Written by: Raoul J. Chee Kee for INQUIRER.net BrandRoom

Last March, Dennis Gutierrez tested positive for COVID-19 despite wearing a face mask and practicing social distancing while in his office in Makati. He endured a slight fever which subsided after three days but still had to contend with excruciating body aches, painful eyes and a cough.

“Three other officemates who were exposed to the virus developed symptoms of COVID-19 as well,” Gutierrez told Lifestyle in a phone interview. “I was the first to recover from the fevers unlike the others who had high temperatures for five days to a week. One of them even had to quarantine for 45 days because he continued to exhibit symptoms and did not want to expose his senior housemates.”

Even before he got sick, Gutierrez who is a vegan had been taking care of himself by exercising regularly (yoga and swimming) and taking his vitamins (B complex, sodium ascorbate with zinc, multivitamins and probiotics). Every morning, on an empty stomach, he ingests two tablespoons of virgin coconut oil (VCO).

“When my cough worsened, I would take an extra tablespoon or two of VCO, and it seemed to alleviate my cough. I told a doctor-friend about what I had been doing and he said it was okay to continue taking it if I noticed that it lessened my coughing fits.”

At one point, when his supply of VCO dwindled, Gutierrez began taking VCO pills manufactured by Growrich. “They’re a bit more expensive than regular VCO,” he said. Eventually, he went back to taking VCO in liquid form after finding out that the pills were made with gelatin which is non-vegan.

“I read that there are plans to come out with VCO capsules that are 100 percent vegetable-based which, if true, will surely delight many vegans,” he said.

The VCO capsules from Growrich contain naturally extracted oil from fresh, mature coconut kernels with no chemical refining, bleaching or deodorization. It is extracted from a single press of fresh coconut meat that’s been grated and dried for two hours at a temperature lower than 40 degrees Celsius.

Doctor Ed Lalusis, president of Growrich, said that the unique composition of VCO ensures high levels of free fatty acids and a low peroxide value. The oily aftertaste is eliminated because doses come in easy-to-ingest capsules.

“Our breakthrough product will make it easier for people to take virgin coconut oil and enjoy its health benefits. The high amount of lauric acid in extra virgin coconut oil helps the heart by reducing total cholesterol and increasing good cholesterol,” Lalusis said.

Two weeks ago on May 8, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) enrolled 42 patients in ongoing clinical trials for the use of virgin coconut oil, lagundi, tawa-tawa, and melatonin as a potential cure and adjunctive therapy for COVID-19.

“While further studies are still needed to determine the effectiveness of VCO as an adjunct therapy for COVID-19 patients, tapping the therapeutic benefits of VCO, especially against the new coronavirus, could ease concerns on a surge of COVID-19 cases while waiting for the vaccines,” Lalusis said.

The clinical trials, which started last June, are being conducted at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH). The aim of the project is to determine the efficacy of virgin coconut oil as adjunctive therapy for COVID-19 patients.

“Specifically, it aims to determine the safety of VCO through clinical parameters such as lipid profile, fasting blood sugar (FBS) and creatinine and the efficacy of VCO through recovery from symptoms and virus clearance,” the DOST said in a statement.

Visit https://growrichvco.com/ for more information on Growrich VCO Capsules or follow them on Facebook, facebook.com/GrowrichVCOCapsule/ and Instagram, @GrowrichVCO.