Study Highlights Multiple Health Benefits of Olive Oil Consumption

by | Apr 29, 2016 | 2013, Cardiovascular Health, Obesity, Olive & Monosaturated

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Individuals consuming olive oil have a 38% reduced risk of obesity.

In the United States, cardiovascular disease kills 1 in 4 Americans every year (1). In Spain, however, nearly 1 in 3 residents’ deaths are due to cardiovascular disease (31.1%) (2). Yet, despite a continued increase in cardiovascular disease risk factors (high blood cholesterol, type 2 diabetes, and high blood pressure (3)) among the Spanish population (4), the rate of cardiovascular disease has not risen as expected (5). This has become known as the ‘Spanish paradox’ (6).

Now a new study (7) suggests that this paradox may be explained by olive oil consumption. The study involved 4,572 individuals older than the age of 18 across Spain participating in the Diabetes study. They underwent a physical examination (8), provided blood work, and completed questionnaires on diet and lifestyle. The subjects were then divided into 3 groups:

  • Those who consumed only olive
  • Those who consuming olive oil and other oils like sunflower oil
  • Those who consumed only sunflower oil

The researchers found that compared to those who only consumed sunflower oil, those consuming only olive oil had

  • A 38% lower risk of obesity (p = 0.02)
  • A 51% lower risk of having blood sugar control problems (p = 0.04)
  • A 47% reduced risk of high blood fats (called triglycerides, p = 0.03)
  • A 60% lower risk of having low HDL cholesterol levels (p = 0.0001)

When looking at raw numbers from the blood work, those consuming only olive oil had

  • 37.9% lower insulin levels after blood sugar challenge (called an “oral glucose tolerance test, 47.6 vs. 76.6 milliUnits/milliliter, p = 0.001)
  • 15% higher HDL cholesterol levels (52.9 vs. 46.0 milligrams/deciliter, p < 0.0001)
  • 21.3% lower levels of triglycerides (116.9 vs. 148.4 milligrams/deciliter, p = 0.001)

Unfortunately, the researchers did not obtain information on how much olive was consumed each day to obtain these health benefits, just about use. They went on to conclude that “consumption of olive oil has a beneficial effect on different cardiovascular risk factors, particularly in the presence of obesity [and] impaired glucose tolerance.”  Although there was a strong association between the consumption of olive oil and the various benefits found, controlled studies should be done to confirm these results and rule out other factors.

Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Hauppauge, NY.  You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him atPitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.PitchingDoc.com.

Source: Soriguer, Federico, et al. “Olive oil has a beneficial effect on impaired glucose regulation and other cardiometabolic risk factors. Di@ bet. es study.” European journal of clinical nutrition 67.9 (2013): 911-916.

© 2013 Macmillan Publishers Limited All rights reserved 0954-3007/13

Posted July 22, 2014.

References:

  1. “Heart Disease Facts” posted on the CDC Website
  2. Instituto-Nacional-de-Estadı´stica. Defunciones segu´n causa de muerte, 2011
  3. “Heart Disease Conditions” posted on the CDC Website
  4. Grau M, Elosua R, Cabrera de Leon A, Guembe MJ, Baena-Diez JM, Vega Alonso T et al. [Cardiovascular risk factors in Spain in the first decade of the 21st Century, a pooled analysis with individual data from 11 population-based studies: the DARIOS study]. Rev Esp Cardiol 2011; 64: 295–304
  5. Muller-Nordhorn J, Binting S, Roll S, Willich SN. An update on regional variation in cardiovascular mortality within Europe. Eur Heart J 2008; 29: 1316–1326
  6. Serra-Majem L, Ribas L, Tresserras R, Ngo J, Salleras L. How could changes in diet explain changes in coronary heart disease mortality in Spain? The Spanish paradox. Am J Clin Nutr 1995; 61(6 Suppl): 1351S–1359SS
  7. Soriguer F. Olive oil has a beneficial effect on impaired glucose regulation and other cardiometabolic risk factors. Diabetes study. Eur J Clin Nutr 2013 Sep;67(9):911-6. doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2013.130
  8. World-Healh-Organization-Expert-Committee. Physical Status: The Use and Interpretation of Anthropometry. Technical Report Series No. 854WHO: Geneva 1995