'Pure poison' - Harvard professor issues warning about coconut oil

"Pure poison." Those are the words one Harvard professor is using to describe coconut oil in a recent lecture, and it's igniting a heated debate.

During the lecture, titled "Coconut Oil and other Nutritional Errors," professor Karin Michels has made herself very clear with regard to dietary recommendations, and underlined that coconut oil is not healthy.

Michels went on to say coconut oil is one of the "worst foods you can eat" because it is mostly made of saturated fatty acid, posing a greater risk than even straight lard.

Last year, the American Heart Association said that too much coconut oil can raise your LDL, or bad cholesterol. The AHA includes it on a list of foods that are better to avoid.

You can identify fats that contain large quantities of saturated fatty acids by checking to see whether they remain solid at room temperature, like butter or lard.

Health experts recommend olive oil or grapeseed oil as healthier alternatives.

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