5 Surprising Health Benefits of Olive Oil

When you get started researching information about different fats and their role in your diet, you will find quite a bit of conflicting information. But, almost everybody can agree that olive oil -- especially extra virgin olive oil is a substance that is actually good for you.

That's great news because that means that you can scatter it on your salad and use it to fry your chicken, without the guilt. Read on to discover the top five health benefits of olive oil that you probably did not already know.

It's Full of Antioxidants

Extra virgin olive oil is a favorite for many recipes because it is a nutritious ingredient. In addition to being a good fatty acid, it is also full of small amounts of both vitamins K and E. However, what is much better is that olive oil is full of antioxidants.

These antioxidants are able to help fight off severe diseases and cases of inflammation. Antioxidants also help prevent the cholesterol present in your blood from getting oxidized, which in turn helps prevent heart disease.

It Offers Impressive Anti-Inflammatory Properties

Many experts think that a leading driver of a number of diseases is chronic inflammation. This includes serious diseases, such as Alzheimer's, obesity, arthritis, diabetes, cancer, metabolic syndrome and even cardiovascular disease.

Olive oil has been proven to help reduce cases of inflammation. In fact, there are some studies that show that the antioxidants in olive oil can interfere with some of the proteins and genes that cause inflammation, begin with.

Prevent and Protect Against Heart Disease

The most usual cause of death in the entire world is heart disease. However, it is a rare event in the Mediterranean Sea region. When curiosity within this peaked, folks began extensively researching this diet.

What they found was that the key ingredient of the Mediterranean diet is extra virgin olive oil. Once consumed, it helps lower your blood pressure and protects against oxidation of LDL particles, which will help prevent heart disease.

It May Help Fight Alzheimer's Disease

This is considered the most common neurodegenerative disease in the entire world. A key feature of this disorder is the accumulation of beta-amyloid plaque within brain cells. In mice, a research has shown that olive oil helps to eliminate this plaque from brain cells.

Even though this is not scientifically confirmed, it is thought that olive oil may help to prevent Alzheimer's.

Pain Relief for Rheumatoid Arthritis

This condition is characterized by painful and deformed joints. According to research, olive oil may help inflammatory markers while decreasing the oxidative stress in people suffering from this condition. It has proven to be especially beneficial when it is combined with fish oil.