36 Interesting Facts About Olive oil

Facts About Olive Oil

 

Interesting Facts About Olive oil

1.  It is chief edible oil of the Mediterranean region. It’s popularity  is now fast spreading across the other continents as one of the healthiest oils.
2.  Derived from the fresh olives, olive oil carries a very large amount of plant derived antioxidants and vitamins.
3.  Olive oil contains anti-inflammatory agents, like oleocanthal, that act as a natural ibuprofen-like substance.
4. Olive oil is considered to be the best edible oil in terms of lipid profile, stability and palatability.
5. All its saturated, mono-unsaturated and poly-unsaturated fats are distributed in healthy proportions. 
6. A Native cold pressed oil has a very long shelf life thereby making it a very stable cooking oil. It is very rich in energy. 
7. Its ratio of mono-unsaturated fats to saturated fats is high thereby making it one of the healthiest edible oils. 
8. Olive Oil is very rich in Vitamin E which is a powerful lipid soluble anti oxidant. 
9. One tablespoon of olive oil has 1.9 mg of vitamin E. 
10. Extra virgin olive oil is also a good source of Vitamin K which a potential role in increasing the bone mass. 
11. One tablespoon of olive oil has 8.1 mcg of vitamin K. 
12. Fresh olive oil has a very low content of free fatty acids.
13.  In general, extra virgin oil should have less than 0.8% of free fatty acids followed by virgin oil at 1.5% and ordinary virgin oil at 3%. 
14. Green olives yield pungent and bitter oil whereas black olives can be pressed to relatively less pungent, yellow oil. 
15. Extra virgin olive oil is the healthiest because it is pressed mechanically without the use of unhealthy chemicals. 
16. Its specific gravity @ 15.5 °C is 0.9150–0.9180.Saponification value of extra virgin olive 184–195. 
17. It has 75-94 of iodine value. 
18. One table spoon of olive oil contains roughly 120 calories. 
19. Extra virgin olive oil has a smoke point of 210 degree celcius. 
20. It has zero proteins and zero carbohydrates. This oil is high in calorie. 
21. It is especially rich in monounsaturated fatty acids like oleic acid and palmioleic acid that help in lowering the bad cholesterol.
22.  This oil can be safely used on a daily basis. Unlike other nut and seed oils, it has no allergic reactions. 
23. Olives range from 1 to 14 grams of weight. There are hundreds of varieties of olives out of which 250 are grown in Spain alone. 
24. Spain, Italy and Greece together produce about 75% of world’s olive oil. 
25. It takes an olive oil tree up to 8 years to mature and bear fruit.
26.  Olive oil contains very little to no cholesterol. On the contrary regular intake reduces cholesterol. 
27. About 70% of Olive Oil that reads Extra Virgin Olive Oil is actually a fraud. 
28. Italy sells almost three times as much olive oil it produces. In 2007 it was reported that only 4% of Olive oil Leaving Italy was pure Olive Oil. 
29. Greece is the third largest producer of olive oil. Its extra virgin Olive oil is so good that it is even exported to Italy and Spain. 
30. One Olive Oil Tree can produce about 4 Liters of Olive oil for Hundreds of years. 
31. Greeks consume an average of 26 liters of olive oil every year. 
32. The fresher the olive oil the better is its taste. All Olives start their life green.
33. They then ripen to yellowish hue before turning red and then deep purple and end up black in color. Olives are a fruit. 
34. In their natural form olives are quite bitter and inedible. Olive oil is a healthier option than butter. 
35. Olive oil contains only 33% saturated fat while butter has almost double that amount. 
36. Olive oil though high in calories has no cholesterol while a serving of butter has about 33mg of cholesterol.