Health Benefits of Olive Oil
Olive oil is a traditional cooking fat that's been in use in the Mediterranean regions since Biblical times, and probably dates back to earlier than that. Above and beyond traditional cooking, it also has a number of health benefits.
- It's a blood sugar controller. One of the leading trends in human dietary science is learning how our blood sugar regulation interplays with so many other factors. Olive oil turns out to be a great 'brake' for high glycemic index foods, regulating how quickly your body takes them up. While this used to be considered a benefit for people with diabetes, it's become much more mainstream with diets like The Zone and the GCI diet becoming popular.
- It is a Triglyceride regulator. Olive oil is also a monounsaturated fat, which your body can process more readily, without the intermediate steps of triglycerides. Studies have shown that olive oil cuts your the risk for coronary heart disease.
- Olive oil is cholesterol free. Now, this is a bit less of a miracle than many people make it out as - the vast majority of vegetable fats are cholesterol free. However, because olive oil receives so little processing (it's pretty much the only vegetable derived oil that goes straight from the fruit to the press, and then from the press to bottling) that it doesn't build up the other fats and triglycerides that become precursors to cholesterol in your body.
- It's full of vitamins. While not quite as rich in vitamins as most whole fruits or vegetables, olive oil manages to keep most of its nutritional value from pressing to bottling; this is another side effect of how little processing it takes to get from the tree to your tabletop. It's rich in vitamins A, B-1, B-2, C, D, E and K, iron and Omega-9 (oleic acid).
- It is great for skin health. Even in the Classical era, topically applied olive oil was used as a beauty agent, where it nourishes the skin, and helps provide a smooth complexion and that healthy glow. It's also been used to heal dry and brittle nails. The fatty acids in olive oil are readily absorbed by the body.
- Your stomach will thank you. One of the sovereign remedies of classical Greece (drinking a cup of olive oil before eating a spicy meal) has been proven by modern science - it actually coats the stomach and helps prevent gastritis and ulcer formation. It also helps your body's pancreas function, and actually put some drugs off the market after clinical trials for getting the pancreatic functions to come back.
- It is rich in antioxidants. Yes, this claim is being made by every food out there, from wine to dark chocolate, and now olive oil. It also has some of the phytochemicals that may improve longevity, though studies are still on going on that.
- It's tasty. Don't underestimate the importance of 'tasty' when it comes to the health benefits of olive oil. When oat bran was the miracle food in the 1990s, and everyone was avoiding all dietary fats, remember how miserable the diets were? They were miserable because fat provokes the satiation response, and they were stripping all fats out of the diet. Finally, a healthy food that actually makes other foods taste better.
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