Extra Virgin Olive Oil and the Mediterranean Diet: A Health Concentrate!

For years, extra virgin olive oil has been at the centre of scientific studies aimed at evaluating its effects and benefits for human health.

The FDA — the Food and Drug Administration, the US government agency responsible for regulating food and pharmaceutical products — has considered it a true health-promoting food since the end of 2018. Thanks to the abundant presence of polyphenols, plant-based organic molecules that help maintain the health of human cells and which a good extra virgin olive oil is rich in, the FDA states that consuming two tablespoons a day may have antioxidant effects on the human body.

It is also the only condiment recommended by the Mediterranean diet, the dietary lifestyle declared “Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity” by UNESCO in 2010.

The definition of this eating pattern dates back to 1975, when the American scholar Ancel Keys, a nutritionist and biologist, published the book How to Eat Well and Stay Well, the Mediterranean Way together with his wife Margaret. The volume was the result of more than twenty years of studies carried out by Keys on the correlation between the low incidence of cardiovascular diseases and gastrointestinal disorders and the consumption of certain foods such as cereals, fruit, vegetables, extra virgin olive oil, legumes, fish, and meat in moderate quantities, typical of the populations of the Mediterranean basin — hence the term “Mediterranean diet”.

The Keys couple outlined its basic principles, highlighting its health benefits.

The division of daily energy requirements into 60% carbohydrates, 25–30% fats, and 10–15% proteins provides the body with clear benefits such as:

– antioxidant effect;

– control of blood sugar and cholesterol levels;

– high vitamin intake;

– prevention of the onset of degenerative diseases.

Keys himself, in order to scientifically demonstrate the health value of the Mediterranean diet, undertook a study of the eating habits of 7 countries — the United States, Italy, Finland, Greece, Yugoslavia, the Netherlands, and Japan — to assess their impact on health.

The study clearly showed that the further the diet moved away from the Mediterranean model, the higher the incidence of cardiovascular disease became.

But aside from the distribution of macronutrients, what are the key points of the Mediterranean diet?

– high consumption of cereals, pasta, bread, seasonal vegetables, and legumes;

– frequent consumption of fish, dairy products, and cheese;

– balanced consumption of olive oil, fruit, eggs, nuts, and white meat;

– limited consumption of animal fats, such as red meat and eggs.

Among these foods, extra virgin olive oil plays a fundamental role, and choosing a quality one makes all the difference. How can you recognize it? A good starting point is knowing how to read the label. We talked about it in this article.