Wild Olive Oil: What is it and where is it found?
The first variety of olive trees, planted in the Mediterranean region, is known to be wild olives, also called acebuche. This variation is seen all over Spain as well. It's a shrub and it's quite similar to the usual olives that we see today. However, the fact that the fruits and leaves of the former are smaller in size than the latter is what makes wild olives different from olives.
A brief comparison between cooking oil especially extra virgin olive oil and wild olive oil:
The benefits that olive oil offers to the world are no wonder. This oil, harvested from olives, has earned worldwide fame for being a treasure trove of nutrients. As per the DK Publishing House' Healing Foods' book, olive oil is filled with mono-saturated fatty acids that help control the level of blood sugar and facilitate digestion.
According to Shilpa Arora ND, a macrobiotic nutritionist and health practitioner, ‘this oil has enough heart-protective polyphenols and anti-inflammatory properties, proven to regulate the amount of cholesterol and blood pressure.’
Although did you know that wild olive oil has a greater effect than extra virgin olive oil on blood pressure?! Extra virgin olive oil is processed by cold-pressing olives for the uninitiated. It is unrefined and is labeled as the highest product one can obtain from olive oil.
Health Benefits of Wild olive oil:
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A recent analysis by the Research Group on Cardiovascular Physiopathology at the University Of Seville Department Of Physiology found that a diet rich in acebuchin oil (wild olive oil) can help control blood pressure in the arteries.
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In fact, the study showed that this oil had a better effect than extra virgin olive oil on our well-being. The research team led by Professor Carmen Maria Vazquez Cueto and Professor Alfonso Mate Barrero has found that, compared to extra virgin olive oil, this diet also helps minimize ocular oxidative stress caused by arterial hypertension (AHT).
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The researchers carried out a study on mice and gave them food either prepared with acebuchin oil or extra virgin olive oil. It was observed that in hypertensive animals, the acebuchin oil-enriched diet decreased blood pressure.
