Coconut flour is a unique alternative to wheat flour.

It is popular with low carb dieters and those who are gluten intolerant.

In addition to its impressive nutritional profile, coconut flour can offer many benefits. These include promoting blood sugar stability, better digestion, heart health, and even weight loss.

Coconut flour is made from dried and ground coconut flesh.

It comes from the Philippines, where it was first produced as a by-product of coconut milk ( 1 , 2 ).

During production, the coconuts are first opened and drained of the liquid. The coconut kernel is then scraped, rinsed, ground and drained to separate the solid part from the milk. This product is baked at a low temperature until dry before it is ground into flour.

The resulting white powder resembles cereal flours such as wheat and has a very mild taste.

Coconut flour: The health benefits

Coconut flour has different nutrient profiles and can offer a number of health benefits.

However, few studies have looked directly at coconut flour. Its potential benefits are based on research into its nutrients or beneficial compounds.

Rich in nutrients and beneficial fats

In addition to being very rich in fiber, coconut flour provides medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) and vegetable iron.

MCT is a type of fat that is associated with many benefits, such as weight loss, protection against bacteria and viruses, and enhanced brain and heart health (2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ).

Maintains stable blood sugar levels

Coconut flour is high in fiber, which can help keep your blood sugar levels under control.

A serving of 1/4 cup (30 grams) provides an impressive 40% of daily fiber needs, or 3 to 10 times more than the same amount of wholemeal flour or all-purpose flour, respectively ( 6 ).

Fiber-rich foods help regulate blood sugar levels by slowing down the rate at which sugar enters your bloodstream.

This is especially true for foods rich in soluble fiber, which form a gel during digestion. Coconut flour contains small amounts of this fiber ( 7 , 8 ).

It has a low glycemic index (GI), which means that breads and baked goods from it are less likely to raise blood sugar levels ( 1 , 9 ).

It can promote healthy digestion

The high fiber content of coconut flour can also benefit your digestion.

Most of its fibers are insoluble. Insoluble fiber reduces the chance of constipation ( 10 ).

In addition, coconut flour contains small amounts of soluble and other fermentable fibers, which feed the beneficial bacteria in your gut.

In turn, these bacteria produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) such as acetic, propionic and butyric, all of which feed your gut ( 1 , 11 ).

SCFAs can also reduce inflammation and symptoms associated with intestinal disorders, such as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) ( 11 , 12 , 13 ).

It can improve heart health

Coconut flour can also benefit heart health.

Research shows that consuming 15-25 grams of coconut fiber daily can help reduce total blood cholesterol levels by 11%, LDL (bad) cholesterol by 9% and triglycerides by up to 22% ( 1 ).

In addition, coconut flour contains lauric acid, a type of fat that is believed to help kill bacteria that are responsible for plaque buildup in your arteries. This plaque is associated with heart disease ( 2 ).

However, other studies show that lauric acid may have no effect or even increase LDL (bad) cholesterol, so the effect of lauric acid on cholesterol may vary from person to person ( 1 , 14 , 15 ).

It can help you lose weight

Coconut flour can help you lose weight because it provides both fiber and protein, two nutrients that reduce hunger and appetite ( 16 , 17 ).

In addition, coconut flour contains MCTs, which are less likely to be stored as fat because they travel directly to your liver, where they are used for energy production ( 18 ).

MCTs can also reduce appetite and be processed by your body in contrast to the higher chain fats found in foods such as olives and nuts. This difference can help you burn slightly more calories ( 19 , 20 ).

However, this effect is probably small. In a review of 13 studies, replacing longer-chain fat with MCTs helped participants lose just 1.1 kg (0.5 kg), on average, over 3 weeks ( 21 ).

Keep in mind that the weight loss effects of MCTs usually require much more than what is usually available in coconut flour.

It can kill harmful viruses and bacteria

Coconut flour is rich in lauric acid, a type of fat that can fight certain infections.

After ingestion, lauric acid forms a compound known as monolaurin. Research shows that lauric acid and monolaurin can kill harmful viruses, bacteria, and fungi (2 , 22 ).

For example, these compounds appear to be particularly effective against infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus bacteria and Ca ndida albicans yeast ( 2 , 23 , 24 ).

However, more research is needed in humans.

Coconut Flour: Uses

Coconut flour can be used in a variety of recipes, sweet and savory.

You can replace it with other flours when making bread, pancakes, cookies, muffins or other baked goods. Keep in mind that coconut flour tends to absorb more liquids than other flours. For this reason, it can not be used as a one-to-one replacement.

For best results, start by replacing 1/4 cup (30 grams) of coconut flour for each cup (120 grams) of all-purpose flour. You can also try to increase the total amount of liquid by the amount of coconut flour you added.

For example, if you used 1/4 cup (30 grams) of coconut flour, be sure to add 1/4 cup (60 ml) of extra liquid.

Remember that coconut flour tends to be thicker than other flours and does not bind as easily.

Bakers often recommend mixing it with other flours or adding 1 egg for every 1/4 of a cup (30 grams) of coconut flour to give your final product a more fluffy texture.

This unique flour can also be used to make bread and to make soups and stews. In addition, you can use it as a binding agent in burgers or even in vegetable burgers, as well as to make pizza dough without pizza grains, crust sheets or anything else you can imagine!