As a health and wellness writer and enthusiast, I have become a firm believer that even small changes can make a significant impact. If you can only make one improvement to your diet this week or even this month, I urge you to consider stocking your cabinets with organic extra virgin olive oil. Ditch the corn oil once and for all. Get rid of the canola oil too. When you cook, from now on, you will be healthier for doing so with organic extra virgin olive oil.
If you have been following this site for a while, you probably already know that a Mediterranean diet is the healthiest way to eat. It should come as no surprise to hear that the Mediterranean diet is rich in olive oil. As it turns out, extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is a health juggernaut.
What is the difference between extra virgin olive oil and plain old olive oil? Extra virgin olive oil is made extracting the juice of crushed olives. It is as simple as that. EVOO should also be cold-pressed, meaning that no heat over a certain temperature was used during the extraction of the oil.
EVOO is the only cooking oil that is made without chemicals or industrial refining. Because it is not refined, both virgin and extra-virgin olive oils tend to have higher compositions of polyphenols (a powerful antioxidant) than the more tampered with olive oils.
Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) has a multitude of proven health benefits. For example:
– A compound found in EVOO can cause rapid cell death in cancer cells.
– EVOO can fight off liver damage.
– Consuming EVOO may help prevent a stroke in older people. In a research study, those who regularly used olive oil for both cooking and as dressing had a 41 percent lower risk of stroke compared to those who never used olive oil in their diet, with all other factors being equal.
– EVOO may prevent and treat Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infections, which cause millions of cases of gastritis and peptic ulcer disease each year.
– Consumption of extra virgin olive oil helps reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
– Taking olive oil supplements may counteract some of the adverse cardiovascular effects of exposure to air pollution.
– Virgin olive oil, in contrast to other vegetable oils, protects the body against breast cancer.
– Eating more olive oil could help prevent ulcerative colitis.
– Olive oils regulates the sensation of feeling full after eating, with olive oil leading the way, thus reducing excess calorie intake.
Furthermore, if you are purchasing EVOO because there are no chemicals added in the process of extracting the oils from the olive, then it would make sense to want olives that were not grown with pesticides and harmful chemicals, right? THAT is the reason why you should not only purchase extra virgin olive oil, but make sure that it is organic extra virgin olive oil too!
Small changes really do make a big impact on your overall wellness, and making the switch to organic extra virgin olive oil will make your family healthier.
What are you doing today to be healthier than you were yesterday?
We just completely switched over to EVOO. I love the this diet as well!
what a great post! pinned:)
I am so happy I have a bottle or two of EVOO in our kitchen at all times.
LOVE EVOO – I use it for everything and who would have thought that I hated it a few years ago.
I’m Dr. fathi. I’m a Naturopathic doctor who specializes in diet, health, nutrition, and alternative medicine. I’ve written numerous books and articles on health, medicine, and alternative medicine I want to help you get healthy! Take a look at my blog and make sure you join in the conversation!