Virgin Olive Oil May Reduce Cholesterol Damage
Fri Apr 12,2002

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Just a spoonful of extra virgin olive oil helps the cholesterol go down, results of a small study indicate.

According to the report, adults who consumed 25 milliliters (mL) or nearly 2 tablespoons of virgin olive oil daily for one week showed less oxidation of LDL ("bad") cholesterol and higher levels of antioxidant compounds, particularly phenols, in the blood.

Antioxidants can help prevent oxidative damage, which is caused by free radicals, byproducts of the body's normal processes that can damage body tissues. Studies have shown that the oxidation of LDL cholesterol is associated with the hardening of arteries that can lead to heart disease.

The findings may help to explain the heart healthy benefits of the Mediterranean diet, which is rich in olive oil, fruits, vegetables and grains and low in saturated fat from meat. Studies have documented lower rates of heart disease in countries such as Italy and Spain, where people consume more than one third of their daily calories from fats high in monounsaturated fatty acids. These fats may help to lower total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, the researchers explain in the April issue of the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

But while all types of olive oil are sources of monounsaturated fat, virgin olive oil also contains higher levels of antioxidants, particularly phenols and vitamin E, because it is less processed.

"Our results support the idea that daily ingestion of virgin olive oil could protect LDL from oxidation," Dr. M. C. Lopez-Sabater from the University of Barcelona in Spain and colleagues report.

Phenols from other sources, such as red wine and onions, have been shown to help control cholesterol but there is little information about the effect of antioxidants from olive oil on cholesterol.

To investigate, the researchers instructed 16 healthy adults to avoid phenol-containing foods such as coffee, tea, wine and vegetables for 4 days. On the fifth day adults consumed 50 mL of virgin olive oil--about 3.3 tablespoons--alone or with bread.

The participants avoided all other foods with phenols for the next 24 hours and then ate their regular diet, supplemented by 25 mL of olive oil daily, for a week. Study volunteers were also told to avoid high-fat foods such as butter, margarine, cooking oil, nuts, baked foods and eggs.

Blood samples taken before and during the study revealed higher levels antioxidant compounds, including vitamin E and phenols, after one week. Similarly, levels of oleic acid, the predominant type of fat in olive oil, as well as monounsaturated fatty acids, were higher. These changes were associated with a slower LDL oxidation rate.

"In addition to the LDL-lowering effect of virgin olive oil, our results suggest that an intake of 25 mL/day could increase the resistance of LDL to oxidation because it becomes richer in oleic acid and antioxidants," the study concludes. "These benefits could be achieved by including virgin olive oil daily in our diet."

SOURCE: European Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2002;56:114-120.


http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...lesterol_food_1

great find, wa'il.

But weird: "Study volunteers were also told to avoid high-fat foods such as butter, margarine, cooking oil, nuts, baked foods and eggs" -- a list that includes both foods known to raise and foods known to lower various types of cholesterol.

Just to reiterate: most cooking oils, nuts, eggs, and butter are all plenty food for us!

Razzle
Agree with what you say except for the cooking oils reference. Most cooking oils are processed and taken to very high temperatures and this causes a huge increase in trans fatty acids in the oil, which is key contributor to LDL increase.

All the other foods you mention are either very natural (nuts, eggs) or not overprocessed (butter), and are therefore "good".
Cheers
Alec

Alecmcq
Would you have any references you could site regarding the processing of commercial oils and the subsequent increase in trans fat?
Thank you

hi EMT,

Try to get your hands on a copy of Fats That Heal Fats That Kill by Udo Erasmus. It's an eye-opener

Doreen

Doreen
Thanks, you got there before I did! There are 2 very good refs: the one Doreen mentioned (a bit heavy!) and a shorter simpler one called Good Fats and Oils by Siegfried Gursche.
Cheers
Alec

The idea that virgin olive oil was a good fat and easy to add to the diet, has been around for quite awhile. But it is always good to see studies that really support the idea.

I remember as a child, the grown ups around us were going on a strange diet, whereby people were losing weight by consuming several ounces of oil.
I recall, the major problem at that time was how to ingest the required amount. To date I have not found anyone who could remember that diet or what kind of oil was used.
There may have been additional requirements, such as omitting sugar and flour products, but I only remember the one requirement .

Wouldn't that be a big kicker if it turned out to be extra virgin oilive oil?

hi jujubaby,

PP = Protein Power, pub. '95 and '96 by the Drs. Eades

PPLP = Protein Power LifePlan, pub. '00 by the Eades.

Your library likely has a copy of these books that you could borrow. I highly recommend you have a read through PPLP .. there is good information there about fats and essential fatty acids.

Doreen

yes I'm always interested in new material to read about losing weight and nutrition.
I recently purchased several books in order to read what was current with low carbing and it always seems that they get so far to say that we shouldn't eat to induce an insulin spike, but fall short of saying that there is something to Atkins total low carb diet/restrictions.
I don't know if you remember an early posting of mine where I went to see the intern about a bad bronchial cough and fell into bad graces with the Dr?
Well, after discussing how "bad" she thought my "asthma; had become and stating I was in a "downward spiral" she added to the bunch of medicines, glucophage. Supposedly the New England Journal of Medicine had completed a study with people who are overweight and in danger of becoming diabetics, were put on two protocols.
The first was with people given a restrictive diet; {surely must be low carbs} and one group given glucophage. Out of the group with glucophage, several lost weight that had difficulty losing weight. But so did the diet restrictive people lose weight and controlled the advent of diabetes.
So, the study is still incomplete, but a new endo that I went to tuesday said that I was not a diabetic and yes what I was trying to do by my restricing sugar, white flour and white potatoes was as good as the diabetics dieting to GET OFFF MEDICATIONS.
He was careful not to say that she was wrong giving the glucophage, {doesn't want to get involved in a court case, have no fear} but he sees no evidence that the study warrants the use of non diabtetics taking glucophage.
The logical question is, do all the people that become diabetics begin to lose weight when they are finally put on glucophage?
Allegedly the medicine prevents too much insulin being produced and prevents hunger or supposedly "controls" appetite.

So back to the diet by calories?

One of the books that I read was DR. Heller's "Carbo addictics diet" and how to lose weight by having NO carbs all day until one meal for one hour only, when you can consume meat and potatoes and fruit and dessert.{here simplified}
The other books were Dr. Atkins new Revelations/explanations; Nutrition for Healing; Dr. Schwarzbein's cook book; and False Fat and how to cleanse and detoxify the body of these excess fats/fluids then on to real fat loss.

Not sure of what to think/do now!

I saw in your profile that you do not make mention of reading Bernstein, this is the one book that all diabetics and pre diabetics should have, it is my "bible". Diabetes Solution is the name and here is his web site.
http://www.diabetes-normalsugars.com/index.shtml

Jujubaby, OldSalty is right, Dr. Bernstein's Diabetes Solution is THE book to read if you want to know about (both types of) diabetes.

I'd also recommend you do a websearch on Glucophage and find out the SPECIFIC actions of this particular drug (or perhaps even search here in the Diabetes forum) as some diabetes "drugs" force down blood sugars by causing the pancreas to INCREASE it's output of insulin and some actually reduce the blood sugar itself by some mechanism I'm not clear on but I THINK involves increasing cells' sensitivity to the existing insulin. Two very different approaches which can make a great difference in the results.



Well, NOT necessarily is this diet referred to a low carb one... if it's not SPECIFIED as low carb, the odds are that it's actually low fat.

Doreen thanks for the reference to the book Fats that Heal and Fats that Kill, I am half way through reading it and so far I particularly enjoyed the explanation concerning the conversion of sugar into triglycerides. I have not seen the chemistry involved in this conversion explained so clearly before.
To quote "Refined dietary sugars almost always turn into fats, and starches can also turn into saturated fats" also "Sweet fruits contain starches but also large amounts of sugar, and can lead to fat production when they form more than a small part of our diet"
There is of course much more detail in the book and I endorse Doreen's recommendation that this book should be added to your low carb reading list.
Here is the link again.
http://www.udoerasmus.com/fatsmain.htm

Hello everyone;

Just wanted to thank you all for the suggested readings.
I have started reading on line Dr. bernstein's book and will get it when I pick up Br. Schwarzbeins principle.

Getting kicked out of a group practice is most humiliating.
Now when I get new Drs. I will have to bring the books with me if I want to defend my program to any of these so called healers.

Hi
This goes back a few messages...but I did review the "fats that heal..." book and it confirmed what I understand to be true...that it is the hydrogenation process- not high temp alone- that creates trans fat. Cooking oils are not hydrogenated unless they are made into a spread-type product. Just wanted to clarify that so that we dont confuse anyone into thinking that cooking oils are "bad".

HI Guys:
from what I understand about oils, and my favorite "premium virgin olive oil, first cold pressed" you can "cook" with the best olive oil as long as you do not use very hi heat that breaks it down. Certainly, when sauteeing garlic or other veggies in a cold pan with cold olive oil, you can get the flavor and perfum of the garlic and onion to flavor your light sauce or to quick cook steak or shrimp etc.

Being of Italian heritage, it was passed down in the family to switch oils when sauteeing or frying. But I have since learned that is not done in Italy, they use frist pressed Virgin olive oil for all their cooking. { no such thing having two oils in the house} Also, they do not "dip" french bread or Italian bread in oil as an appetizer. I would bet that trick was used to have people sample the makers of their finest oils. When pressing oil, even the best houses press a second, third and fourth time to get the valuable oil out of the olives. This has to be like pressing grapes for wine.
guess which pressing will make the best wine?

again, thank you for the book recommendations. I still have not found a cure or the best treatment for gout so, when it breaks through the medicine I take daily, I have to switch to fruits and lite foods for a week at least. Some times I lose weight on that but it never stays "lost"