Harvard professor says coconut oil is "pure poison", draws flak from Indians

Guwahati: A Harvard professor has come under fire from Indians for terming coconut oil (a common cooking item in the country) as "pure poison" in a viral video that has received in excess of 1 million views on YouTube.

The professor in question, Karin Michels, who is an adjunct professor of epidemiology at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, says coconut oil is "poison" at least three times in the widely-circulated video. In the video, the Harvard professor says that coconut oil is "one of the worst foods you can eat."

Michels is also the director of the Institute for Prevention and Tumor Epidemiology at the University of Freiburg in Germany. Interestingly, the comments for the video, which was posted in July, have been disabled. While coconut oil has been advertised as healthy food and is commonly used by fitness freaks, nutrition experts say there is little evidence to back that claim.

Meanwhile, the professor's comments have received severe backlash from Indians on social media, as coconut oil is a staple food in the country. In some of the South Indian states such as Kerala, almost all food is cooked exclusively with coconut oil.

Adil Hussain, the internationally acclaimed actor hailing from Assam, taking to social media, wrote, "This is so very unfortunate that some scientists have to speak of things they don't understand! Indians have used coconut oil since Time Immemorial! So please!"

Celebrity chef Vikas Khanna, lashing out at the Harvard Professor, wrote on Twitter: "Who are these professors??? Like, really! Coconut oil is 'pure poison,' Harvard professor says in talk on nutrition."

The American Heart Association data has shown more than 80 percent of the fat in coconut oil is saturated — far beyond butter (63 percent), beef fat (50 percent), and pork lard (39 percent). The AHA currently advises against the use of coconut oil and recommends eating no more than six percent of saturated fat as part of total daily calories for those who need lower cholesterol. 

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