Mediterranean diet

Since the virtues of the Mediterranean diet have been discovered, it has been copied and interpreted in the whole wide world. Remain the fact that the Mediterranean diet, rich of simple ingredient like tomatoes, parsley and a hint of ORGANIC extra virgin olive oil " IL CASALE DELL' ULIVO" is still the leader among the hygienists in the world. It's not a coincidence, neither a trend. It is proven by scientific researches that olive oil helps keep in shape, delaying the cellular oxidation, and therefor the aging process that this causes. It is a diet rich of fruits, vegetables, legumes, aromatic herbs and that has, almost exclusively as source of fat the ORGANIC extra virgin olive oil " IL CASALE DELL' ULIVO". And since its ingredients are typical of the regions, that go from Spain to Turkey, which face the Mediterranean Sea, that's way its called "Mediterranean diet". The extra virgin olive oil, in particular, has been studied by researchers of many countries, to understand the secrets of eternal youth. But in essence, what does it have of so valuable and why should we prefer it at the other, more economic, oils? Why is that people speak so much about extra virgin? What are its real qualities, aside its taste? What does it mean organic?

Health effects.

Let's begin from the '50, when the researchers A. KEYS and F. COVIAN revolutionized, with their studies, the principles accepted in the whole world about coronary diseases. They studied the alimentation habits of 22 populations of 7 different countries, and they proved that the populations who consumed small quantities of saturated fat showed low levels of cholesterol in the blood. Then it was demonstrated that the people, who consumed olive oil, showed low levels of cholesterol in the blood and a low incidence of coronary diseases. Different kinds of fat were studied, and in the next two decades it was established that the polyunsaturated fat were recommend in small quantities, the saturated fat were condemned and the monounsaturated fat were considered suitable. These researches were further confirmed by recent studies, where was demonstrated that the olive oil was not harmful. Recent researches made by the University of Bari claim that a diet, rich of extra virgin olive oil preserves the aging process, protecting against memory loss and keeping a good functioning of the structure of the cellular membrane. In a test made on 278 elderly persons, those who consumed a larger quantity of monounsaturated fat showed a lot less degenerative process, of aging. The Stockholm's Karolinska Institute, after having monitored a sample of 6700 women between the ages of 40 and 76 years old, giving them a mammogram and evaluating their food habits, it established that those who consumed a larger quantity of monounsaturated fat, present in the olive oil, were less likely to develop breast cancer. It is also confirmed by a study made by the University of Pennsylvania's on 820 women with breast cancer and on 1548 healthy women. The extra virgin olive oil is excellent also for the digestive system, against ulcers and kidney stones, in relation with the brain's activity and the bone's mineralization. The International Olive Oil Council (IOOC) confirms it. According to studies commissioned by the olive oil's producers the fat, mainly the unsaturated fat (vegetable oils), which represent our source of energetic and plastic material, it helps us "store" a large quantity of vitamin (A-E-D-K), very important for the growing process, the muscular activity and the bone's construction. It benefits even the brain, since its membrane is made of the same phospholipids that are found in the basic components of the olive oil. The extra virgin olive oil has a benefic action also on the gall bladder. The oleic acid has a stimulanting power on this organ's activity. It prevents the bile stagnation, it boosts its secretion and it reduces the tendency to form kidney stones. Additionally at an intestinal level, it encourages the fat emulsions and consequently it helps the assimilation of it. According to a popular saying, we have the same age as our arteries do. If these remain young, we will too.
The regular consumption of olive oil ensures an elevated factor of vascular protection, since it effects the metabolism of the cholesterol (responsible of the obstruction of the arteries). In fact it preserves and improves the percentage of the "good" cholesterol (HDL), and on the contrariwise, it keeps a low level of the "bad" one (LDL and VLDL). The merit goes in large part to the acid fat that distinguish the olive oil, mainly the oleic acid which is a monounsaturated kind. The great variety of antioxidant substances (Vitamin E, and Vitamin C), that are in the olive oil could be effective in preventing several health problems, like some form of cancer and many effects caused by the aging process of the tissues. We should emphasize that the olive oil is a lot more then a simple monounsaturated fat, because it has a broad range of antioxidant and tasty ingredients. It has been demonstrated that if the free radicals, constantly produced by our organism during the metabolism, aren't quickly neutralized by the antioxidant substances they will damage the cellular walls accelerating the aging process, which will favor the outbreak of degenerative diseases, like tumors. It is here that intervenes the polyphenols, a natural substance with a conspicuous antioxidant property, that are present in the olive oil. They exert a direct influence on keeping a good health condition and they give to the extra virgin olive oil that characteristic savor. The green olives, not yet fully ripen, are definitely the most rich of polyphenols. The olive oil is better protected from getting rancid, its flavor is more" fruity", up to the point that it could taste slightly pungent on the tongue, leaving an intense and pleasant aftertaste. The olives that are cultivated in Italy, are very rich of polyphenols compared to the ones farmed in others countries. That's because of a series of factors: the terrain and the weather, the variety of olives, the timing and methods of harvest, the olive pressing and storage.