Extra Virgin Olive oil and your health

Here you will find an overview of the health benefits of Extra virgin olive oil. At the bottom of the page there is a link to a scientific evaluation report detailing all the healthy benefits the Governor Limited has to offer. You will also find further links to an accepted medical report whereby the Governor EVOO was combined with Donepezil (a medication used to treat Alzheimer’s disease) with positive effects as well as a scientific evaluation for breast cancer published in 2019. Below there is a paragraph outlining a recent Leukaemia trial using the Governor Limited too. You will need a cup or glass of something as they are extremely in depth but well worth the read. 

The reason this project is so exciting for us is that these particular extra virgin olive oils exemplify what a high-quality product should be. To the Dafnis family each tree is treated like a friend. The way the olives are harvested ensures minimal environmental impact and the micro production means the process is rigorously monitored to ensure consistent optimum quality. Generations of love and care and a quest for nothing but the best results in an end product that is packed with what it should be, 100% quality and not a massed produced product pretending to be something it is not. 

It has been known for hundreds of years that olive oil contains a range of health benefits. As well as containing a high percentage of beneficial mono-unsaturated fatty acids it also contains modest amounts of vitamin E and K. It is also widely known that its benefits also include anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and antioxidant properties. These antioxidants are biologically active and may reduce risk of chronic disease. In a world where we all want to live longer, our bodies need to consume the very best produce. As you will read these EVOO’s are contributing to some amazing medical studies with overwhelming results but the bottom line is, these oils are simply some of the best that the world has to offer.

The GOVERNOR is one of the few olive oils on a global level that has been awarded a “health claim” set by the EU. The EU Commission Regulation No 432/2012 of 16 May 2012 established a list of permitted health claims made on foods. This classified the various types of olive oils into a category with health-protecting features which contain highly concentrated polyphenols which protects against oxidation of blood lipids. The claim may be used only for olive oil which contains at least 5mg of hydroxytyrosol derivatives per 20g. The total hydroxytyrosol derivatives in the Governor EVOO are 61% higher than the stipulated European regulation. 

What is of particular interest to the medical world is the polyphenols Oleocanthal and Oleacein. What makes the Governor EVOO so special are the unusually high levels of Oleocanthal and Oleacein contained within the oil. The Governor Limited is constantly around 966 mg/kg each harvest and the Oleacein 957 mg/kg compared with average values for extra virgin olive oil at 135/105 mg/kg.

The Governor was scientifically tested in March 2014 at the University of Athens and the results were compared with the results of 700 other olive oil samples, from 30 different olive varieties. 150 of the comparative olive oil samples originated from countries outside of Greece, specifically: California, Italy, Spain, Croatia, Tunisia, Cyprus, France, Argentina, Chile, Morocco, and Israel. 
The results were impressive. The oleocanthal and oleacein concentrations in The Governor were 7 times higher than the average of the samples. The Governor Limited EVOO was then invited to take part in its first medical trial, please see the link to the report at the bottom of this page. The Limited EVOO continues to take part in further medical trials.

In late 2018 the Governor was used in the world’s first intervention with leukaemia patients in a hospital in Sparta. Ten patients consumed 40g of this olive oil daily (split between morning and evening) for three months. At the same time, a second group of five patients consumed the same amount of high phenolic olive oil that did not contain oleocanthal. The impressive results showed that olive oil with a high oleocanthal and oleacein content (a total of 700mg/kg of oil) resulted in a decrease in cancerous white blood cells and an increase in the specialised death of cancer cells in nine out of ten patients. This olive oil also improved a number of other biochemical markers without having any negative effect on patients, especially on haematocrit and the number of platelets. In contrast, olive oil rich in the simple phenols hydroxytyrosol and tyrosol but very low in oleocanthal and oleacein did not cause any change in levels of cancerous white blood cells. These small studies of course now need to be backed up by more extensive trials.

OLEOCANTHAL AND OLEACEIN BENEFITS 

Brain Health – Helps to reduce risk of cognitive impairment and promotes neuroprotective activity.

Alzheimer’s disease is the world’s most common neurodegenerative disease and a leading cause of dementia. One feature of Alzheimer’s is a build-up of protein tangles called beta amyloid plaques, in certain neurons in the brain. A study in mice showed that a substance in olive oil can help to clear these plaques from the brain. Please see the report relting to Alzheimer’s at the bottom of the page.

Heart Health– Helps to promote cardioprotective activity and therefore could help to prevent cardiovascular diseases which can cause a stroke or heart attack.

Bad cholesterol-helps to control cholesterol levels.

Arthritis– Oleocanthal is a natural anti-inflammatory.  

Anti-cancer benefits– Oleocanthal compound found in EVOO has now been identified for its rapid destruction of cancer cells at a molecular level.

Anti Ageing – The high proportion of vitamins K and E, and a multitude of polyphenols help to protect against free radicals which damage the skin.

 Diabetes– Ongoing clinical trials suggest that EVOO helps to protect against type 2 diabetes

Antimicrobial benefits – Kills or slows the spread of microorganisms including bacteria and viruses.

High Phenolic Olive Oils are those Extra Virgin Olive Oils (EVOO’s) that contain a high percentage of phenolic compounds, called polyphenols which are directly related to the health benefits of olive oil. According to the EU Health Claim Labeling Regulation (432/2012), the claim may be used only for olive oil which contains at least 5mg of hydroxytyrosol and its derivatives (e.g. oleuropein complex and tyrosol) per 20g of olive oil. The beneficial effect for the consumers is obtained with a daily intake of 20g of olive oil (2tbs). This daily intake of high phenolic olive oil contributes to the protection of blood lipids from oxidative stress. UC Davis, Harvard University, and many other research centers in the world embrace this idea and have backed it up with many researches over the last ten years.

Polyphenol – rich Olive Oils have been found to help:

· lower blood pressure

· protect the arteries from damage

· lower bad cholesterol

· reduce the risk for type II diabetes

· prevent many types of cancer

· prevent strokes

· fight premature aging

· decrease the risk of depression and dementia

· slow the progression of Alzheimer’s up to 40%

· reduce inflammations in the body

What are the phenolic compounds?

These are the organic compounds that are the by-products of plant synthesis and are known as phytochemicals. Polyphenols are regarded for their health-promoting properties and are found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, seeds and legumes, beverages (coffee, tea, and wine), fats (olive oil) as well as in spices. However, there are phenolic compounds unique to olive oil that only occur during the malaxation process. There are 36 known phenolic compounds in olive oil. The two most widely researched for their health-protective benefits are Oleocanthal and Oleacein which are known for their anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

The presence of Oleocanthal is indicated by the peppery effect on the back of the throat sometimes causing a cough reflex. Oleacein is known for the bitterness on the tongue. For people accustomed to purchasing olive oils from the supermarket, these characteristics of pepperiness and bitterness are often mistaken as a defect in the olive oil.

Phenolic content varies according to olive variety, time of harvest, milling procedures, soil condition, and weather patterns. For example, bio-diversity within the grove adds to the richness of the soil and the nutrition available to the olive fruit. Rains, drought, or winds have a greater or lesser impact on phenolic content and the amount of olive oil produced depending on when they occur during olive fruit maturation.