Extra Virgin Olive Oil Health Benefits

For people of the Mediterranean, it has had medicinal, even magical powers through the ages. The olive tree is considered a symbol of peace and glory. Olives were first cultivated in the eastern part of the Mediterranean around 5000 B.C.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil Health Benefits

Olive oil was used in medicines and different ointments. It was also used for nourishment and as an overall healing agent. Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a monounsaturated fat, and is considered a good fatty acid (high density lipoproteins, HDLs) protect against bad cholesterol, or low density lipoproteins (LDLs).
Extra Virgin Olive Oil contains all the vitamins and nutrients of the olive fruit.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil is also filled with antioxidants, vitamins and nutrients that may protect you against illnesses. Studies have shown that Extra Virgin olive oil can help:

• Protect You from Heart Disease
• Promote Healthy Digestion
• Ease the Symptoms of Ulcers & Gastritis
• Lower Gallstone Formation
• Balance the Fatty Acids in Your Body

Scientific studies show that people eating two tablespoons of Extra Virgin Olive Oil daily for one week show less oxidation of LDLs and higher levels of antioxidants in their blood. You will benefit from higher levels of antioxidants, especially vitamin E and phenols.

How much oil consumed per day?

Three tablespoons in place of other condiments are recommended for a healthy and balanced diet, one you can use it to dress pasta, the other for the second and two servings of vegetables a day recommended by nutritionists. For higher levels of energy expenditure (with a daily intake of 2,600 kilocalories and over) are allowed four tablespoons. Caution: the oil is not a drug, and if consumed in excess will increase rather than decrease the cholesterol.

Raw or cooked?

Better, when possible, add the olive oil raw. But it must be said that the virgin is not harmful in cooked foods. Due to its high percentage of oleic acid, olive oil has a high smoke point, is stable at high temperatures: the combination of heat resistance and antioxidant content makes it great for cooking.

Is it true that olive oil has anti-aging properties?

It contains many antioxidants can counteract the notorious free radicals responsible for cell aging. In particular, the polyphenols, which give it its characteristic flavor of the oil, to have strong antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties as well. Olive oil exercises this property mostly when it is included in a diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables, which are also rich in antioxidants.

Bitterness and pungency in Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Bitter and spicy are two positive components and when we select an olive oil they always have to be present! The bitter and spicy are generated in the olive oil as a result of the presence of polyphenolic substances. The greater the presence of such substances, the greater the intensity of bitterness and spicy. There are great benefits for our body made by the polyphenols contained in the olive oil. The polyphenols are powerful antioxidants and contribute to the prevention of a high number of degenerative diseases.

The olive oil, when high quality, has gained in recent years a prominent position in the landscape of healthy and nutritional foods thanks to the high concentration of polyphenols. For this reason therefore the bitter and pungent are to be considered positive characteristics: they represent, in fact, the litmus test of the presence of polyphenols in oil.

Bitter and spicy are two indicators of the quality and the presence of substances that are particularly healthy for our body. It is therefore only to “educate” our palate. If our goal is to eat healthy and natural it will not be hard to get used to appreciate the quality oil although bitter and spicy.