by Sandra Piddock

Created on: April 27, 2010

Olives are one of the world's oldest foods and also one of the world's healthiest foods. Believed to originate in Crete, at least five thousand to seven thousand years ago, olives are mentioned in the Bible. Hippocrates, the Greek physician, was aware of their health benefits. Olives also figure in ancient mythology, and civilisations have been making oil from olives since around 3000 BC.

Olives contain monounsaturated fats and vitamin E. For those of you who just keeled over in horror at that 'F' word - remember, we all need some fat in our diet, and monounsaturated fat is the good guy here. In combination with vitamin E, monounsaturated fats protect the body's cells from damage and guard against inflammation.

Vitamin E is found in skin creams, and is known for its anti-aging properties. By eating olives and cooking with olive oil, you're giving yourself an internal vitamin E facial, without paying telephone number prices for anti-aging creams.

High levels of vitamin E and monounsaturated fats can guard against heart disease and colon cancer, so small and mighty olives are the guardians of your body's health. Olives also have anti-inflammatory properties, so a diet which includes olives is helpful to people suffering from osteoarthritis, lupus and rheumatoid arthritis.

Olive oil is the only oil that can be tolerated by the digestive system as it is. Where I live in Spain, the locals just don't do butter. They drizzle olive oil on bread and salads, and it's very rare to hear of a Spaniard dying from heart disease, so they're doing something right. Research in Madrid has shown that olive oil lowers bad cholesterol (LDL), and also raises levels of good cholesterol (HDL), but the Spanish already knew that olive oil was good for them - they didn't need research to prove it!

The Greek diet contains almost as much fat as Americans eat, but as all that fat comes from olive oil, the incidence of heart disease is much lower in Greece than in America. McDonalds obviously don't use olive oil for their fries! 

Olive oil can also protect against the formation of gallstones better than prescribed medications, and the bonus is, there are no side effects. In addition, people whose diet includes olives and olive oil rarely suffer from constipation or stomach ulcers. Extra virgin olive oil from the first pressing is more effective, because it has been through less processing, so always choose this oil, both for flavour and for optimum health benefits.

If olives and olive oil don't already figure in your diet, perhaps it's time you gave them a chance to show what they can do for your overall health. And if nothing else, you'll discover that something that tastes great can also be good for you!

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