used in such lotions are usually processed vegetable oils, just as toxic whether you consume them or put them on your skin.
Coconut oil supplies moisture at the same time that it corrects underlying problems. The 
health of connective tissue is what gives skin strength and elasticity, which prevents sagging, wrinkling and dryness. As we age, free radical damage gradually breaks down connective tissue. Coconut oil prevents free radical damage and heals and repairs it, keeping skin strong and supple.
Coconut oil even encourages exfoliation. The skin’s surface is composed of dead cells that fall off and get replaced by new cells. As we age, this process slows down, leaving our complexion looking dull, with a rough, flaky texture. Coconut oil removes (exfoliates) the dead cells. This encourages the growth of new cells and makes skin smoother. It also enables skin to reflect light evenly so that your skin “shines.”
According to Fife, nothing heals skin better than coconut oil, and he has many examples in his books to back up this claim: fading liver spots, disappearing wrinkles and blemishes, healing precancerous lesions and more.
He suggests applying it in small amounts, reapplying as necessary if your skin is dry. It is quickly absorbed, and leaves no oily residue as long as you don’t use more than your skin can absorb. Pacific Islanders, who are known for beautiful hair and skin, apply it once daily in the morning.
As for sun protection, Fife tells a personal story. One day he got sunburned badly. In the past, such a burn would hurt for a day or two and then his skin would begin to peel. But this time, after showering, he applied some coconut oil just to ease the pain. To his surprise, within half an hour the pain had disappeared and the redness in his skin had faded!
The next time he went out in the sun, he applied a layer of coconut oil to all exposed areas. He is fair-skinned, and normally spending 6 hours in the hot sun would have given him a bad burn. Not this time! All he got was a light tan.
Fife now uses coconut oil as his only sun protection. He says he rarely applies it more than once or twice unless it gets washed off. However he cautions that he also gets lots of antioxidants in his diet and avoids unsaturated oils. He also advises gradually building a protective tan.
From feedback we’ve received at Beyond Health, some customers have been able to use our coconut oil and nothing else for sun protection when they spend a day at the beach. But please remember that coconut oil works in a very different way than sunscreen, and if you’re not careful, you can get a bad burn! See all the suggestions for protecting yourself from the sun above.
On the other hand, it’s true that pure, high-quality coconut oil is amazing stuff! This is why Beyond Health spent two years searching for a source of coconut oil that would meet our quality standards. Check out Fife’s books (which we carry) to learn more about it.