Allergic to Coconut - Can You Recommend Products?

Hi,


thank you for posting such a wonderful website. I have many sensitivities and allergies to nuts, fruit, and even some vegetables. I am mostly allergic to coconut which I find is in almost everything. Is there a product you can recommend for me? I am most concerned with coconut but really want to use something that's good for me skin but mainly very basic :)

thanks
Tessa



Our reply

Hi Tessa, thanks for your message, and I'm so glad you find our site helpful! Yes, I really empathize with the difficulty of finding simple skincare and haircare products that will not cause allergic reactions.

When you're very sensitive, any one ingredient in a product can be the cause of a skin inflammation. For that reason it is helpful to choose simple products that have a short list of ingredients.

Another thing that can be very allergy producing are so many plant materials, and so it can be quite a challenge finding products that do not have so many botanical ingredients.

I recommend that you try out the Cleure hypoallergenic products to see if any of these may work for you.

Read the labels to be sure there is no coconut oil in any of the products I'm pretty sure they don't use coconut oil, but I haven't checked recently. You may even want to try some of their sample sizes to see which products may work for you. Their products contain no plant allergens and even work for people who are allergic to gluten or salicylates.

The creator of this product line is quite gifted in being able to put together products that work exceptionally well, without a long list of ingredients. Their hypoallergenic shampoo is the best I have ever tried, and is even better now. Some of their products contain shea butter which is very mild.

I hope these are helpful for you Tessa!

Comments for Allergic to Coconut - Can You Recommend Products?

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Feb 12, 2015
 Cleure products do use coconut products
by: Jellybean

There are a lot of things that are made of coconut products that you wouldn't guess. The list is really long. but some of the popular ones are Cetearyl Alcohol, Cetyl Alcohol, and Decyl Glucoside. My son is allergic to coconut and it's been a real challenge. I have been making everything from scratch. I've only been able to use Vaseline as a lotion.
Dec 12, 2013
 More Coconut Free Brands
by: My Sensitive Skincare

I am continuing to receive questions about coconut free products. Please see my podcast show about this: Impossible to Find Coconut Free Products.

Some of the brands I've found contain ingredients that I wouldn't recommend, but here are a few more that seem to be worth looking at:

Dakota Free Products - be sure to ask them which products are coconut free

Chagrin Valley Soap and Salve - they have a special section on coconut free products, but be sure to check their ingredients list as the formulas can change.

Morrocco Method Hair Care - these products are unique and quite nice, but not for everyone ... the shampoos contain clay and are very fragrant with essential oils. Be sure to read the ingredients list to be sure.
Apr 07, 2013
 Coconut free soap
by: Anonymous

I would like to suggest Country Rose 100% Olive Oil Castile Soap. I was frantically searching for a coconut free soap and found this one a few years ago. I love it! It’s unscented, very mild and comes in a handmade bar soap or a liquid castile soap.
Feb 23, 2013
 coconut derivative
by: Anonymous

sls
octyl achol
cocamide dea
lauramidopropyl betaine (cocamidoprpyl betaine
coca
caprylic/capric tryglycerides
cocoyl glutamate
sodium coco sulfate
capryl glycol
coco glucoside
cetyl alchol
Nov 15, 2012
 Coconut Free
by: Anonymous

You must be careful to search ALL ingredients. Many companies use oil extracts that are placed in a coconut oil base, and they may only list the extract, leaving out the base oil ingredient, which is usually coconut. water based extracts are the best for people with coconut allergies. Also, Optiphen is a popular preservative now a days b/c it's paraben free, and formaldehyde free, but it's placed in caprylyl glycol - a reaction between sugar and coconut alcohol. Yikes! Good luck, coconut allergies stink!
Sep 27, 2012
 We are highly allergic family
by: Jenny Renner

Our whole family is allergic to nuts & even sesame seed oil. I think it's the protein fat in them both? We found a product line that is all natural & they customize ingredients, so not even a trace of nuts and they have been very successful for us. You can check them out, google thinc skin. Good luck!
Jul 10, 2012
 Be sure to research all ingredients
by: My Sensitive Skin Care

Thanks for the suggestion about Alaffia products! Yes, some of these appear to be free of coconut, however other products in their brand do contain coconut.

I don't know enough yet about all the coconut derivatives that appear to not be coconut, but might actually be, and so I need to educate myself. I will put it on my list to write a page about how to find coconut free products.
Jun 28, 2012
 I Feel Your Pain!
by: Anonymous

I've been searching countless amounts of organic stores and have looked everywhere online. I finally found this one product by this company Alaffia. Great, Great Product! I've been using it for like a week now and its wonderful. They also have lotions and one shampoo line without coconut as well. Hope this helps!
Jun 25, 2012
 Wow... I would never know
by: My Sensitive Skin Care

Thank you so much for sharing this!! I would never think that socks would have coconut in them....!!
Feb 25, 2012
 coconut in my SOCKS!!!!!!!!
by: Anonymous

you also have to watch the socks you wear, i loved the aloe infused socks from walmart. they were so warm and fuzzy on my feet. not only do they habve aloe in them they also have coconut oil. who would have thought to check your socks for coconut.

suffering too,

sue
Apr 22, 2011
 Thanks so much ... very helpful
by: My Sensitive Skin Care

Hi June, thank you so much for sharing your experience of being allergic to coconut, and what you have learned in finding products that are free of coconut or coconut derivatives. I am SO glad to hear that these are helping you and that your hives are finally going away!! :-)
Apr 12, 2011
 Also Allergic to Coconut!!!
by: June

I feel your pain!! I've been suffering with head-to-toe hives since November, and have only narrowed down the coconut culprit within the last 2 weeks. I have compiled a list of all ingredient names that are coconut derivatives, which I can't post here. Email me at themargolins@optonline.net and I'll get it to you. The 7th generation cleaning products ALL contain coconut derivatives, as do ALL of the "alternative" cleaning products. I have, however, found a company called Dakota Free that manufactures ALL coconut-free products. They have hair care, skin care, and soy-based home cleaning products like dish soap, laundry detergent, and whitening booster for the laundry. I ordered one of everything! Also, a company called Morrocco Method carries several lines of shampoos (which can double as body washes), conditioners, and lotions that are coconut-free. I went to my local health food store and found several bars of Burts Bees soaps that do not contain coconut-derived ingredients, so I've put bars of soap around the house for now until my Dakota Free stuff arrives. Tom's of Maine makes a Peppermint "SLS Free" (coconut-derived) toothpaste that isn't too bad. My biggest challenge has been dealing without shampoo! I've been using a paste of 1/4 cup baking soda mixed with warm water with a splash of apple cider vinegar to wash my hair until my shampoos come. There are no other laundry or house-cleaning alternatives until my Dakota Free comes, so I've been running an extra rinse on the washing machine, and using rubber gloves for everything else I have to touch. Feel free to email me! I'd love to share the resources I've gathered!!! FINALLY yesterday was the first day I didn't have hives in months!!!!
Mar 07, 2011
 Coconut free products
by: My Sensitive Skincare

You're welcome Tessa, I am so sorry that it is so difficult to find products that are free from coconut oil. One thing that I have heard of, and never tried myself is soap nuts, which are a natural nut that produces soap. I do not know what the chemical composition is or whether this would be something that works for you, but you could research this online.

Another option is to do a search for forums, discussions and communities related to multiple chemical sensitivity. You may find some resources there recommended by people who are dealing with similar challenges.

Another option is to try making your own simple skincare and cleaning products so that you can be sure they do not contain coconut.

I did look at the Cleure line again and there are some products without Caprylyl glycol such as:

Toner
Eye Repair Gel
Loose mineral powders
Toothpaste
Mouthwash
Lip balm
Lipstick


Some products that did not contain Caprylyl glycol, but which may have other coconut derivates (I am not familiar with the chemistry of the ingredients) are:

Refining facial mask
Exfoliating scrub

I will look around a little more and if I find any other resources I will post them here for you!
Mar 07, 2011
 overwelmed
by: tessa sayers

Thanks for all the helpful comments. I googled Caprylyl Glycol free products and didn't come up with anything helpful. I am just feeling overwhelmed at finding something for myself. Caprylyl glycol is in everything. If anyone has any other suggestions I would greatly appreciate it. I use 7th Generation products for cleaning, laudry, and dish soap but recently found carylyl glycol in it. I am panicking at what to get. I can't find anything online without this.

thanks
Mar 04, 2011
 Caprylyl glycol free products
by: Mashubi

Hi Tessa,

Yes, many skin care ingredients have derivatives that are not the same name as the original ingredient. I am glad you are researching this to make sure that you avoid these ingredients. Since Caprylyl glycol is a derivative of coconut oil, I would recommend that you do a search for Caprylyl glycol free products online. The other option is to search the ingredients lists of smaller natural products companies, which may have fewer ingredients and fewer derivates. For example our Skin Care Directory has some listings of smaller natural skin care products companies. I know it is a tedious process, and I wish I had more to recommend! Please do let us know what you found so that others who are allergic to coconut may be able to find products that will work for them.
Mar 04, 2011
 Caprylyl glycol is derived from coconut
by: Tessa

Caprylyl Glycol: Ingredient Information
Caprylyl Glycol is derived from coconut. It is used as moisturizing or wetting agent and for biological stabilization in cosmetics.

I would love to try cleure but that is a common ingredient in their products

any other product suggestions?

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