
How can EVOO contribute to your general health?
Anecdotal evidence has told us for many years that a Mediterranean diet containing foods that are high in phytochemicals, namely fruits, vegetables and the abundant daily consumption of olive oil is beneficial to health, with distinctly lower rates of chronic diseases than those found in many developed countries in Europe and elsewhere. Only now we are in a position to benefit from more specific research to give us the reasons for this and to look at the future with more optimism than ever before. More and more research is pointing to Olive Oil, and in particular, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, as a major contributory factor in the prevention and treatment of a wide range of health issues. Also, genetic predisposition is arising as a predominant area of nutritional research to help identify different subgroups that may benefit from more intensive dietary intervention.
As early as 1977, Professor Angel Keys from the University of Minnesota published the results of extensive research which proved that olive oil is effective in reducing the risk of arteriosclerosis and heart attack, and we can even look way back in history to the ancient naturalist Gaius Pliny II who dwelt at length on the health benefits of olive oil and recognized the importance of it being “young, delicate and scented” as a remedy for many ailments. Today of course we have the benefit of evidence based scientific research to support these ideas and we know that newly pressed extra virgin olive oil contains oleocanthal, a natural anti inflammatory compound. More than this, experts across the world are now discovering more and more health benefits with evidence from exciting research projects, including hypertension, high cholesterol and cardiovascular diseases, arthritis, some types of cancer, Alzheimers disease, Type 1 diabetes and nutritional intervention for very low birthweight infants and pregnant women.