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Olive Leaf

Olive oil is mostly omega-9.  See my omega-9 page.

Specific Recommendations:

• Olive leaf extract at Amazon.com

News and Research:

• Health benefits of olives and olive oil - Science Daily, 9/12/17 - "the olive-derived compound oleuropein helps the body secrete more insulin, a central signaling molecule in the body that controls metabolism. The same compound also detoxifies another signaling molecule called amylin that over-produces and forms harmful aggregates in type 2 diabetes. In these two distinct ways, oleuropein helps prevent the onset of disease ... The discovery could help improve understanding of the scientific basis of health benefits of olive products and develop new, low-cost nutraceutical strategies to fight type 2 diabetes and related obesity" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Olive Oil Key Ingredient in Alzheimer's Prevention? - Medscape, 6/27/17 - "mice fed the EVOO-enriched diet performed significantly better at both 9 and 12 months on tests designed to assess working memory, spatial memory, and learning abilities compared with mice fed regular chow ... The researchers also found a statistically significant reduction in the amount of Aβ peptides deposited in the brains of the EVOO-treated animals compared with controls ... There was also a significant reduction in the phosphorylated forms of tau in mice fed the EVOO-enriched chow compared to controls" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Extra-virgin olive oil preserves memory, protects brain against Alzheimer's - Science Daily, 6/21/17 - "consumption of extra-virgin olive oil protects memory and learning ability and reduces the formation of amyloid-beta plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain -- classic markers of Alzheimer's disease ... at age 9 months and 12 months, mice on the extra virgin olive oil-enriched diet performed significantly better on tests designed to evaluate working memory, spatial memory, and learning abilities ... Studies of brain tissue from both groups of mice revealed dramatic differences in nerve cell appearance and function"
• Extra virgin olive oil is the best option for frying fish - Science Daily, 7/15/16 - "During the shallow-frying of the fish under domestic conditions, not only do the fish lipids migrate to the frying oil, the components of the oil are also transferred to the fillet of fish. As a result, the composition of the oil used for frying is modified: firstly, it is enriched by the acyl groups ('fatty acids') that are present in a higher concentration in the fish fat than in the original oil, and secondly, and simultaneously, it is depleted in the acyl groups present in a higher concentration in the original oil than in the fish fat. So after having been used for frying, the extra virgin olive oil was richer in omega-3, omega-1 acyl groups, linoleic and saturated fats (from the fish) and poorer in oleic, which is the main acyl group in olive oil. Likewise, after having been used for frying, the sunflower oil was richer in all the acyl group types (coming from the fish) except linoleic, which is the majority acyl group in sunflower oil. Furthermore, after frying, both types of oil were enriched by small amounts of cholesterol (from the fish)"
• Impact of phenolic-rich olive leaf extract on blood pressure, plasma lipids and inflammatory markers: a randomised controlled trial - Eur J Nutr. 2016 Mar 7 - "A total of 60 pre-hypertensive [systolic blood pressure (SBP): 121-140 mmHg; diastolic blood pressure (DBP): 81-90 mmHg] males [mean age 45 (±SD 12.7 years, BMI 26.7 (±3.21) kg/m2] consumed either OLE (136 mg oleuropein; 6 mg hydroxytyrosol) or a polyphenol-free control daily for 6 weeks before switching to the alternate arm after a 4-week washout ... aytime [-3.95 (±SD 11.48) mmHg, p = 0.027] and 24-h SBP [-3.33 (±SD 10.81) mmHg, p = 0.045] and daytime and 24-h DBP [-3.00 (±SD 8.54) mmHg, p = 0.025; -2.42 (±SD 7.61) mmHg, p = 0.039] were all significantly lower following OLE intake, relative to the control. Reductions in plasma total cholesterol [-0.32 (±SD 0.70) mmol/L, p = 0.002], LDL cholesterol [-0.19 (±SD 0.56) mmol/L, p = 0.017] and triglycerides [-0.18 (±SD 0.48), p = 0.008] were also induced by OLE compared to control, whilst a reduction in interleukin-8 [-0.63 (±SD 1.13) pg/ml; p = 0.026] was also detected" - [Nutra USA] - See Comvita Olive Leaf Extract at Amazon.com.
• Mediterranean diet plus olive oil associated with reduced breast cancer risk - Science Daily, 9/14/15 = "participants in the two intervention groups were given EVOO (one liter per week for the participants and their families) or mixed nuts (30 grams per day: 15 grams of walnuts, 7.5 grams of hazelnuts and 7.5 grams of almonds) ... women eating a Mediterranean diet supplemented with EVOO showed a 68 percent (multivariable-adjusted hazard ratio of 0.32) relatively lower risk of malignant breast cancer than those allocated to the control diet. Women eating a Mediterranean diet supplemented with nuts showed a nonsignificant risk reduction compared with women in the control group"
• Diet That Helps You Live Longer May Keep Your Mind Sound, Too - nbcnews.com, 5/11/15 - "Two groups were assigned to follow the Mediterranean diet and told to add either five 5 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil a day or a handful of mixed nuts. The third group got the low-fat advice ... The group who ate the extra nuts did better in terms of memory and the group given extra virgin olive oil performed better on tests that required quick thinking ... Just over 13 percent of those who got extra olive oil were diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, which may or may not lead to Alzheimer's disease. Just 7 percent of those who got nuts were diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, while around 13 percent of those who got neither developed memory loss ... But many of the patients actually saw their memories get better over the four years. On average, those in the low-fat-only group lost some memory and thinking skills, but those who got extra nuts had their memory skills improve on average, while those who got olive oil had improvements in problem-solving and planning skills" - [Abstract]
• Healthy fats help diseased heart muscle process, use fuel - Science Daily, 9/29/14 - "Oleate, a common dietary fat found in olive oil, restored proper metabolism of fuel in an animal model of heart failure ... As the heart walls grow thick, the volume of blood pumped out diminishes and can no longer supply the body with enough nutrients ... Failing hearts are also unable to properly process or store the fats they use for fuel, which are contained within tiny droplets called lipid bodies in heart muscle cells. The inability to use fats, the heart's primary fuel source, causes the muscle to become starved for energy ... When the researchers perfused failing rat hearts with oleate, "we saw an immediate improvement in how the hearts contracted and pumped blood," ... oleate also restored the activation of several genes for enzymes that metabolize fat"
• Five Foods for Healthier Skin - ABC News, 3/31/14 - "The main factor responsible for aging, wrinkly skin is ultraviolet radiation, or skin photoaging. A French study on 1,264 women and 1,655 men suggests that the monounsaturated fatty acid in olive oil is protective against severe photoaging. Photodamage, including blotchy pigmentation, wrinkling and skin sagging, is mainly caused by the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in response to sun exposure. This study suggests that olive oil in the diet increases the ability of the skin to resist damage caused by UV radiation"
• Mediterranean Diet Improves Cognition - Medscape, 1/8/14 - "extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) ... In conclusion, an intervention with MedDiet supplemented with either EVOO or mixed nuts was associated with a better global cognitive performance after 6.5 years of follow-up compared with a control group who received advice on a lower-fat diet. Our findings support increasing evidence on the protective effects of the MedDiet on cognitive function" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Mediterranean Diet Cuts Type 2 Diabetes Risk by a Third - Medscape, 1/6/14 - "The Mediterranean diet is high in fat (30% to 40% of total calories) from vegetable sources such as olive oil and nuts and relatively low in dairy products. The diet also commonly includes sauces with tomato, onions, garlic, and spices and moderate wine consumption ... enrolled 7447 men and women aged 55 to 80 years who did not have CVD at baseline but were at risk for it. They were randomized to 1 of 3 diets: a Mediterranean diet supplemented with either EVOO (50 mL/d) or mixed nuts (30 g/d) or a control diet with advice to reduce intake of all types of fat ... both Mediterranean diets cut the CVD event risk by as much as 30% compared with the controls at 4.8 years of follow-up ... CVD effects of the Mediterranean diet are believed to be due to its inclusion of ingredients containing various minerals, polyphenols, and other phytochemicals that combat oxidative stress, inflammation, and insulin resistance ... It's not clear why the Mediterranean diet supplemented with mixed nuts failed to show a significant diabetes reduction benefit ... Another reason may be that the foods that one eats with olive oil are better for preventing diabetes than those one eats with nuts. Or the higher monounsaturated-fat intake of the EVOO is more important than the polyunsaturated fatty acids from the nuts" - Note:  Nuts have about four times as much omega-6 as omega-3.  Olive oil is mostly omega-9.
• 5 Foods for Healthy Skin - ABC News, 9/12/13 - "Strawberries ... Olive oil ... Green tea ... Pumpkin ... Pomegranate"
• Explaining how extra virgin olive oil protects against Alzheimer's disease - Science Daily, 3/20/13 - "Newer research suggested that the actual protective agent might be a substance called oleocanthal, which has effects that protect nerve cells from the kind of damage that occurs in AD ... oleocanthal showed a consistent pattern in which it boosted production of two proteins and key enzymes believed to be critical in removing Aβ from the brain" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Olive Oil Makes You Feel Full - Science Daily, 3/14/13 - "While it is true that they contain fewer calories, people tend to overcompensate by eating more if they do not feel full. Now a study has shown how "natural" oils and fats regulate the sensation of feeling full after eating, with olive oil leading the way ...Over a period of three months, the study participants ate 500 grams of low-fat yoghurt enriched with one of the four fats or oils every day -- as a supplement to their normal diet ... The olive oil group showed a higher concentration of the satiety hormone serotonin in their blood. Subjectively speaking, these participants also reported that they found the olive oil yoghurt very filling ... During the study period, no member of this group recorded an increase in their body fat percentage or their weight ... How long the feeling of satiety lasts after eating depends on a number of factors, but blood sugar level is particularly significant. The faster it falls, that is to say, the faster the somatic cells absorb glucose from the blood, the sooner the person will start to feel hungry again"
• Olive oil’s health benefits? It’s a slippery question - The Washington Post, 9/11/12 - "The health benefits of olive oil are 99 percent related to the presence of the phenolic compounds, not the oil itself ... Malik is referring to the polyphenols in olive oil, nutrients also found in wine, tea, cocoa and many fruits and vegetables that have been discovered over the past decade to be the substances responsible for the bulk of olive oil’s health benefits, without which “you might as well use canola oil,” ... when tested, polyphenols were surprisingly low in most commercially available olive oils ... Any exposure of the harvested olives or the oil to heat, light or air will reduce polyphenol content"
• Olive extract shows benefits for inflammatory bowel disease - Nutra USA, 9/12/11 - "Olive oil and the hydroxytyrosol it contains may reduce inflammation linked with the development of colitis ... Hydroxytyrosol is thought to be the main antioxidant compound in olives, and believed to play a significant role in the many health benefits attributed to olive oil. Previous research has linked the compound to cardiovascular benefits, with reductions in LDL or 'bad' cholesterol. Data has also suggested the compound may boost eye health and reduce the risk of against macular degeneration ... the olive oil-fed animals had an attenuation of the colonic damage, as well as a 50% reduction in the mortality rate caused by DSS. The results were improved further by hydroxytyrosol supplement ... levels of the pro-inflammatory compound interleuking-10 (IL-10) were “significantly improved” in both olive oil-fed groups" - [Abstract]
• Hydroxytyrosol is key anti-inflammatory compound in olive: DSM study - Nutra USA, 8/25/11 - "Hydroxytyrosol, an ingredient to watch, has been identified as the main anti-inflammatory compound in olives ... hydroxytyrosol was found to inhibit both nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), both are pro-inflammatory compounds ... The effects of hydroxytyrosol on NO and chemokine production point to their impact on chronic inflammatory processes in endothelium or arthritis ... Hydroxytyrosol is thought to be the main antioxidant compound in olives, and believed to play a significant role in the many health benefits attributed to olive oil ... Data has also suggested the compound may boost eye health and reduce the risk of against macular degeneration ... Several companies already offer the compound for nutraceutical applications ... Results showed that hydroxytyrosol inhibited the production of both NO and PGE2 in mouse cells, "reflecting strong anti-inflammatory activity"" - [Abstract] - Note:  Trouble is, you usually don't want to inhibit nitric oxide.
• Olive Oil Linked to Reduced Stroke Risk - WebMD. 6/15/11 - "seniors who regularly used this healthy monounsaturated fat had a 41% lower risk of stroke compared to their counterparts who never used olive oil ... So what exactly is it about olive oil that may lower stroke risk? There are several theories, she says. It may be that people choose olive oil over saturated, artery-clogging fats. “Moreover, previous research found that the polyphenols from virgin olive oil account specifically for its ability to lower oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL)” or bad cholesterol. High cholesterol levels are a known risk factor for stroke ... Olive oil is a healthy fat and it can reduce cholesterol and inflammation, and has been shown to help reduce the incidence of heart disease" - Click here for my olive oil mayonnaise recipe.  See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• DSM builds olive extract IP with energy & exercise performance patent - Nutra USA, 4/7/11 - "According to European Patent EP2009/063492, the invention refers to hydroxytyrosol in combination with at least one other ingredient, including the likes of CoQ10, resveratrol, B vitamins, and EGCG from green tea ... Hydroxytyrosol is thought to be the main antioxidant compound in olives, and believed to play a significant role in the many health benefits attributed to olive oil. Previous research has linked the compound to cardiovascular benefits, with reductions in LDL or 'bad' cholesterol. Data has also suggested the compound may boost eye health and reduce the risk of against macular degeneration ... Hydroxytyrosol significantly increased the running distance to exhaustion in mice and so improved endurance in prolonged exercise ... hydroxytyrosol promotes mitochondrial activity and mitochondrial biogenesis leading to an enhancement of mitochondrial function and cellular defense system" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.  As far as the synergy, I would think that most would be already taking the CoQ-10, resveratrol, B-vitamins and green tea.
• Olive leaf extract may help hypertension: Frutarom study - Nutra USA, 3/9/11 - "Olive leaf extract, at the dosage regimen of 500 mg twice daily, was similarly effective in lowering systolic and diastolic blood pressures in subjects with stage-1 hypertension as Captopril, given at its effective dose of 12.5–25 mg twice daily ... after eight weeks of treatment, both treatment groups experienced significant reductions in systolic and diastolic blood pressure from baseline. They added that such reductions were not significantly different between groups ... However, they reported that a significant reduction of triglyceride level was observed for the group receiving olive leaf extract, but not in Captopril group ... the anti-hypertensive activity “lies probably in its content of oleuropein acting synergistically with other active substances to exert both ACE inhibitory and calcium channel blocking activities."" - [Abstract] - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Olive oil protects liver from oxidative stress, rat study finds - Science Daily, 10/29/10 - "researchers separated the rats into a control group, an olive oil group, and 6 groups that were exposed to the herbicide '2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid' with or without either whole olive oil, or one of two oil extracts -- the hydrophilic fraction or the lipophilic fraction. All rats given the herbicide showed signs of significant liver damage. However, extra virgin olive oil and hydrophilic fraction intake induced a significant increase in antioxidant enzyme activity and a decrease in markers of liver damage ... The hydrophilic fraction of olive oil seems to be the effective one in reducing toxin-induced oxidative stress, indicating that hydrophilic extract may exert a direct antioxidant effect on hepatic cells"
• Olive oil compounds may boost cardiac fat oxidation: Study - Nutra USA, 10/21/10 - "Obese rats supplemented with olive oil, oleuropein, and cafeic acid had higher oxygen consumption, increased fat-oxidation, and lower carbon dioxide production than non supplemented obese rats" - [Abstract]
• Science strengthens for olive extract’s bone benefits - Nutra USA, 9/14/10 - “Our data suggest that oleuropein, highly abundant in olive tree products included in the traditional Mediterranean diet, could prevent age-related bone loss and osteoporosis" - [Abstract]
• Olive oil extract shows brain protecting benefits - Nutra USA, 8/3/10 - "the olive oil compound reduced the cell damaging effects of the oxidative and nitrosative stress in a dose-dependent manner, with higher doses providing increased protection" - [Abstract]
• Key mechanism links virgin olive oil to protection against breast cancer - Science Daily, 6/30/10 - "virgin olive oil is associated with higher incidences of benign breast tumours and at the same time with a decrease in the activity of the p21Ras oncogene, which spurs uncontrolled cell proliferation and stimulates the growth of tumours. In addition, olive oil suppresses the activity of some proteins, such as the AKT, essential for the survival of cells since they prevent apoptosis, the cell's "suicide" programme. Between proliferation and apoptosis in tumour cells, these effects tip the balance towards cell death, thereby slowing the growth of tumours"
• Virgin olive oil and a Mediterranean diet fight heart disease by changing how our genes function - Science Daily, 6/30/10 - "The first group consumed a traditional Mediterranean diet with virgin olive oil rich in polyphenols. The second group consumed a traditional Mediterranean diet with an olive oil low in polyphenols. The third group followed their habitual diet. After three months, the first group had a down-regulation in the expression of atherosclerosis-related genes in their peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Additionally, the olive oil polyphenols made a significant impact on the expression of genetic changes influencing coronary heart disease. Results also showed that the consumption of virgin olive oil in conjunction with a Mediterranean diet can positively impact lipid and DNA oxidation, insulin resistance, inflammation, carcinogenesis, and tumor suppression ... olive oil and a Mediterranean diet affect our bodies in a far more significant way than previously believed"
• Olive-oil enriched diet helps breast cancer survivors lose more weight - Science Daily, 6/3/10
• Olive oil component could avert Alzheimer’s - Nutra USA, 10/20/09 - "ADDLs bind within the neural synapses of the brains of Alzheimer's patients and are believed to directly disrupt nerve cell function, eventually leading to memory loss, cell death and global disruption of brain function ... incubation with oleocanthal changed the structure of ADDLs by increasing the protein's size" - [Abstract]
• Natural Compound In Extra-virgin Olive Oil -- Oleocanthal -- May Help Prevent, Treat Alzheimer's - Science Daily, 9/29/09 - "Measuring ADDL binding with and without oleocanthal, they discovered that small amounts of oleocanthal effectively reduced binding of ADDLs to hippocampal synapses. Additional studies revealed that oleocanthal can protect synapses from structural damage caused by ADDLs ... An unexpected finding was that oleocanthal makes ADDLs into stronger targets for antibodies. This action establishes an opportunity for creating more effective immunotherapy treatments, which use antibodies to bind to and attack ADDLs"
• Source Of Major Health Benefits In Olive Oil Revealed - Science Daily, 4/1/09 - "Scientists have pinned down the constituent of olive oil that gives greatest protection from heart attack and stroke. In a study of the major antioxidants in olive oil, Portuguese researchers showed that one, DHPEA-EDA, protects red blood cells from damage more than any other part of olive oil"
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil May Help To Combat Breast Cancer - Science Daily, 2/5/09 - "this study confirms the potentiality of polyphenols to inhibit HER2 activity and to promote its degradation"
• New Anti-cancer Components Of Extra-virgin Olive Oil Revealed - Science Daily, 12/17/08 - "Extra-virgin olive oil is the oil that results from pressing olives without the use of heat or chemical treatments. It contains phytochemicals that are otherwise lost in the refining process. Menendez and colleagues separated the oil into fractions and tested these against breast cancer cells in lab experiments. All the fractions containing the major extra-virgin phytochemical polyphenols (lignans and secoiridoids) were found to effectively inhibit HER2"
• Olive Leaf Extract Can Help Tackle High Blood Pressure And Cholesterol - Science Daily, 8/27/08 - "This works showed that taking a 1000mg dose has substantial effects in people with borderline hypertension"

Abstracts:

• EVOO as Main Dietary Fat Diet Improved Biomarkers - Medscape, 4/17/23 - "Switching dietary fat intake from common processed OO to EVOO rich in oleocanthal and oleacein improved markers of oxidative stress and inflammation ... After one month of EVOO use, study participants had a significantly greater decrease in the inflammatory cytokine interferon-gamma compared with when they used OO ... EVOO use also significantly linked with greater increases in total antioxidants and greater decreases in lipid and organic hydroperoxides compared with the period of OO use ... EVOO use also linked with significant reductions in weight, BMI, and blood glucose levels compared with baseline levels, but not when compared with the period of OO use. Weight decreased by a significant average 0.92 kg compared with baseline on EVOO, and by a nonsignificant average 0.62 kg on OO compared with baseline." - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Quercetin-3-O-α-L-arabinopyranosyl-(1→2)-β-D-glucopyra-noside Isolated from Eucommia ulmoides Oliver Leaf Relieves Insulin Resistance in HepG2 cells via the IRS-1/PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β pathway - Biol Pharm Bull 2022 Dec 14 - "For nearly 2000 years, Eucommia ulmoides Oliver (EUO) has been utilized in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) throughout China. Flavonoids present in bark and leaves of EUO are responsible for their antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antitumor, anti-osteoporosis, hypoglycemic, hypolipidemic, antibacterial, and antiviral properties, but the main bioactive compound has not been established yet. In this study, we isolated and identified quercetin glycoside (QAG) from EUO leaves (EUOL) and preliminarily explored its molecular mechanism in improving insulin resistance (IR). The results showed that QAG increased uptake of glucose as well as glycogen production in the palmitic acid (PA)-induced HepG2 cells in a dose-dependent way. Further, we observed that QAG increases glucose transporters 2 and 4 (GLUT2 and GLUT4) expression and suppresses the phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1 at serine612, thus promoting the expression of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) at tyrosine458 and tyrosine199, as well as protein kinase B (Akt) and glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)-3β at serine473 and serine9, respectively. The influence posed by QAG on the improvement of uptake of glucose was significantly inhibited by LY294002, a PI3K inhibitor. In addition, the molecular docking result showed that QAG could bind to insulin receptors. In summary, our data established that QAG improved IR as demonstrated by the increased uptake of glucose and glycogen production through a signaling pathway called IRS-1/PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β"
• Daily Consumption of High-Polyphenol Olive Oil Enhances Hippocampal Neurogenesis in Old Female Rats- J Am Nutr Assoc 2022 Nov 23 - "Our study is first to show that daily consumption of HP-olive oil enhances hippocampal neurogenesis in old rats, which has been confirmed by proliferation and maturation biomarkers. In addition, increased SYN and calbindin levels showed that the generated cells were also functionally developed in the HP group. We suggest that daily consumption of HP olive oil may have beneficial effects on brain aging by triggering neurogenesis"
• Biological effects of the olive tree and its derivatives on the skin - Food Funct 2022 Oct 25 - "Numerous studies have pointed out the protective effect of olive compounds on skin ageing, thanks to their role in the different mechanisms involved in the ageing process, such as reducing oxidative stress, increasing cell viability and decreasing histological alterations. With regard to their photoprotective effect, the olive tree and its fruit contain phenolic compounds which have a protective effect against radiation, such as low ultraviolet absorption and high antioxidant activity, acting as a protective factor against photocarcinogenesis. Similarly, the anti-tumour effects of olives have been studied at the level of the different compounds and extracts obtained from them, and their ability to selectively attack human melanoma cells has been observed. They have also shown antibacterial activity against microorganisms particularly implicated in skin infections, such as Escherichia coli, Candida albicans, Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, Enterococcus faecalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Proteus spp. Likewise, on healthy tissue, they have shown the ability to stimulate growth, migration and the expression of genes involved in cell differentiation, which favours the regeneration of skin wounds" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Only virgin type of olive oil consumption reduces the risk of mortality. Results from a Mediterranean population-based cohort - Eur J Clin Nutr 2022 Oct 14 - "Daily moderate consumption of virgin OO (1 and 1/2 tablespoons) was associated with a one-third lower risk of all-cause as well as half the risk of cardiovascular mortality. These effects were not seen for common OO"
• Olive leaf extract inhibits metastatic melanoma spread through suppression of epithelial to mesenchymal transition - Phytother Res 2022 Oct - "Olive tree leaves are an abundant source of bioactive compounds with several beneficial effects for human health, including a protective role against many types of cancer ... Our results demonstrated that OLE inhibited melanoma cells proliferation through cell cycle arrest and induction of apoptotic cell death. Moreover, OLE suppressed the migration, invasion, and colonies formation of human melanoma cells. Similar to our in vitro findings, we demonstrated that the oral administration of OLE inhibited cutaneous tumor growth and lung metastasis formation in vivo by modulating the expression of EMT related factors. In addition, the anti-proliferative and anti-invasive effects of OLE against melanoma were also related to a simultaneous targeting of mitogen-activated protein kinase and PI3K pathways, both in vitro and in vivo. In conclusion, our findings suggest that OLE has the potential to inhibit the metastatic spread of melanoma cells thanks to its multifaceted mechanistic effects, and may represent a new add-on therapy for the management of metastatic melanoma."
• Myricitrin - a flavonoid isolated from the Indian olive tree ( Elaeocarpus floribundus) - inhibits Monoamine oxidase in the brain and elevates striatal dopamine levels: therapeutic implications against Parkinson's disease - Food Funct 2022 Jun 1 - "Flavonoids exhibit several biological activities including inhibition of Monoamine oxidase (MAO), an enzyme that metabolizes several neurotransmitters. Thus, MAO inhibitors are well included in traditional therapeutic practices to fine-tune neuromotor behavior ... Four flavonoids from Ef leaf extract, namely, myricitrin, mearnsitrin, myricetin, and mearnsetin, are taken into consideration ... In an in vitro setup, all four compounds inhibited total MAO, whereas myricitrin exhibited some selectivity against MAO-B at 100 μM. Myricitrin and mearnsitrin exhibited no toxicity, in vitro or in vivo. However, only myricitrin inhibited MAO in the mouse brain and elevated dopamine levels. Myricitrin was able to attenuate motor incoordination in the mouse model of PD and improved dopamine levels in the striatum"
• Immunotherapeutic potential of ethanolic olive leaves extract (EOLE) and IL-28B combination therapy in ENU induced animal model of leukemia - Cytokine 2022 May 28 - "the combination of EOLE and IL-28B has given substantial therapeutic activity against leukemia"
• POTENTIAL PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF NEURODEGENERATIVE DISORDERS BY OLIVE POLYPHENOLS AND HYDROX - Mech Ageing Dev 2022 Feb 2 - "Most chronic illnesses are caused by the biological reaction to an injury, rather than the initial injury or the injurious agent itselves as in neurodegeneration. With respect to this, notable attention is emerging on the therapeutic effects of dietary polyphenols for human health, able to counteract and neutralize oxidative stress and inflammatory processes involved in the etiopathogenesis of major neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease. The acquired concept that cellular stress at low doses induces neuroprotective responses against degenerative processes is a frontier area of the neurobiological research focusing on the development of novel preventive and therapeutic interventions for neurodegenerative disorders ... In this paper we discuss the concept of cellular stress response and hormesis and its applications to the field of neuroprotection and the potential therapeutic support provided by olive polyphenols, in particular hydroxytyrosol (HT)-rich aqueous olive pulp extract (Hidrox), as a pivotal activator of Nrf2 pathway and related vitagenes, and inhibitor of Keap1-Nrf2 interaction.Olive polyphenols are considered potential pharmacological modulators of neuroinflammation by upregulation of the Keap1/Nfr2/ARE pathway thus providing a strong rationale for treating neurodegenerative disorders"
• Consumption of Olive Oil and Risk of Total and Cause-Specific Mortality Among U.S. Adults - J Am Coll Cardiol 2022 Jan 18 - "During 28 years of follow-up, 36,856 deaths occurred. The multivariable-adjusted pooled HR for all-cause mortality among participants who had the highest consumption of olive oil (>0.5 tablespoon/day or >7 g/d) was 0.81 (95% CI: 0.78-0.84) compared with those who never or rarely consumed olive oil. Higher olive oil intake was associated with 19% lower risk of cardiovascular disease mortality (HR: 0.81; 95% CI: 0.75-0.87), 17% lower risk of cancer mortality (HR: 0.83; 95% CI: 0.78-0.89), 29% lower risk of neurodegenerative disease mortality (HR: 0.71; 95% CI: 0.64-0.78), and 18% lower risk of respiratory disease mortality (HR: 0.82; 95% CI: 0.72-0.93). In substitution analyses, replacing 10 g/d of margarine, butter, mayonnaise, and dairy fat with the equivalent amount of olive oil was associated with 8%-34% lower risk of total and cause-specific mortality" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com but it could be the omega-9 or both.
• Long-term consumption of a mediterranean diet or a low-fat diet on kidney function in coronary heart disease patients: The CORDIOPREV randomized controlled trial - Clin Nutr 2022 Jan 6 - "The long-term consumption of a Mediterranean diet rich in EVOO, when compared to a low-fat diet, may preserve kidney function, as shown by a reduced decline in eGFR in CHD patients with T2DM. Patients with mildly-impaired eGFR may benefit more from the beneficial effect of the consumption of the Mediterranean diet in preserving kidney function. These findings reinforce the clinical benefits of the Mediterranean diet in the context of secondary cardiovascular disease prevention" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com but it could be the omega-9 or both.
• XENOHORMESIS UNDERLYES THE ANTI-AGING AND HEALTHY PROPERTIES OF OLIVE POLYPHENOLS - Mech Ageing Dev 2022 Jan 13 - "This hormetic framework is applied to the assessment of olive polyphenols with respect to their capacity to slow the onset and reduce the magnitude of a wide range of age-related disorders and neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's Disease and Parkinson's Disease. It is proposed that olive polyphenol-induced anti-inflammatory protective effects are mediated in large part via the activation of AMPK and the upregulation of Nrf2 pathway. Consistently, herein we also review the importance of the modulation of Nrf2-related stress responsive vitagenes by olive polyphenols, which at low concentration according to the hormesis theory activates this neuroprotective cascade to preserve brain health and its potential use in the prevention and therapy against aging and age-related cognitive disorders in humans"
• More Olive Oil May Bring Longer Life - WebMD, 1/11/22 - "Olive oil is rich in healthful antioxidants, polyphenols and vitamins, and is a good source of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats. "One may speculate that mechanisms related to the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties of olive oil may have played a role in these findings," .. When compared with people who never consumed olive oil, those who consumed more than 1/2 a tablespoon a day had a 19% lower risk of dying from heart disease, a 17% lower risk of dying from cancer, a 29% lower risk of dying from a neurodegenerative disease, and an 18% lower risk of dying from lung disease"
• Olive oil consumption is associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke - Clin Nutr 2021 Nov 15 - "Olive oil is associated with lower risk of CVD and stroke. The maximum benefit could be obtained with a consumption between 20 and 30 g/day. The association could be stronger for virgin olive oil and might operate from the early stages of the disease"
• Potential of Olive oil and its phenolic compounds as therapeutic intervention against colorectal cancer: A comprehensive review - Br J Nutr 2021 Aug 2 - "Because of numerous side effects of CRC therapies available now, researchers all over the world looking for alternative treatment/preventive strategy with lesser/no side effects. Olive oil which is part of Mediterranean diet contains numerous phenolic compounds that fight against free radicals and inflammation and also well-known for protective role against CRC. The current review focused on the recent evidences where olive oil and its phenolic compounds such as Hydroxytyrosol, Oleuropein and Oleocanthal showed activities against CRC as well to analyze the cellular and molecular signaling mechanism through which these compounds act on. These compounds shown to combat CRC by reducing proliferation, migration, invasion, and angiogenesis through regulation of numerous signaling pathways including MAPK pathway, PI3K-Akt pathway, and Wnt/β-catenin pathway etc. and at the same time induce apoptosis in different CRC model"
• Effects of olives and their constituents on the expression of ulcerative colitis: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials - Br J Nutr 2021 Jun 8 - "Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) is often associated with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Its effects on inflammatory conditions such as Ulcerative Colitis (UC) however has yet to be defined ... Milder disease expression including weight maintenance, reduced rectal bleeding and well-formed stools favouring olive-based interventions was statistically significant in 16/19 studies, with moderate-to-large effect sizes (ESs -0.66 (95% CI -1.56, 0.24) to -12.70 (95% CI -16.8, -8.7)). Olive-based interventions did not prevent the development of colitis-like pathologies in any study. In conclusion, effects of olive-based interventions on murine models of UC appear promising, with milder disease outcomes favouring the intervention in most trials and effect sizes suggesting potential clinical relevance. However, the lack of published randomized controlled human trials warrants further investigation to determine if these effects would translate to individuals living with UC" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Olive Leaf Powder Modulate Insulin Production and Circulating Adipokines in Streptozotocin Induced Diabetic Rats - J Diet Suppl 2021 Jun 11 - "Olives (Olea europaea) have natural phytochemical compounds that are of great importance for their potential beneficially health effects ... Forty Wistar-albino male rats, weighing 200-225 g were divided into four groups (n = 10); group I: Normal healthy rats received balanced diet; group II: Diabetic control rats receiving balanced diet; group III: Diabetic rats receiving balanced diet + standard antidiabetic drugs (metformin, 600 mg/bw) and group four: Diabetic rats received diet supplemented with 2.0% OLP. The experiment was conducted for four weeks. Our results showed that the consumption of 2.0% OLP decreased serum glucose, triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels, whereas serum high density lipoprotein (HDL) level was increased. OLP supplementation also inhibited the atherogenic index [AI; log (TG/HDL-C) and atherogenic coefficient (AC)] levels relative to those of the untreated diabetic group. Moreover, OLP increased serum adiponectin concentration, and decreased serum leptin concentration. Liver and kidney functions were also attenuated by OLP. This finding also implies that OLP can play an important role in the treatment and delay of diabetic complications"
• Antihypertensive efficacy and safety of a standardized herbal medicinal product of Hibiscus sabdariffa and Olea europaea extracts (NW Roselle): A phase-II, randomized, double-blind, captopril-controlled clinical trial - Phytother Res 2020 Jul 29 - "Hypertension is a public health concern that needs immediate attention upon diagnosis. The demand for natural alternatives is on the rise; Hibiscus sabdariffa and Olea europaea are traditionally used for hypertension management in Egypt ... We equally randomized 134 patients to receive captopril 25 mg, low-dose NW Roselle, or high-dose NW Roselle BID for 8 weeks. No significant decrease was found in systolic blood pressure or diastolic blood pressure when we compared low-dose NW Roselle and high-dose NW Roselle to captopril (p > .05). In all groups, mean reduction in BP at 8 weeks was significant; 16.4/9.9 mmHg (p < .0001), 15.4/9.6 mmHg (p < .0001), and 14.9/9.4 mmHg (p < .0001) with captopril, low-dose NW Roselle, and high-dose NW Roselle respectively. In addition, low-dose NW Roselle induced a significant reduction in the mean level of triglycerides (17.56 mg/dL; p = .038). In conclusion, NW Roselle had comparable antihypertensive efficacy and safety to captopril in Egyptian patients with grade 1 essential hypertension" - See Hibiscus sabdariffa at Amazon.com and iHerb and Olea europaea at Amazon.com and iHerb.
• Effect of a Combination of Citrus Flavones and Flavanones and Olive Polyphenols for the Reduction of Cardiovascular Disease Risk: An Exploratory Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study in Healthy Subjects - Nutrients 2020 May 19 - "A single-center, randomized, double-blind controlled trial was conducted to assess the efficacy of a food supplement based on a combination of grapefruit, bitter orange, and olive extracts administered for eight weeks (n = 51) versus placebo (n = 45) on reduction of cardiovascular risk in healthy volunteers ... In the active product group, there were statistically significant within-group differences at eight weeks as compared with baseline in FMD, systolic and diastolic BP, total cholesterol, LDL-C, LDL-oxidase, oxidized/reduced glutathione ratio, protein carbonyl, and IL-6. Significant between-group differences in these variables were also found. Significant changes in anthropometric variables and quality of life were not observed in the study groups. Changes in the level of physical activity were not recorded. Treatment with the active product was well tolerated. All these findings, taken together, support a beneficial effect of supplementation with a mixture of grapefruit, bitter orange fruits, and olive leaf extracts on underlying mechanisms that may interact each other to decrease the cardiovascular risk in healthy people" - [Nutra USA] - See citrus extracts at Amazon.com and iHerb and olive leaf extract at Amazon.com and iHerb.
• Olive Component Oleuropein Promotes β-Cell Insulin Secretion and Protects β-Cells from Amylin Amyloid-Induced Cytotoxicity - Biochemistry. 2017 Sep 13 - "oleuropein promotes glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) in β-cells. The effect is dose-dependent and stimulates the ERK/MAPK signaling pathway. We further demonstrated that oleuropein inhibits the cytotoxicity induced by amylin amyloids, a hallmark feature of type 2 diabetes. We demonstrated that these dual functions are structure-specific: we identified the 3-hydroxytyrosol moiety of oleuropein as the main functional entity responsible for amyloid inhibition, but the novel GSIS function requires the entire structure scaffold of the molecule" - [Nutra USA]
• Impact of phenolic-rich olive leaf extract on blood pressure, plasma lipids and inflammatory markers: a randomised controlled trial - Eur J Nutr. 2017 Jun;56(4):1421-1432 - "A total of 60 pre-hypertensive [systolic blood pressure (SBP): 121-140 mmHg; diastolic blood pressure (DBP): 81-90 mmHg] males [mean age 45 (±SD 12.7 years, BMI 26.7 (±3.21) kg/m2] consumed either OLE (136 mg oleuropein; 6 mg hydroxytyrosol) or a polyphenol-free control daily for 6 weeks before switching to the alternate arm after a 4-week washout ... Daytime [-3.95 (±SD 11.48) mmHg, p = 0.027] and 24-h SBP [-3.33 (±SD 10.81) mmHg, p = 0.045] and daytime and 24-h DBP [-3.00 (±SD 8.54) mmHg, p = 0.025; -2.42 (±SD 7.61) mmHg, p = 0.039] were all significantly lower following OLE intake, relative to the control. Reductions in plasma total cholesterol [-0.32 (±SD 0.70) mmol/L, p = 0.002], LDL cholesterol [-0.19 (±SD 0.56) mmol/L, p = 0.017] and triglycerides [-0.18 (±SD 0.48), p = 0.008] were also induced by OLE compared to control, whilst a reduction in interleukin-8 [-0.63 (±SD 1.13) pg/ml; p = 0.026] was also detected" - [Nutra USA]
• Polyphenol rich olive oils improve lipoprotein particle atherogenic ratios and subclasses profile: a randomized, crossover, controlled trial - Mol Nutr Food Res. 2016 Mar 15 - "Polyphenols from olive oil and thyme modified the lipoprotein subclasses profile and decreased the LDL-P/total HDL particle (HDL-P), small HDL/large HDL, and HDL-cholesterol/HDL-P ratios, and decreased the lipoprotein insulin resistance index (LP-IR)" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Homocysteine Levels Show Significant Differences among Mediterranean Dietary Quality Index Variables Compared to Folate and Vitamin B12 Status in Women - Int J Vitam Nutr Res. 2015 Dec;85(3-4):202-10 - "The strength of correlation using biomarkers, regardless of group type, age, gender and other measured parameters, was ranked from best (0.11) to worst (0.52) for olive oil, fish, fruits and vegetables, grains, and meat, in this order"
• Oleanolic acid activates daf-16 to increase lifespan in C.elegans - Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2015 Nov 16 - "We investigate here whether OA has an impact on longevity in vivo, and more specifically, we have examined effects of OA on the lifespan and stress tolerance in Caenorhabditis elegans (C.elegans). Our results showed that OA could extend the lifespan, increase its stress resistance and reduce the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) in wild-type worms. Moreover, we have found that OA-induced longevity may not be associated with the calorie restriction (CR) mechanism" - See oleanolic acid at Amazon.com.
  • Oleanolic acid - wikipedia.org - "Oleanolic acid can be found in olive oil, Phytolacca americana (American pokeweed), and Syzygium spp, garlic, etc."
• Olive Leaf Extract Improves the Atherogenic Lipid Profile in Rats Fed a High Cholesterol Diet - Phytother Res. 2015 Aug 29 - "Total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol levels were found to be increased in cholesterol-fed rats, and both doses of olive leaf extract and atorvastatin significantly decreased those levels. In conclusion, because the olive leaf extract attenuates the increased cholesterol levels, it may have beneficial effects on atherosclerosis"
• Exclusive olive oil consumption has a protective effect on coronary artery disease; overview of the THISEAS study - Public Health Nutr. 2015 Jul 30:1-7 - "Exclusive olive oil consumption was associated with 37 % lower likelihood of developing coronary artery disease, even after taking into account adherence to the Mediterranean diet"
• Olive oil consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes in US women - Am J Clin Nutr. 2015 Jul 8 - "We estimated that substituting olive oil (8 g/d) for stick margarine, butter, or mayonnaise was associated with 5%, 8%, and 15% lower risk of T2D, respectively, in the pooled analysis of both cohorts"
• Olive Oil Polyphenols Decrease LDL Concentrations and LDL Atherogenicity in Men in a Randomized Controlled Trial - J Nutr. 2015 Jul 1 - "The consumption of olive oil polyphenols decreased plasma LDL concentrations and LDL atherogenicity in healthy young men" - [Nutra USA] - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Secoiridoids delivered as olive leaf extract induce acute improvements in human vascular function and reduction of an inflammatory cytokine: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial - Br J Nutr. 2015 Jun 8 - "The leaves of the olive plant (Olea europaea) are rich in polyphenols, of which oleuropein and hydroxytyrosol (HT) are most characteristic. Such polyphenols have been demonstrated to favourably modify a variety of cardiovascular risk factors ... trial was conducted with eighteen healthy volunteers (nine male, nine female), who consumed either OLE (51 mg oleuropein; 10 mg HT), or a matched control (separated by a 4-week wash out) on a single occasion ... DVP-stiffness index and ex vivo IL-8 production were significantly reduced (P< 0·05) after consumption of OLE compared to the control" - [Nutra USA]
• Secoiridoids delivered as olive leaf extract induce acute improvements in human vascular function and reduction of an inflammatory cytokine: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial - Br J Nutr. 2015 Jun 8:1-9 - "The present study provides the first evidence that OLE positively modulates vascular function and IL-8 production in vivo, adding to growing evidence that olive phenolics could be beneficial for health" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Twelve-Month Consumption of a Polyphenol Extract from Olive (Olea europaea) in a Double Blind, Randomized Trial Increases Serum Total Osteocalcin Levels and Improves Serum Lipid Profiles in Postmenopausal Women with Osteopenia - J Nutr Health Aging. 2015;19(1):77-86 - "This exploratory study supports preclinical observations and warrants further research by showing that a specific olive polyphenol extract (Bonolive®) affects serum osteocalcin levels and may stabilize lumbar spine BMD. Moreover, the improved blood lipid profiles suggest additional health benefits associated to the intake of the olive polyphenol extract"
• Olive oil consumption and risk of CHD and/or stroke: a meta-analysis of case-control, cohort and intervention studies - Br J Nutr. 2014 Apr 28:1-12 - "Available studies support an inverse association of olive oil consumption with stroke (and with stroke and CHD combined), but no significant association with CHD"
• Olive leaf extract attenuates obesity in high-fat diet-fed mice by modulating the expression of molecules involved in adipogenesis and thermogenesis - Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2014;2014:971890 - "These results suggest that OLE exerts beneficial effects against obesity by regulating the expression of genes involved in adipogenesis and thermogenesis in the visceral adipose tissue of HFD-fed mice" - See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Hydroxytyrosol, a natural molecule from olive oil, suppresses the growth of human hepatocellular carcinoma cells via inactivating AKT and nuclear factor-kappa B pathways - Cancer Lett. 2014 Jan 30 - "Hydroxytyrosol (HT), a natural polyphenolic compound in olive oil, has been proved to possess significant antitumor activity in several cancer cells. However, effects of HT on human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cells are still largely unknown ... HT could suppress the growth of HCC in vitro and in vivo, the mechanism is at least partially due to the suppressive effect of HT on the activation of AKT and NF-κB pathways. Thus it may be a promising candidate agent for the treatment of HCC"
• Oleic acid increases hepatic sex hormone binding globulin production in men - Mol Nutr Food Res. 2013 Oct 20 - "Low circulating sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease ... A total of 315 men were included. In these patients, nutrition data and plasma samples for SHBG assessment were obtained. In vitro studies to examine the effects of oleic and linoleic acid on SHBG production using HepG2 cells were performed. We provided evidence that SHBG serum levels were significantly higher in subjects using olive oil for cooking in comparison with subjects using sunflower oil ... MUFA were independently associated with SHBG levels and accounted for the 20.4% of SHBG variance ... Olive oil consumption is associated with elevated SHBG serum levels"
• Olive oil has a beneficial effect on impaired glucose regulation and other cardiometabolic risk factors. Di@bet.es study - Eur J Clin Nutr. 2013 Jul 17 - "A total of 4572 individuals aged 18 years in 100 clusters (health centers) were randomly selected with a probability proportional to population size ... Around 90% of the Spanish population use olive oil, at least for dressing, and slightly fewer for cooking or frying. The preference for olive oil is related to age, educational level, alcohol intake, body mass index and serum glucose, insulin and lipids. People who consume olive oil (vs sunflower oil) had a lower risk of obesity (odds ratio (OR)=0.62 (95% confidence interval (CI)=0.41-0.93, P=0.02)), impaired glucose regulation (OR=0.49 (95% CI=0.28-0.86, P=0.04)), hypertriglyceridemia (OR=0.53 (95% CI=0.33-0.84, P=0.03)) and low HDL cholesterol levels (OR=0.40 (95% CI=0.26-0.59, P=0.0001))"
• Extra-virgin olive oil consumption reduces the age-related decrease in HDL and paraoxonase 1 anti-inflammatory activities - Br J Nutr. 2013 Mar 19:1-13 - "EVOO consumption increased the anti-inflammatory effect of HDL and reduced the age-related decrease in anti-atherogenic activity"
• Olive oil intake and CHD in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition Spanish cohort - Br J Nutr. 2012 Sep 25:1-8 - "we studied the association between olive oil and CHD in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) Spanish cohort study. The analysis included 40,142 participants (38 % male), free of CHD events at baseline, recruited from five EPIC-Spain centres from 1992 to 1996 and followed up until 2004 ... Cox proportional regression models were used to assess the relationship between validated incident CHD events and olive oil intake (energy-adjusted quartiles and each 10 g/d per 8368 kJ (2000 kcal) increment), while adjusting for potential confounders. During a 10.4-year follow-up, 587 (79 % male) CHD events were recorded. Olive oil intake was negatively associated with CHD risk after excluding dietary mis-reporters (hazard ratio (HR) 0.93; 95 % CI 0.87, 1.00 for each 10 g/d per 8368 kJ (2000 kcal) and HR 0.78; 95 % CI 0.59, 1.03 for upper v. lower quartile). The inverse association between olive oil intake (per 10 g/d per 8368 kJ (2000 kcal)) and CHD was more pronounced in never smokers (11 % reduced CHD risk (P = 0.048)), in never/low alcohol drinkers (25 % reduced CHD risk (P < 0.001)) and in virgin olive oil consumers (14 % reduced CHD risk (P = 0.072)). In conclusion, olive oil consumption was related to a reduced risk of incident CHD events"
• Olive Oil Polyphenols Decrease Blood Pressure and Improve Endothelial Function in Young Women with Mild Hypertension - Am J Hypertens. 2012 Aug 23 - "We conducted a double-blind, randomized, crossover dietary-intervention study. After a run-in period of 4 months (baseline values), two diets were used, one with polyphenol-rich olive oil (~30 mg/day), the other with polyphenol-free olive oil. Each dietary period lasted 2 months with a 4-week washout between diets ... When compared to baseline values, only the polyphenol-rich olive oil diet led to a significant (P < 0.01) decrease of 7.91 mm Hg in systolic and 6.65 mm Hg of diastolic BP. A similar finding was found for serum asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) (-0.09 +- 0.01 µmol/l, P < 0.01), oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) (-28.2 +-28.5 µg/l, P < 0.01), and plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) (-1.9 +- 1.3 mg/l, P < 0.001). The polyphenol-rich olive oil diet also elicited an increase in plasma nitrites/nitrates (+4.7 +- 6.6 µmol/l, P < 0.001) and hyperemic area after ischemia (+345 +- 386 perfusion units (PU)/sec, P < 0.001)" - Note: It goes back to whether it's the polyphenols or the omega-9 or both.  This implies the polyphenols.  See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.  To me it's a lot better than putting up with the taste of the dark olive oil.
• Beneficial effects of polyphenol-rich olive oil in patients with early atherosclerosis - Eur J Nutr. 2012 Aug 8 - "Eighty-two patients with early atherosclerosis (presence of endothelial dysfunction) were enrolled in this double-blind, randomized trial with 52 completing the study. The aim of the study was to compare the effect of a daily intake of 30 ml simple OO, with 30 ml of EGCG-supplemented OO, on endothelial function as well as on inflammation and oxidative stress after a period of 4 months ... After 4 months, when OO and EGCG-supplemented OO groups were combined, OO significantly improved endothelial function (RHI, 1.59 +/- 0.25-1.75 +/- 0.45; p < 0.05). However, there were no significant differences in results between the two olive oil groups. Interestingly, with OO supplementation there was a significant reduction in inflammatory parameters: sICAM (196 to 183 ng/mL, p = < 0.001); white blood cells (WBCs) (6.0 × 10(9)/L-5.8 × 10(9)/L, p < 0.05); monocytes (0.48 × 10(9)/L to 0.44 × 10(9)/L, p = 0.05); lymphocytes (1.85 × 10(9)/L to 1.6 × 10(9)/L, p = 0.01); and platelets (242-229 × 10(9)/L, p = 0.047)" - [Nutra USA] - Click here for my method of making olive oil mayonnaise.  Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature.  Note:  The so called olive oil mayonnaise you see in the store is mostly omega-6. If you read the ingredients, it might have olive oil near the beginning but then you see about three omega-6 oils after it. For example, if it contained 1/3 cup of olive oil and 1/4 cup soy oil and 1/4 cup of palm oil and 1/4 cup of corn oil you’d have over a cup of oil consisting of 1/3 cup omega-9 oils and 3/4 cup of omega-6 oils. The omega-9 is still the top one.
• Olive oil intake and mortality within the Spanish population (EPIC-Spain) - Am J Clin Nutr. 2012 May 30 - "In comparison with nonconsumers, the highest quartile of olive oil consumption was associated with a 26% (95% CI: 13%, 36%) reduction in risk of overall mortality and a 44% (95% CI: 21%, 60%) reduction in CVD mortality. For each increase in olive oil of 10 g ⋅ 2000 kcal(-1) ⋅ d(-1), there was a 7% (95% CI: 3%, 10%) decreased risk of overall mortality and a 13% (95% CI: 6%, 20%) decreased risk of CVD mortality. No significant association was observed between olive oil and cancer mortality"
• Protection of LDL from oxidation by olive oil polyphenols is associated with a downregulation of CD40-ligand expression and its downstream products in vivo in humans - Am J Clin Nutr. 2012 Mar 21 - "Polyphenols could exert health benefits not only by scavenging free radicals but also by modulating gene expression ... a randomized, crossover, controlled trial, 18 healthy European volunteers daily received 25 mL olive oil with a low polyphenol content (LPC: 2.7 mg/kg) or a high polyphenol content (HPC: 366 mg/kg) in intervention periods of 3 wk separated by 2-wk washout periods ... In addition to reducing LDL oxidation, the intake of polyphenol-rich olive oil reduces CD40L gene expression, its downstream products, and related genes involved in atherogenic and inflammatory processes in vivo in humans. These findings provide evidence that polyphenol-rich olive oil can act through molecular mechanisms to provide cardiovascular health benefits"
• Beneficial effects of combined olive oil ingestion and acute exercise on postprandial TAG concentrations in healthy young women - Br J Nutr. 2012 Jan 23:1-7 - "Foods high in monounsaturated fat, such as olive oil, and endurance exercise are both known to independently reduce postprandial TAG concentrations. We examined the combined effects of exercise and dietary fat composition on postprandial TAG concentrations in nine healthy pre-menopausal females (age 26.8 (sd 3.3) years, BMI 22.3 (sd 2.0) kg/m2). Each participant completed four, 2 d trials in a randomised order: (1) butter-no exercise, (2) olive oil-no exercise, (3) butter-exercise, (4) olive oil-exercise. On day 1 of the exercise trials, participants walked or ran on a treadmill for 60 min. On the no-exercise trials, participants rested on day 1. On day 2 of each trial, participants rested and consumed an olive oil meal (saturated fat 15 % and unsaturated fat 85 %) or a butter meal (saturated fat 71 % and unsaturated fat 29 %) for breakfast ... A significant main effect on physical activity (exercise or control) was obtained for plasma TAG concentration (three-way ANOVA, P = 0.043), and the total area under the concentration v. time curve for TAG was 26 % lower on the olive oil-exercise trial (4.40 (sd 0.40) mmol × 6 h/l) than the butter-no exercise trial (5.91 (sd 1.01) mmol × 6 h/l) (one-way ANOVA, P = 0.029). These findings suggest that the combination of exercise and a preference for monounsaturated dietary fat intake in the form of olive oil may be most beneficial for reducing postprandial TAG concentrations"
• Olive oil, an essential component of the Mediterranean diet, and breast cancer - Public Health Nutr. 2011 Dec;14(12):2323-32 - "Diets rich in extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) exert a negative modulatory effect on experimental breast cancer to a weak promoting effect, much lower than that obtained with a high-corn oil diet. EVOO confers to the mammary adenocarcinomas a clinical behaviour and morphological features compatible with low tumour aggressiveness. This differential effect, in relation to other dietary lipids, may be related to a lower effect on body weight and sexual maturation. In addition, EVOO induced different molecular changes in tumours, such as in the composition of cell membranes, activity of signalling proteins and gene expression. All these modifications could induce lower proliferation, higher apoptosis and lower DNA damage. These results, together with the favourable effect of olive oil reported in the literature when it is consumed in moderate quantities, suggest a beneficial influence of EVOO on breast cancer risk"
• Olive oil intake is inversely related to cancer prevalence: A systematic review and a meta-analysis of 13800 patients and 23340 controls in 19 observational studies - Lipids Health Dis. 2011 Jul 30;10(1):127 - "Dietary fat, both in terms of quantity and quality, has been implicated to cancer development, either positively or negatively. The aim of this work was to evaluate whether olive oil or monounsaturated fat intake was associated with the development of cancer. A systematic search of relevant studies, published in English, between 1990 and March 1, 2011, was performed through a computer-assisted literature tool (i.e., Pubmed). In total 38 studies were initially allocated; of them 19 case-control studies were finally studied (13800 cancer patients and 23340 controls were included). Random effects meta-analysis was applied in order to evaluate the research hypothesis. It was found that compared with the lowest, the highest category of olive oil consumption was associated with lower odds of having any type of cancer (log odds ratio = -0.41, 95%CI -0.53, -0.29, Cohran's Q=47.52, p=0.0002, I-sq=62%); the latter was irrespective of the country of origin (Mediterranean or non-Mediterranean). Moreover, olive oil consumption was associated with lower odds of developing breast cancer (logOR=-0,45 95%CI -0.78 to -0.12), and a cancer of the digestive system (logOR=-0,36 95%CI -0.50 to -0.21), compared with the lowest intake.The strength and consistency of the findings states a hypothesis about the protective role of olive oil intake on cancer risk. However, it is still unclear whether olive oil's monounsaturated fatty acid content or its antioxidant components are responsible for its beneficial effects" - Note:  That last sentence has been my question on many of the olive oil studies.  I still use my olive oil mayonnaise made with the extra light plus I take the olive oil extract capsules.  I'm not going to suffer through the taste of the extra virgin olive oil.  See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Mechanisms of Olive Leaf Extract-Ameliorated Rat Arthritis Caused by Kaolin and Carrageenan - Phytother Res. 2011 Jul 27 - "Olive leaf extract (OLE) has antioxidant and antiinflammatory actions. However, the role of OLE in mechanical inflammatory arthritis (osteoarthritis, OA) is unclear. This study investigated the effect of OLE on the development of kaolin and carrageenan-induced arthritis, a murine model of OA. Administration of OLE significantly ameliorated paw swelling, the paw Evans blue content and the histopathological scores. In the human monocyte cell line, THP-1, the OLE reduced the LPS-induced TNF-α production and was dose dependent. Croton oil-induced ear edema in mice also revealed that treatment with OLE suppressed ear edema, myeloperoxidase (MPO) production and was dose dependent. These results indicated that OLE is an effective antiarthritis agent through an antiinflammation mechanism. Also OLE may be beneficial for the treatment of OA in humans"
• Adherence to the Mediterranean diet reduces mortality in the Spanish cohort of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC-Spain) - Br J Nutr. 2011 May 17:1-11 - "Epidemiological studies show that adherence to a Mediterranean diet (MD) increases longevity; however, few studies are restricted to Mediterranean populations or explore the effect of a MD pattern that directly incorporates olive oil. Therefore the relationship between adherence to the MD and mortality was studied within the the Spanish cohort of the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC-Spain) ... Risk of all-cause and cause-specific mortality was assessed according to the level of adherence to a relative MD (rMED) score, measured using an 18-unit scale incorporating nine selected dietary components. A high compared with a low rMED score was associated with a significant reduction in mortality from all causes (hazard ratio (HR) 0.79; 95 % CI 0.69, 0.91), from CVD (HR 0.66; 95 % CI 0.49, 0.89), but not from overall cancer (HR 0.92; 95 % CI 0.75, 1.12). A 2-unit increase in rMED score was associated with a 6 % (P < 0.001) decreased risk of all-cause mortality. A high olive oil intake and moderate alcohol consumption contributed most to this association. In this Spanish cohort, following an olive oil-rich MD was related to a significant reduction in all-cause mortality, and reduced the risk of mortality from CVD. These results support the important role that the MD pattern has on reducing mortality in Mediterranean countries" - Click here for my olive oil mayonnaise recipe.
• Effect of a traditional Mediterranean diet on apolipoproteins B, A-I, and their ratio: A randomized, controlled trial - Atherosclerosis. 2011 May 6 - "Apolipoprotein (Apo)B, ApoA-I, and their ratio could predict coronary heart disease (CHD) risk more accurately than conventional lipid measurements. Our aim was to assess the effect of a traditional Mediterranean diet (TMD) on apolipoproteins ... Participants assigned to a low-fat diet (control) (n=177), or TMDs (TMD+virgin olive oil (VOO), n=181 or TMD+nuts, n=193) received nutritional education and either free VOO (ad libitum) or nuts (dose: 30g/day). A 3-month evaluation was performed ... Both TMDs promoted beneficial changes on classical cardiovascular risk factors. ApoA-I increased, and ApoB and ApoB/ApoA-I ratio decreased after TMD+VOO, the changes promoting a lower cardiometabolic risk. Changes in TMD+VOO versus low-fat diet were -2.9mg/dL (95% CI, -5.6 to -0.08), 3.3mg/dL (95% CI, 0.84 to 5.8), and -0.03mg/dL (-0.05 to -0.01) for ApoB, ApoA-I, and ApoB/ApoA-I ratio, respectively ... Individuals at high-cardiovascular risk who improved their diet toward a TMD pattern rich in virgin olive oil, reduced their Apo B and ApoB/ApoA-I ratio and improved ApoA-I concentrations" - The question is; is it the polyphenols or the omega-9 or both in the virgin olive oil responsible for the benefit? See olive leaf extract at Amazon.com.
• Olive (Olea europaea) leaf extract effective in patients with stage-1 hypertension: Comparison with Captopril - Phytomedicine. 2011 Feb 15;18(4):251-8 - "Mean SBP at baseline was 149.3+/-5.58mmHg in Olive group and 148.4+/-5.56mmHg in Captopril group; and mean DBPs were 93.9+/-4.51 and 93.8+/-4.88mmHg, respectively. After 8 weeks of treatment, both groups experienced a significant reduction of SBP as well as DBP from baseline; while such reductions were not significantly different between groups. Means of SBP reduction from baseline to the end of study were -11.5+/-8.5 and -13.7+/-7.6mmHg in Olive and Captopril groups, respectively; and those of DBP were -4.8+/-5.5 and -6.4+/-5.2mmHg, respectively. A significant reduction of triglyceride level was observed in Olive group, but not in Captopril group. In conclusion, Olive (Olea europaea) leaf extract, at the dosage regimen of 500mg twice daily, was similarly effective in lowering systolic and diastolic blood pressures in subjects with stage-1 hypertension as Captopril, given at its effective dose of 12.5-25mg twice daily"
• Fruit, vegetables, and olive oil and risk of coronary heart disease in Italian women: the EPICOR Study - Am J Clin Nutr. 2010 Dec 22 - "aimed to investigate the association between consumption of fruit, vegetables, and olive oil and the incidence of coronary heart disease (CHD) in 29,689 women enrolled between 1993 and 1998 ... A strong reduction in CHD risk among women in the highest quartile of consumption of leafy vegetables (hazard ratio: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.33, 0.90; P for trend = 0.03) and olive oil (hazard ratio: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.31, 0.99; P for trend = 0.04) was found. In contrast, no association emerged between fruit consumption and CHD risk"
• Effects of olive oil and its minor phenolic constituents on obesity-induced cardiac metabolic changes Nutr J. 2010 Oct 19;9(1):46 - "The present study demonstrated for the first time that olive-oil, oleuropein and cafeic-acid enhanced fat-oxidation and optimized cardiac energy metabolism in obesity conditions. Olive oil and its phenolic compounds improved myocardial oxidative stress in standard-fed conditions"
• Prediction of Extra Virgin Olive Oil Varieties through Their Phenolic Profile. Potential Cytotoxic Activity against Human Breast Cancer Cells - J Agric Food Chem. 2010 Aug 26 - "extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) varieties ...Five different Spanish EVOO varieties were analyzed, and RRLC-ESI-TOF-MS method was applied for qualitative and quantitative identification of most important phenolic compounds. We finally employed MTT-based cell viability protocol to assess the effects of crude EVOO phenolic extracts (PEs) on the metabolic status of cultured SKBR3 human breast cancer cells. MTT-based cell viability assays revealed a wide range of breast cancer cytotoxic potencies among individual crude PE obtained from EVOO monovarietals. Remarkably, breast cancer cell sensitivity to crude EVOO-PEs was up to 12 times higher in secoiridoids enriched-PE than in secoiridoids-low/null EVOO-PE"
• Cytoprotective effects of olive mill wastewater extract and its main constituent hydroxytyrosol in PC12 cells - Pharmacol Res. 2010 Jun 16 - "Following a short-term exposure (30min) to the compounds of interest, cells were subjected to oxidative or nitrosative stress by adding either ferrous iron or sodium nitroprusside to the cell culture medium for 18h, respectively. Cytotoxicity was assessed by measuring MTT reduction, cellular ATP levels and mitochondrial membrane potential in the absence and presence of HT or HT-rich olive mill wastewater extract. The results we obtained mainly confirm our previous observation of promising cytoprotection of brain cells by HT-rich olive mill wastewater extract in different stressor paradigms"
• Multiple antimelanoma potential of dry olive leaf extract - Int J Cancer. 2010 Jun 21 - "dry olive leaf extract (DOLE) ... Taken together, the results of this study indicate that DOLE possesses strong anti-melanoma potential. When DOLE was applied in combination with different chemotherapeutics, various outcomes, including synergy and antagonism were observed"
• Oleuropein enhances osteoblastogenesis and inhibits adipogenesis: the effect on differentiation in stem cells derived from bone marrow - Osteoporos Int. 2010 May 21 - "Our data suggest that oleuropein, highly abundant in olive tree products included in the traditional Mediterranean diet, could prevent age-related bone loss and osteoporosis"
• Exclusive Olive Oil Consumption Is Associated with Lower Likelihood of Developing Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction in Acute Coronary Syndrome Patients: The Hellenic Heart Failure Study - Ann Nutr Metab. 2009 Nov 27;56(1):9-15 - "70% of the LVSD patients and 76% of the non-LVSD patients reported exclusive olive oil consumption. Multi-adjusted analysis revealed that exclusive olive oil consumption in post-ACS patients with a first cardiac episode was associated with a 65% (95% confidence interval 0.14-0.87) lower likelihood of developing LVSD after adjusting for various confounders. No significant association was observed among participants with a previous history of ACS. Conclusions: Exclusive, long-term olive oil consumption seems to offer significant protection against the development of LVSD in post-ACS patients"
• Olive Oil and Cognition: Results from the Three-City Study - Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord. 2009 Oct 30;28(4):357-36 - "Participants with moderate or intensive use of olive oil compared to those who never used olive oil showed lower odds of cognitive deficit for verbal fluency and visual memory. For cognitive decline during the 4-year follow-up, the association with intensive use was significant for visual memory (adjusted OR = 0.83, 95% CI: 0.69-0.99) but not for verbal fluency (OR = 0.85, 95% CI: 0.70-1.03) in multivariate analysis"
• Alzheimer's-associated Abeta oligomers show altered structure, immunoreactivity and synaptotoxicity with low doses of oleocanthal - Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 2009 Oct 15;240(2):189-97 - "results indicate oleocanthal is capable of altering the oligomerization state of ADDLs while protecting neurons from the synaptopathological effects of ADDLs and suggest OC as a lead compound for development in AD therapeutics"