Olive oil is tasty stuff

2015 - Virgin olive oil rich in phenolic compounds modulates the expression of atherosclerosis-related genes in vascular endothelium: "Our results suggest that the consumption of virgin olive oil rich in phenolic compounds may reduce the risk of atherosclerosis development by decreasing inflammation and improving the antioxidant profile in the vascular endothelium."

2015 - Exclusive olive oil consumption has a protective effect on coronary artery disease; overview of the THISEAS study: "Exclusive olive oil consumption was associated with lower risk of coronary artery disease, even after adjusting for adoption of an overall healthy dietary pattern such as the Mediterranean diet."

2015 - The role of olive oil in disease prevention: a focus on the recent epidemiological evidence from cohort studies and dietary intervention trials: "Recent epidemiological research has shown that regular consumption of olive oil is associated with increased longevity. This benefit is partly due to the olive oil's unequivocal cardio-protective role"

2015 - Olive Oil Polyphenols Decrease LDL Concentrations and LDL Atherogenicity in Men in a Randomized Controlled Trial: "The consumption of olive oil polyphenols decreased plasma LDL concentrations and LDL atherogenicity in healthy young men."

2015 - PON1 and Mediterranean Diet: PON1 is a major anti-atherosclerotic component of high-density lipoprotein (HDL). "Extra virgin olive oil, the main source of fat, has been particularly effective in increasing PON1 activity"

2015 - Effects of high phenolic olive oil on cardiovascular risk factors: A systematic review and meta-analysis: "High phenolic olive oil should be considered as a nutraceutical in cardiovascular prevention."

2015 - Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet: Insights From the PREDIMED Study: "a vegetable-based MeDiet rich in unsaturated fat and polyphenols can be a sustainable and ideal model for CVD prevention."

2015 - Dietary Supplementation with Olive Oil or Fish Oil and Vascular Effects of Concentrated Ambient Particulate Matter Exposure in Human Volunteers: "Olive oil supplementation has been shown to improve endothelial function and lipid profile and lower the risk of coronary heart disease events. Furthermore, in a clinical trial in healthy young adults, supplementation with 4 gram/day of olive oil led to an increase in FMD. Our finding suggests that 4 weeks of dietary OO supplementation attenuate PM-induced reductions in FMD, possibly due to effect of OO protect against the adverse effects of PM exposure on endothelial function"

2014 - The association between carotid intima media thickness and individual dietary components and patterns: "Olive oil is inversely associated with carotid intima media thickness, with a benefit seen when >34 g/day is consumed. While there are many epidemiological studies exploring the association between dietary intake and cIMT there are few intervention studies. Intervention studies show that a Mediterranean diet may reduce cIMT progression, especially in those with a higher cIMT."

2014 - Diets to prevent coronary heart disease 1957-2013: what have we learned: "The Mediterranean-style diet, with a focus on vegetables, fruit, fish, whole grains, and olive oil, has proven to reduce cardiovascular events to a degree greater than low-fat diets and equal to or greater than the benefit observed in statin trials."

2014 - Olive oil polyphenols enhance high-density lipoprotein function in humans: a randomized controlled trial: "Olive oil polyphenols promote the main HDL antiatherogenic function, its cholesterol efflux capacity. These polyphenols increased HDL size, promoted a greater HDL stability reflected as a triglyceride-poor core, and enhanced the HDL oxidative status, through an increase in the olive oil polyphenol metabolites content in the lipoprotein.

2014 - Foods and food components in the Mediterranean diet: supporting overall effects: "Using a number of statistical models, analyses were conducted to show around a 35% cardiovascular disease risk reduction in the highest consumers of olive oil"

2014 - Cardiovascular mortality: how can it be prevented?: "the most important finding was the 30% reduction in the relative risk of major cardiovascular complications (heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular mortality) in both Mediterranean diet groups compared to those who followed a low-fat diet."

2014 - The effects of the mediterranean diet on biomarkers of vascular wall inflammation and plaque vulnerability in subjects with high risk for cardiovascular disease. A randomized trial: "inflammatory biomarkers related to plaque instability such as C-reactive protein and interleukin-6 were reduced by 45% and 35% and 95% and 90% in the MD+EVOO and MD+Nuts groups, respectively (P<0.05; all) compared to the low-fat diet group."

2014 - Olive oil intake and risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality in the PREDIMED Study: "Olive oil consumption, specifically the extra-virgin variety, is associated with reduced risks of cardiovascular disease"

2014 - Dietary fats and cardiovascular disease: putting together the pieces of a complicated puzzle: "nut and olive oil intake is associated with reduced CVD risk."

2014 - Mediterranean diet and cardiovascular health: "a high-unsaturated fat and antioxidant-rich dietary pattern such as the MeDiet is a useful tool in the prevention of CVD."

2014 - Mediterranean diet reduces 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure, blood glucose, and lipids: one-year randomized, clinical trial: "MedDiets supplemented with extra virgin olive oil or nuts reduced 24-hour ambulatory BP, total cholesterol, and fasting glucose."

2014 - Effect of the Mediterranean diet on heart failure biomarkers: a randomized sample from the PREDIMED trial: "Individuals at high risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) who improved their diet toward a TMD pattern reduced their N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide compared with those assigned to a low-fat diet."

2013 - Beneficial effects of polyphenol-rich olive oil in patients with early atherosclerosis: "olive oil significantly improved endothelial function"

2013 - Olive oil has a beneficial effect on impaired glucose regulation and other cardiometabolic risk factors: "The results show that consumption of olive oil has a beneficial effect on different cardiovascular risk factors"

2013 - Primary prevention of cardiovascular disease with a Mediterranean diet: "a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil or nuts reduced the incidence of major cardiovascular events"

2013 - Extra-virgin olive oil consumption reduces the age-related decrease in HDL and paraoxonase 1 anti-inflammatory activities: "Extra virgin olive oil consumption increased the anti-inflammatory effect of HDL and reduced the age-related decrease in anti-atherogenic activity."

2012 - Hypolipidimic and antioxidant activities of virgin olive oil and its fractions in 2,4-diclorophenoxyacetic acid-treated rats: "Extra virgin olive oil may be a potential functional food source of antioxidants that can decrease the frequency of cardiovascular diseases"

2012 - HDL-related mechanisms of olive oil protection in cardiovascular disease: "Cumulative evidence suggests that high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, and its main apolipoprotein A1, may be increased by consuming olive oil when compared with carbohydrate and low fat diets in humans."

2012 - Olive oil polyphenols decrease blood pressure and improve endothelial function in young women with mild hypertension: "the consumption of a diet containing polyphenol-rich olive oil can decrease BP and improve endothelial function"

2012 - Beneficial effects of combined olive oil ingestion and acute exercise on postprandial TAG concentrations in healthy young women: "Foods high in monounsaturated fat, such as olive oil, and endurance exercise are both known to independently reduce postprandial TAG concentrations."

2012 - Mechanisms of action of phenolic compounds in olive: "Olive oil, an oil rich in monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFCs) and minor constituents including phenolic compounds, is a major component of the Mediterranean diet. The potential health benefits of the Mediterranean diet were highlighted by the seminal Seven Countries Study, and more contemporary research has identified olive oil as a major element responsible for these effects. It is emerging that the phenolic compounds are the most likely candidates accounting for the cardioprotective and cancer preventative effects of extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). In particular, the phenolic compound, hydroxytyrosol has been identified as one of the most potent antioxidants found in olive oil. Research has shown that hydroxytyrosol can prevent cardiovascular disease by reducing the expression of adhesion molecules on endothelial cells and preventing the oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL)."

2012 - Olive oil intake and CHD in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition Spanish cohort: "In conclusion, olive oil consumption was related to a reduced risk of incident CHD events. This emphasises the need to conserve the traditional culinary use of olive oil within the Mediterranean diet to reduce the CHD burden."

2011 - Effect of a traditional Mediterranean diet on apolipoproteins B, A-I, and their ratio: a randomized, controlled trial: "Individuals at high-cardiovascular risk who improved their diet toward a TMD pattern rich in virgin olive oil, reduced their Apo B and ApoB/ApoA-I ratio and improved ApoA-I concentrations."

2011 - Olive oil polyphenol oleuropein inhibits smooth muscle cell proliferation: "our results demonstrate that oleuropein inhibits SMC proliferation through a cell cycle block, which may be regulated by ERK1/2. These results suggest one of the mechanisms by which the Mediterranean diet may have beneficial effects on cardiovascular mortality. This effect of oleuropein on atherogenesis may not only be limited to an anti-proliferative effect but may also include other actions. Oleuropein has also been shown to inhibit platelet aggregation,33 increase high-density lipoprotein and decrease low-density lipoprotein oxidation.34 Thus, a connection between olive oil polyphenols and their anti-atherogenic effect is likely."

2011 - Consumption of diets with different type of fat influences triacylglycerols-rich lipoproteins particle number and size during the postprandial state: "After a 12-h fast, volunteers consumed a breakfast with 1g fat and 7 mg cholesterol per kg body weight and a fat composition similar to that consumed in each of the diets: Butter meal: 35% SFA; Olive oil meal: 36% MUFA; Walnut meal: 16% PUFA, 4% α-linolenic acid. Tryglicerides (TG) in TRL (large and small TRL) were determined by ultracentrifugation and size and number of lipoprotein particles were measured with Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy at different time points. The olive oil meal reduced the number of total TRL postprandial particles compared with the other meals. These novel findings have implications for understanding the postprandial lipoprotein mechanisms, and could favour the lower cardiovascular risk in Mediterranean countries."

2010 - Olive oil and health: summary of the II international conference on olive oil and health consensus report: " A MedDiet rich in olive oil and olive oil per se has been shown to improve cardiovascular risk factors, such as lipid profiles, blood pressure, postprandial hyperlipidemia, endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and antithrombotic profiles."

2009 - Characterization of human gene expression changes after olive oil ingestion: an exploratory approach: "At baseline (0 h) and at post-ingestion (6 h), total RNA was isolated and gene expression (29,082 genes) was evaluated by microarray. From microarray data, nutrient-gene interactions were observed in genes related to metabolism, cellular processes, cancer, and atherosclerosis (e.g. USP48 by 2.16; OGT by 1.68-fold change) and associated processes such as inflammation (e.g. AKAP13 by 2.30; IL-10 by 1.66-fold change) and DNA damage (e.g. DCLRE1C by 1.47; POLK by 1.44- fold change). When results obtained by microarray were verified by qRT-PCR in nine genes, full concordance was achieved only in the case of up-regulated genes. Changes were observed at a real-life dose of olive oil, as it is daily consumed in some Mediterranean areas. Our results support the hypothesis that postprandial protective changes related to olive oil consumption could be mediated through gene expression changes."

2008 - Chronic effects of a high-fat diet enriched with virgin olive oil and a low-fat diet enriched with alpha-linolenic acid on postprandial endothelial function in healthy men: "The endothelium-dependent vasodilatory response was greater 4 h after the ingestion of the MUFA-rich diet than after the SFA or ALA low-fat diets (P = 0.031). The 4 h postprandial plasma sVCAM-1 levels were lower after the MUFA meals than after the ALA low-fat diet (P = 0.043). The bioavailability of NOx was higher following the MUFA diet than after the SFA and ALA low-fat diets (P = 0.027). We found no differences in the other parameters measured. Chronic ingestion of a Mediterranean diet avoids the postprandial deterioration of endothelial function associated with Westernised diets in healthy individuals."

2007 - Olive oil and the haemostatic system: "Traditionally, the benefits of MD were linked to its effect on lipoprotein metabolism but today we realise that there exists a whole sheaf of other benefits, including the components of haemostasis: platelet function, thrombogenesis and fibrinolysis. A diet enriched in virgin olive oil can reduce the sensitivity of platelets to aggregation, decreasing von Willebrand and tromboxane B2 plasma levels. Moreover a particular interest has arisen about its capacity to decrease fasting Factor VII plasma levels and to avoid or modulate its postprandial activation. Also Tissue Factor expression in mononuclear cells could be reduced with the chronic intake of virgin olive oil and finally, studies performed in different experimental situation have shown that it could also increase fibrinolytic activity, reducing plasma concentration of Plasma Activator Inhibitor type-1."

2007 - The impact of olive oil consumption pattern on the risk of acute coronary syndromes: The CARDIO2000 case-control study: "Exclusive use of olive oil during food preparation seems to offer significant protection against CHD, irrespective of various clinical, lifestyle and other characteristics of the participants."

2007 - Postprandial anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects of extra virgin olive oil: "A significant decrease in inflammatory markers, namely TXB(2) and LTB(4), after 2 and 6h after extra virgin olive oil consumption and a concomitant increase of serum antioxidant capacity were recorded. These data reinforce the notion that the Mediterranean diet reduces the incidence of coronary heart disease partially due to the protective role of its phenolic components, including those of extra virgin olive oil."