Are you aware that heating Olive Oil destroys many of its heart-healthy properties? It is often referred that saturated fats are the best fats to use when cooking.
This has to do with the molecular structure of oils. Saturated fats contain no double bonds so are not sensitive to heat, light or oxygen, unlike unsaturated fats. Unsaturated fats (vegetable oils) have double bonds, making them very sensitive to heat, light and oxygen. In addition, heating these types of oils will change their molecular structure, destroying a handful of the healthy properties.
Monounsaturated Fats In Olive Oil Are Not Heat Stable
Olive Oil is made up of about 70-80% monounsaturated fat, in the form of oleic acid. As a result, this oleic acid is what gives Olive Oil a handful of its incredible health benefits such as improved insulin resistance, cancer-fighting properties, and improved heart health.
It is also these monounsaturated fats that give Olive Oil a low smoking point, making it unsuitable for temperatures above 250’F (121’C).
Heart Healthy Polyphenols In Olive Oil Are Seamlessly Damaged By Heat
Olive Oil has phenolic compounds, mainly hydroxytyrosol and oleuropein, that are rich in antioxidant properties. These phenols, which work as antioxidants to preserve heart health, start to degrade at high heats.
Heating Olive Oil Helps Destroy Omega Fatty Acids
Olive Oil contains both Omega 3 and Omega 6 Fatty Acids. According to Dr. Mercola, omega-3 fats are “significant structural components of the cell membranes of tissues throughout the body and are especially rich in the retina, brain, and sperm, in which docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) constitutes 36.4% of total fatty acids”.
These fatty acids are sensitive to heat and are easily destroyed when Olive Oil is heated.
Low Smoke Point = Breathing In Toxic Smoke
If an oil is heated beyond its smoke point, it gives off toxic smoke. Because Olive Oil has a low smoking point, generally, cooking with Olive Oil runs the risk of creating smoke that contains compounds that are harmful to human health.
Many Olive Oils Are Not Real
A handful of brands cut their Olive Oil with inexpensive oils such as soybean oil, canola oil, hazelnut oil and low grade olive oils.
A study by UC Davis in 2011 discovered that 73% of the 5 best selling imported brands of Olive Oil did not meet the international sensory standards for Extra Virgin Olive Oil set by European regulators.
This usually meaning that they could be adulterated or blended with other vegetable oils such as soy, corn, cottonseed, hazelnut, or canola oil.
What Is One To Do Next?
Olive Oilis a healthy and delicious oil. It is amazing in salad dressings and dips and can be drizzled over already cooked vegetables.
1. You Only Use Olive Oil For Special Occasions
Olive oil is best used when fresh for two reasons: it tastes good and it retains its nutrients when it is completely fresh. In addition, let’s not forget that olives are fruit and as with every fruit, most of the time you prefer their juice fresh.
After 3-6 months from the harvest date, olive oil is no longer fresh. So next time you discover a nice olive oil, make sure you use it.
2. Never Cook With Olive Oil
So you use corn oil or canola oil or some other tasteless vegetable or seed oil to cook with. It is often said that it is bad to fry with olive oil. I’m surprised this piece of misinformation still is in the media. So here is the truth: olive oil does not have an extremely low smoke point.
As a matter of fact extra virgin olive oil has a higher smoke point than most refined olive oils, it also contains the polyphenols that reduce the rate of oxidation.
With most quality olive oils, smoke point ranges at about 365 to 410 degrees Fahrenheit. So unless you are doing industrial deep frying you will not reach the smoke point on your home stovetop.
As with most foods, heating will cause some loss of the antioxidants A most recent Spanish study, based on information gathered from over 40000 Spaniards, showed that there was no association between eating fried food and coronary heart disease, but one of the details was that the food was fried in olive oil and was not reused, in other words they did not fry with the same oil over and over again.
3. You Don’t Eat Too Much Of It
The average consumption of olive oil in the U.S. is 1 teaspoon a day. However, if you are trying to find a way to get the benefits of olive oil, that one teaspoon unfortunately won’t cut it. Study after study which displays health benefits of olive oil point to the amount of 2-3 tablespoons a day whether that be:
If you are following a Mediterranean diet that is vegetable centered and with little processed food, you will be within your calories even if you consume this amount of olive oil daily.
Furthermore, Olive Oil should be your main source of fat in your diet, if you are trying to follow a Mediterranean diet that means that the olive oil used in your salad and cooking will be the majority of fat you are getting in your diet.
4. You Purchase “Olive Oil”… But Is It Really Olive Oil?
Labeling can be tricky. When you see on the label “Olive Oil”, in the U.S. that means that it is a blend of refined olive oil and virgin olive oils. Generally speaking, refined olive oil is a low quality olive oil that is refined physically and chemically to remove undesirable qualities such a free fatty acids and unpleasant flavor and odor.
This olive oil does not have the beneficial qualities of extra virgin olive oil (polyphenols) or the taste. We suggest you try and purchase high quality extra virgin olive oil.
5. You Prefer Mild Tasting Olive Oil
Studies have shown that a variety of people don’t know what fresh olive oil tastes like and that in fact they are used to and prefer the taste of rancid olive oil. Olive oil should not taste “buttery”, a variety of people think that a buttery taste and an oily feel is what olive oil is about.
That’s unfortunately wrong. Olive Oil should have some bitterness to it and fresh olive should taste “green”, fresh, a bit peppery, it should not be tasteless or have an “old nuts” taste.
