Extra Virgin Olive Oil – Food or medicine, or both?

Ancient Greek physician Hippocrates called olive oil “the great healer” and used it in treatments for his patients. The wise doctor may have been referring to this same golden elixir when he also advised people to “let food be thy medicine”. Today, Olive oil is still a delicious reminder of the power of food in achieving optimal health. As a Nutritional Therapist with a ‘food first’ approach, I ‘prescribe’ olive oil to all my clients, suggesting ways to use it to enhance almost any meal.

Fresh seasonal food, from the land and sea, drenched in extra virgin olive oil, is the cornerstone of the Mediterranean Diet, a diet and lifestyle now endorsed globally as cardioprotective and associated with longevity. There are also numerous studies specifically reporting on the overall health benefits of olive oil consumption. This golden elixir is not only a versatile and delicious ingredient to complement any meal, it is truly medicinal, and deserves prime spot on our kitchen counter.

Let us learn a little about olive oil, why it is so special, how best to procure it, and what we can do with it.

The harvest, receiving from the earth

It all starts with the harvest in Autumn, a celebration of the cyclical nature of the seasons and of life, with the golden hues of autumn reflected in its delicious reward. The olive tree is harvested over innumerable seasons, spanning generations, with some olive trees in the Mediterranean believed to be a few thousand years old. The inherent wisdom of nature in such a tree inspires awe: it is a true symbol of resilience and longevity.

As the days shorten and the autumn air cools, the branches of silver-leafed olive trees are laden with their juicy, green and black fruit. The olives are picked and then pressed within a few hours, to safeguard the freshness of the oil. Historically, in Mediterranean countries, a mule would haul a gigantic millstone around a stone pit filled with olives, slowly crushing the day’s harvest, to extract its precious oil. Today, in South Africa too, we use technology that emulates that slow process, never heating the olives, cold pressing them to keep all the nutritive value of the oil intact.

A true superfood

If one food was to receive the prize for its nutrient and bioactive diversity, it would be olive oil. It can truly be regarded as a super food in this regard. Apart from being a healthy fat in its own right, and containing powerful antioxidant properties, it also acts as a bioactive nutrition enhancer when added to vegetables and herbs.

Olive oil is possibly the most researched fat in the world and there are frequent studies exploring the olive oil and human gene interaction. These studies consistently demonstrate that a diet rich in olive oil, combined with the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of a Mediterranean diet, appears to play a protective role in the genetic pathways related to chronic inflammation, cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Extra virgin olive oil is unrivalled as a food containing a wide array of antioxidants called bioactive polyphenols. Bioactive compounds act on genes and signaling receptors to enable them to protect cells from oxidative damage. Polyphenols are a large group of non-nutritive compounds called phytochemicals that quench destructive free radicals.

These antioxidants also protect the oil from turning rancid. When tasting the raw oil, connoisseurs expect to cough a little, in response to a good olive oil’s characteristic pepperiness at the back of the throat, a sign of an oil’s healthy polyphenol content.

While olive oil brims with antioxidants that play a role in cancer prevention and treatment, it is best known as a major source of healthy monounsaturated fat.

There are 3 types of healthy dietary fats:

- Saturated fats are solid at room temperature and other than coconut oil, are found in meat, eggs and dairy products. Depending on an individual’s genetic predisposition and lifestyle, these fats can be associated with higher cholesterol levels and cardiovascular diseases.

- Polyunsaturated fats (PUFAs) are the omega 6 and 3 fatty acids found in nuts, seeds and fish. These are important “essential fatty acids”, meaning we only get them from our food, and often need to add them in supplement form to ensure we get enough. They are unstable and easily oxidise to become rancid.

- Monounsaturated fat (MUFA) is found in olive and avocado oil and is a stable and health promoting fat. This form of dietary fat is cardioprotective and effective in the management of cholesterol.

With any of our meal planning and preparation, it is becoming increasingly important to be mindful of how the food going onto our plates will be able to fuel and nourish our bodies. A nutritious meal or snack should always contain a healthy fat, and olive oil is an easy and beneficial option for anyone, irrespective of genes.

How to procure the best olive oil

While the olive, and the characterful tree upon which it grows, are Mediterranean icons, we do not need to venture too far to find our own. The Western Cape provides the perfect Mediterranean climate and soil conditions to produce olives and olive oil that rival any of its European counterparts. We are also privileged to be able to connect with the source of our oil.

The way food is grown and handled contributes significantly to the nourishment and vitality we receive from it. When the farmers growing our food honour the land and the people working on it, this directly contributes to the healthfulness of the food they produce. I like to support small scale olive farmers in the Western Cape who invest in the health of the environment and of surrounding local communities. Many are passionate about implementing sustainable, organic and biodynamic farming principles that are an integral part of creating and honouring a sustainable circle of life. I am reassured that what they produce is replete with nutrients that have been drawn up from soils that have been sustainable worked.

The best way to buy olive oil is from a small vendor who knows the local producers. This way, we know where it comes from and how it has been produced. An extra virgin olive oil should simply be the product of freshly picked olives that have been crushed. It will have a full fruity aroma, typically deep peppery notes on the palate, and an intense green and golden colour.

How to use olive oil

A good quality olive oil is a revered ingredient, to be coveted and respected, it can turn the most modest of foods into something sublime. We should never be without it, and we should use it with everything: it will serve us well. Simply combined with crushed garlic, fresh herbs, cracked black pepper, parmesan shavings or lemon juice, olive oil will transform a humble potato, slice of sourdough bread, plate of steamed vegetables, soup, or egg dish into something quite special.

Find some recipes for versatile, healthy condiments using olive oil on my recipes page. Keep them in your pantry or fridge, to make meal or snack planning and preparation simple, so that there is never a desperate “what can we eat” moment.