Olive oil is made up of approximately 75 per cent monounsaturated fats, with the rest consisting of mainly polyunsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fats are generally healthy and balance cholesterol levels as well as lowering blood pressure. It is the antioxidant compounds found in olive oil, known as phenols, which are responsible for giving extra virgin olive oil its fruity aroma. One of these antioxidants called oleocanthal has been found to have an anti-inflammatory effect similar to ibuprofen. Now, on top of all this, a component of olive oil called oleate has been shown to be very good for your heart muscle.
One of the things that we know about failing hearts is that they are unable to process or store the fats that they normally use for fuel within heart cells. The inability to use fats, the heart’s primary fuel source, causes loss of energy and at the same time there is an increased production of toxic byproducts that further damage the heart muscle.
These researchers decided to see how failing rat hearts might react to either oleate from olive oil or palmitate found in animal fats and palm oil.
After tracking the use of these fats within heart cells using magnetic resonance imaging and non-radioactive heavy isotope carbon the researchers were able to observe metabolism happening in real time. The researchers found an immediate improvement in how the hearts contracted and pumped blood in response to oleate. They could also tell that oleate caused metabolism of fats to return to normal within the heart cells thus improving energy availability and reducing txic byproducts. Oleate also activated several genes involved in the fat metabolism.
By contrast, in response to palmitate the cells struggled to access fuel and there was a rise in toxic byproducts.
You probably love olive oil already but it might help you know that your love is not unrequited because this is just another way in which olive oil loves you back.
