Eat This Everyday

A staple of healthy Mediterranean diet, olive oil has plenty of health benefits worth knowing about. High in monounsaturated fatty acids, about 75% by volume, eating monounsaturated fats help lower the bad LDL cholesterol or low-density lipoproteins, which can lead to a build-up of cholesterol in your arteries.

A large part of the reason olive oil is so beneficial is thanks to its antioxidant properties, which can help lower inflammation that can cause do much damage to systems in the body. Reducing the amount of oxidative stress in the body can lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, some cancers and even dementia.

It’s not just overall physical health either, studies also show that the high antioxidant properties of olive can be particularly useful for improving and maintaining fitness levels because of the way it helps enhance your muscle metabolism and boosts endurance in your performance. Consistent intake of olive oil in the diet of participants in one study also found that their perceived exertion during exercise was lower, which in turn helped with recovery.

While regular olive oil offers great benefits, if you want to reap even more of the antioxidant benefits, then choose extra virgin olive oil instead. Processed without high hear and chemical solvents, extra virgin olive oil retains higher concentrations of the antioxidant phenols than regular, more heavily processed olive oil.