Benefits of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Why Extra Virgin Olive Oil is The Healthiest Fat on Earth
Fats in the diet are highly controversial.
You'll see people arguing about animal fats, seed oils and almost everything in between.
But one of the few fats that most people agree is healthy is extra virgin olive oil.
This oil, part of the Mediterranean diet, is a traditional fat that has been a dietary staple for some of the world's healthiest populations.
There is actually quite a bit of research behind the health effects of olive oil.
These studies show that the fatty acids and antioxidants in it have some powerful health benefits, such as a reduced risk of heart disease.
Extra virgin olive oil is fairly nutritious.
It contains modest amounts of Vitamins E and K and plenty of beneficial fatty acids.
This is the nutrient content of 100 grams of olive oil (1):
Saturated fat: 13.8%.
Monounsaturated fat: 73% (most of it the 18 carbon long oleic acid).
Omega-6: 9.7%.
Omega-3: 0.76%.
Vitamin E: 72% of the RDA.
Vitamin K: 75% of the RDA.
But where extra virgin olive oil really shines is in its content of antioxidants.
Some of the main antioxidants are the anti-inflammatory oleocanthal, as well as oleuropein, a substance that protects LDL cholesterol from oxidation (4, 5).
Some people have criticized olive oil for having a high Omega-6 to Omega-3 ratio (over 10:1), but keep in mind that the total amount of polyunsaturated fats is still relatively low, so this shouldn't be a cause for concern.
Olive Oil and Cancer
Cancer is a common cause of death, characterized by uncontrolled growth of cells in the body.
Studies have shown that people in the Mediterranean countries have a fairly low risk of cancer and some have speculated that olive oil has something to do with it (27).
One potential contributor to cancer is oxidative damage due to free radicals, but extra virgin olive oil is high in antioxidants that reduce oxidative damage (28, 29).
The oleic acid in olive oil is also highly resistant to oxidation and has been shown to have beneficial effects on genes linked to cancer (30, 31).
Many studies in test tubes have shown that compounds in olive oil can help fight cancer at the molecular level (32, 33, 34).
Whether olive oil actually helps prevent cancer has yet to be studied in human controlled trials.
Olive Oil and Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's disease is the world's most common neurodegenerative disease and a leading cause of dementia.
One feature of Alzheimer's is a buildup of protein tangles called beta amyloid plaques, in certain neurons in the brain.
A study in mice showed that a substance in olive oil can help to clear these plaques from the brain (35).
A human controlled trial showed that a mediterranean diet enriched with olive oil had favorable effects on brain function and reduced the risk of cognitive impairment (36).
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By Deborah Grow
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