Olive oil and health

Polyphenols and health

What the bitterness and the pepper are

The bitterness of fresh extra virgin olive oil, and the peppery catch at the back of the throat, come from polyphenols: natural antioxidants carried from the olive into the oil. In the European Union they are the subject of an authorised health claim: olive oil polyphenols contribute to the protection of blood lipids from oxidative stress. The claim applies to oils with at least 5 mg of hydroxytyrosol and its derivatives per 20 g of oil, about 250 mg per kilo, and the benefit comes from 20 g of such oil a day.

The research behind it is solid. In the EUROLIVE study, the more polyphenols an olive oil contained, the more it raised HDL cholesterol and reduced the oxidation of LDL cholesterol. In the PREDIMED trial, a Mediterranean diet rich in extra virgin olive oil was followed by fewer heart attacks and strokes than a low-fat diet. Oleocanthal, the polyphenol behind the peppery sting, acts in the laboratory on the same inflammation enzymes as ibuprofen.

Polyphenols are highest in olives picked early and pressed quickly, and they fade as the oil ages. From this harvest on, we measure them in every lot with the International Olive Council method and publish the results in the Harvest 2027 table. We will say that a lot reaches the EU level only when its laboratory report shows it.

Sources: Commission Regulation (EU) No 432/2012; Covas et al., Annals of Internal Medicine, 2006 (EUROLIVE); Estruch et al., New England Journal of Medicine, 2018 (PREDIMED); Beauchamp et al., Nature, 2005. This note is general information about olive oil and is not medical advice.