Throughout my childhood my meals my mom made always contained
olive oil. Cooking meals in butter or fat was a foreign concept for the 8 year
old me. At the time I was not aware of the health benefits and uses of olive
oil. It is about time that I did some research.
Olive
trees are a Mediterranean plant and were domesticated and utilized by the
countries around the Mediterranean Sea such as Greece, Rome, Egypt, Syria,
Palestine, and even Spain. In 2010 Spain, Italy, and Greece were the top three producers
of olive oil. The process to produce olive oil includes the followig. Olives
are grounded into a paste. That olive paste is placed on top of each other.
Pressure is then applied and the liquid oozes out. This vegetable liquid
includes the olive oil and water. Centrifuge is used to separate the oil from
the water. The oil is then filtered. Olive oil is used all over the world and,
according to an article of CNN, the US is the world’s third largest olive oil
consumer. It has uses not only in cuisine, but also in beauty, and health.
Since 4500 BC olive oil has been applied to human skin. The
ancient Greek athletes would take massages with olive oils before sporting
events to prevent sports injury and relieve muscle fatigue. Egyptians used it
as skin cleanser and moisturizer. Today some people use olive oil in massages,
to treat acne, and even as a substitute for shaving cream. Recently scientific
studies have shown that olive oil has antioxidant effects that can help prevent
damage to the skin from the sun. As an antioxidant it also helps prevent the
oxidation of DNA and RNA so anti-carcinogenic benefits have also been postulated.
Phenols, Vitamin A, D, K, and E in olive oil help with this anti oxidation.
Olive
oil is extensively used in Mediterranean cuisine. Documented health benefits of
olive oil include lowering cholesterol, lowering blood pressure, reducing the
risk of heart disease, and decreasing the chance of breast and colorectal
cancer. Olive oil is an unsaturated fat. Switching from a saturated fat diet to
an unsaturated diet have been linked to the aforementioned health benefits because
monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats decrease the risk factors
associated. Monounsaturated fatty acids lower cholesterol and low density lipoprotein
(a transporter of lipids such as cholesterol). They also have shown to have thrombolytic
activity which is helpful in controlling the number of blood clots.
AHMAD KHATTAB
Resources:
This is super interesting... does this mean I can use olive oil instead of butter in baking recipes?
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