Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS.
As a main component of the Mediterranean Diet, olive oil has many health-promoting benefits. These health benefits are due in large part to the high level of antioxidants in olive oil (1) called polyphenols (2).
A recent study in mice (3) has found that olive oil may also benefit heart health. Cardiovascular disease affects nearly 81 million Americans (4) and is estimated to cost our healthcare system $448.5 billion in 2008, according to the American Heart Association (5).
In the study, 16 groups of rats (with six rats in each group except the control group, which had four rats) were given the following per day for seven days:
- Six groups – Hydroxytyrosol (HT), the primary antioxidant in olive oil, in amounts of 1, 5, 10, 20,50, and 100 mg per kg of body weight
- Six groups – Hydroxytyrosol acetate (HT-AC), another antioxidant in olive oil, in identical amounts to the other six groups
- Three groups – Aspirin (AS) given in 1, 5, and 10 mg per kg of body weight
- Control group – Isotonic saline solution
After seven days, the researchers measured the levels of blood clotting in the rats and the levels of inflammatory protein in the blood, including TXB2 and Aortic 6-keto-PGF1-alpha (A6PGF).
The dose of aspirin used in the study was equivalent to a 150-lb. person taking 75-350 mg per day. The dose of olive oil antioxidants given was “above the dose humans would receive by consuming [olive oil] as part of their daily diet.” The higher doses were used, however, because individual antioxidants were tested as opposed to using olive oil since it “contains a complex of polyphenols and other antioxidants” that may work together to help thin the blood. The researchers chose to compare olive antioxidants to aspirin because aspirin is the drug used most widely to prevent cardiovascular disease, due to its blood-thinning properties.
The researchers found that, compared to the control group, Hydroxytyrosol and Hydroxytyrosol acetate reduced levels of TXB2 by 30% and 37%, respectively, at 100 mg/kg/day while significant decreases were seen with Hydroxytyrosol acetate at 10 mg/kg/day, decreasing TXB2 by ~25%. Aspirin decreased TXB2 by 50% at a dose of 2.42 mg/day. For A6PGF, Hydroxytyrosol and Hydroxytyrosol acetate decreased levels at 100 mg/kg/day by 27.5% and 32%, respectively, and by 25% and 28%, respectively at 20 mg/kg/day. Aspirin decreased A6PGF by 50% at 6.75 mg/day.
For the researchers, “these results may offer an explanation for the beneficial effects of [olive oil] in preventing cardiovascular events and open new perspectives toward the potential use of these polyphenols as an alternative to [aspirin] in the prevention of [heart-related] events.”
Source: González-Correa, José Antonio, María Dolores Navas, Javier Muñoz-Marín, Mariana Trujillo, Juan Fernández-Bolaños, and José Pedro de la Cruz. “Effects of hydroxytyrosol and hydroxytyrosol acetate administration to rats on platelet function compared to acetylsalicylic acid.” J. Agric. Food Chem 56, no. 17 (2008): 7872-7876.
© 2008 American Chemical Society
Posted October 10, 2008.
Reference:
- Di Benedetto R. Tyrosol, the major extra virgin olive oil compound, restored intracellular antioxidant defences in spite of its weak antioxidative effectiveness. Nutr Metab Cardio Diseases In Press, Corrected Proof, Available online 22 August 2006.
- Corona G. The fate of olive oil polyphenols in the gastrointestinal tract: implications of gastric and colonic microflora-dependent biotransformation. Free Radic Res. 2006 Jun;40(6):647-58.
- González-Correa JA. Effects of Hydroxytyrosol and Hydroxytyrosol Acetate Administration to Rats on Platelet Function Compared to Acetylsalicylic Acid. Jou Agric. Food Chem., 56 (17), 7872–7876, 2008.
- “Cardiovascular Disease Statistics” posted on the American Heart Association website.
- “Cardiovascular Disease Cost” posted on the American Heart Association website.
