Contents
Why is olive oil good for your health?
Why is olive oil very healthy?
Unrefined virgin olive oil is the only one that contains a certain amount of iron. It also contains in a lower proportion and, if it has not been refined, minor amounts of some substances such as carotenes, chlorophyll, polyphenols and sterols.
Carotenes will provide us with protection and repair of the tissues and mucous membranes of our body, and sterols counteract the detrimental effect of an increase in LDL cholesterol, that is, the bad cholesterol. Thus, they increase the levels of good cholesterol, due to the competition between both, to be absorbed, in our body’s receptors.
Olive oil, a very tasty and aromatic oil
The aroma given off by olive oil is produced by unstable substances that volatilize. Polyphenols are responsible for the flavor and chlorophyll and carotenes for the color of it. But it is also the part to which the medicinal properties are attributed.
Olive oil, a lipid that can meet our bodily needs
Due to its high lipid content, the oil is essential for a correct nutrition of our organism, since it needs a correct supply of healthy fats for its correct functioning and formation of cells and membranes, hormones, tissues, etc.
Olive oil provides us with 9 calories for each gram of lipid, which represents more than twice the energy of a gram of carbohydrate or protein.
Olive oil lacks protein, carbohydrates, fiber and minerals, except virgin olive oil that provides iron.
In addition, we must bear in mind that if a certain amount of fat is not ingested in our diet, we do not absorb some very necessary micronutrients such as fat-soluble vitamins, which need substances with a lipid content for their assimilation.
Therefore, the ingestion of olive oil not only brings us benefits, but it is essential and necessary for our organism.
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