However, Nasir Malik, a plant physiologist with the Research Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, said that the health benefits of olive oil come almost entirely from a class of organic chemicals called phenolic compounds or polyphenols.
What is polyphenol?
Polyphenol is the general name of a large class of natural plant compounds, which contains many phenolic units as antioxidants.
There are 8000 different kinds of polyphenols, and there are more than 100 kinds of foods. Every 100 kind of foods contains at least 1 mg of polyphenols? Grams or milliliters of food or drink. From fruits and vegetables to whole grains and seeds, these varieties vary greatly.
According to the Phenol Explorer database, 25 kinds of polyphenols were found in extra virgin olive oil. Among these 25 substances, tyrosol is the most important, including oleuropein, hydroxytyrosol and olive aldehyde.
The content of polyphenols is the highest in extra virgin olive oil, and some polyphenols also exist in virgin olive oil.
Refined olive oil contains only a small amount of polyphenols, which will be removed during refining. Before bottling for sale, when refined olive oil is mixed with a small amount of virgin or extra virgin olive oil, polyphenols will be added again.
According to research, polyphenols now have the following benefits:
1, polyphenols can reduce the risk of heart disease.
2. Polyphenols can reduce the risk of diabetes.
Polyphenols can help patients with cancer and dementia.
4. Polyphenols can restore intestinal bacteria.
5. Polyphenols also add rich flavor to EVOO.