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Why Olive Oil Is So Good for the Heart

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

The following article by Alice. G Walton is reprinted from Forbes, May 20, 2014.

New research in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences looks at the effect of the Mediterranean diet on heart health—and the verdict is favorable. But even more than that, the study lays out exactly why olive oil and greens are together so beneficial for the heart.

Until now, researchers hadn’t quite been able to explain why a diet as high in fat as the Mediterranean diet is linked to cardiovascular health. Researchers have wondered what exactly it is about the fats that helps the heart, and now they’ve arrived a pretty convincing mechanism to explain it.

The trick is to create a “fusion” of the healthy fats in, say, olive oil and the nitrites and nitrates in greens like spinach, celery, and carrots, which make up a large part of the Mediterranean diet. This fats–greens pairing, according to the researchers, creates a compound—nitro fatty acid—that has the effect of relaxing blood vessels and bringing down blood pressure, which are key components of heart health.

To test the theory, the team fed mice—with high blood pressure—the omega-6 fatty acids found in olive oil. They also added to their diets sodium nitrite, in order to mimic the pairing of olive oil and veggies. Indeed, not only was the level of nitro fatty acids higher in these mice, but their blood pressure was lower at the end of the 5-day intervention. And when the researchers used a strain of mice that were resistant to the effects of the nitro fatty acids, their blood pressure did not change.

Though the research was done in mice, the mechanism likely applies to people, too. Earlier research has pointed to the benefits of olive oil and nuts on cardiovascular health in humans.

“The findings of our study,” said study author Philip Eaton, “help to explain why previous research has shown that a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil or nuts can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular problems like stroke, heart failure and heart attacks.” Avocados may work too, the team told the BBC, since they also contain healthy unsaturated fats.

Mayo Clinic Recommends Mediterranean Diet as “Heart-Healthy Eating Plan”

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

The following is excerpted from an article published by the Mayo Clinic News Network on November 17, 2014.

If you’re looking for a heart-healthy eating plan, the Mediterranean diet might be right for you. The Mediterranean diet incorporates the basics of healthy eating—plus a splash of flavorful olive oil and perhaps even a glass of red wine—among other components characterizing the traditional cooking style of countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea.

Most healthy diets include fruits, vegetables, fish, and whole grains, and limit unhealthy fats. While these parts of a healthy diet remain tried and true, subtle variations or differences in proportions of certain foods may make a difference in your risk of heart disease.

Benefits of the Mediterranean diet

Research has shown that the traditional Mediterranean diet reduces the risk of heart disease. In fact, an analysis of more than 1.5 million healthy adults demonstrated that following a Mediterranean diet was associated with a reduced risk of death from heart disease and cancer, as well as a reduced incidence of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommends the Mediterranean diet as an eating plan that can help promote health and prevent disease. And the Mediterranean diet is one your whole family can follow for good health.

Key components of the Mediterranean diet

The Mediterranean diet emphasizes:

  • Eating primarily plant-based foods, such as fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and nuts.
  • Replacing butter with healthy fats, such as olive oil.
  • Using herbs and spices instead of salt to flavor foods.
  • Limiting red meat to no more than a few times a month
  • Eating fi sh and poultry at least twice a week.
  • Drinking red wine in moderation (optional).

The diet also recognizes the importance of being physically active and enjoying meals with family and friends.

Compound in Olive Oil Shows Promise in Fight Against Cancer

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

The following is excerpted from an article by Chris Weller, published February 20, 2015, on MedicalDaily.com, based on the results of a recent study conducted by Rutgers University and Hunter College scientists.

Oleocanthal, the primary phenolic compound found in extra virgin olive oil, has been shown to eradicate cancer cells in less than an hour, giving scientists hope that targeted drug options in the future may be possible.

A team of researchers from Rutgers University and Hunter College published their recent study in the journal Molecular & Cellular Oncology. The findings add even more firepower to the argument in favor of olive oil, which has been shown in prior studies to shield our bodies against air pollution, improve our immune systems, protect aging bones, and perhaps even prevent the slide into Alzheimer’s disease….

The study isn’t without its limits. Cell cultures provide a reliable model for understanding how an external substance affects a new biological environment, but cells aren’t as complex as rats, which aren’t as complex as humans. It will still be years before oleocanthal makes its way into a clinical setting, by which time other technologies may have already crowded it out.

As a proof of concept, however, the findings suggest a robust set of possibilities for the compound. Oleocanthal is just one of the many phenols — a type of antioxidant — that appears in extra-virgin olive oil. It’s no accident the stuff appears in so many of the world’s healthiest diets. In addition to the heart-healthy antioxidants, olive oil provides a rich source of healthy fats that may preserve brain health and improve memory.

“We think oleocanthal could explain reduced [cancer] incidence in Mediterranean diets where consumption is high,” Foster told Medical Daily in an email. “And it is also possible that purified (higher-dose) could possibly be used therapeutically.”

Ultimately, the co-authors want to learn more about why oleocanthal targets and shrinks cancer cells specifically. “We also need to understand why it is that cancerous cells are more sensitive to oleocanthal than non-cancerous cells,” Foster said in the release. Even if consuming more olive oil won’t necessarily protect you from cancer today, budding research may help bring [some of its compounds] into the hospital in the future.

Source: LeGendre O, Breslin PAS, Foster DA. Oleocanthal rapidly and selectively induces cancer cell death via lysosomal membrane permeabilization (LMP). Molecular & Cellular Oncology. January 23, 2015. http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/23723556.2015.1006077

Mediterranean Diet Plus Olive Oil or Nuts May Boost Thinking and Memory

Posted on by The Olive Oil Hunter

The following is excerpted from an article published on the website of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, May 11, 2015.

Adding more olive oil or nuts to a Mediterranean diet—one rich in fruits, vegetables, fi sh, and whole grains and low in red meat—may help keep your mind sharper as you age, a new study suggests.

The Spanish researchers found that seniors following such diets had greater improvements in thinking and memory than people who were simply advised to eat a lower-fat diet.

“You can delay the onset of age-related mental decline with a healthy diet rich in foods with a high antioxidant power, such as virgin olive oil and nuts,” said lead researcher Dr. Emilio Ros, director of the lipid clinic at the Hospital Clinic in Barcelona.

“Because the average age of participants was 67 when the trial began, one can say that it is never too late to change your diet to maintain or even improve brain function,” he said.

The report was published online May 11 in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.

Dr. Sam Gandy, director of the Center for Cognitive Health at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, said, “The general heart-healthy and brain-healthy effects of eating less beef and more chicken, fi sh, fruits and vegetables [have] been validated to the point that I now recommend this general Mediterranean diet to all my patients.”

…. Participants were randomly assigned to add a liter (about 33 ounces) of extra virgin olive oil per week to their Mediterranean diet, or to supplement their Mediterranean diet with 30 grams (roughly 1 ounce) per day of a mixture of walnuts, hazelnuts and almonds. Others followed a low-fat diet…. The participants followed the diets for four years, on average, according to the study.

In both groups following a Mediterranean diet, the researchers saw improvements in tests of memory and thinking compared to the group on the low-fat diet, the study showed.

Samantha Heller, a senior clinical nutritionist at New York University Medical Center in New York City, explained that “healthy fats from foods like nuts and olive oil play crucial roles in brain function and health.”

Every one of the nerve cells in the human brain is surrounded by an ultra-thin layer of fat and protein called the myelin sheath, she explained. The myelin sheath protects the nerve structure and helps nerve cell interaction. The brain gets its fats to make and maintain the myelin sheath from the foods people eat. The healthier the foods and fats, the healthier the brain, Heller said.

SOURCES: Emilio Ros, M.D., Ph.D., director, lipid clinic, Hospital Clinic, Barcelona, Spain; Sam Gandy, M.D., Ph.D., director, Center for Cognitive Health, Mount Sinai Hospital, New York City; Samantha Heller, M.S., R.D., senior clinical nutritionist, New York University Medical Center, New York City; Valls-Pedret C, Sala-Vila A, Ros E, et al. Mediterranean diet and agerelated cognitive decline. JAMA Intern Med. 2015;doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2015.1668. [Epub ahead of print]