(CNN) According to a recent survey, 72% of Americans think coconut oil is a healthy food. But despite popular health claims about coconut oil, a report from the American Heart Association recently advised against its use, stating that it increases LDL cholesterol (a cause of cardiovascular disease) and has no known offsetting effects. "There are many claims being made about coconut oil being wonderful for lots of different things, but we really don't have any evidence of long-term health benefits," said Dr. Walter C. Willett, professor of epidemiology and nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. How exactly, then, does coconut oil rank among oils?Coconut oil increases LDL cholesterol, a cause of cardiovascular diseaseBut coconut oil does a particularly nice job of raising HDL, the "good" cholesterol
Still, though the increase in _ seen with consumption of coconut oil may offset some of the disease risk, it's still not as good as consuming unsaturated oils, which not only raise HDL but lower LDL, according to Willett. There is extremely preliminary evidence that the increase in _ may not be as pronounced if one consumes extra virgin coconut oil instead of refined coconut oil, according to Klatt.