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Typical stone mill for olive oil production |
In the last 4000 years the Mediterranean
civilizations have used olive oil for the most despairing
reasons: as detergent, as lubricant, as combustible, as a mean
of exchange or as medicine. Now even the rest of the world is
getting to know olive oil, one of the more versatile juices to
be extracted from a fruit.
Not till long ago populations far from the Mediterranean tended
to think about olive oil as something exotic, an ingredient used
in ethnic cuisine. |
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It could happen that people tasted
this product for the first time in restaurants, where however it was
often adulterated with various adding and therefore was thought of
unjustly as a less digestible product.
But olive oil started to build a new
respectable reputation in particular when a survey published during
the 70s revealed that Mediterranean populations had a lower rate of
cardiac pathologies among all the western populations. This
phenomenon was attributed to the large consumption of olive oil,
which is made up by 77% of monounsaturated fats, that is to say
those fats considered to be the "good" ones. In addition olive oil
is rich in antioxidising whose property is to prevent the hardening
of the arteries.
Towards the end of the 80s in the
Western countries olive oil has experienced a boom in consumption
thanks to the combination of many factors: an increased interest of
the consumer to more healthy eating patterns, an increased attention
to natural products and a conscious willingness to pay more for
alimentary products.
Olive oil and health
According to recent studies olive oil
favours the maturing of the central nervous system and the ability of
the organism to defend itself from the attack of the oxidant agents
that are responsible of many physiological and pathological
processes such as ageing, inflammation, haemolysis e cancerogenesis.
Furthermore it appears that the
population of the Mediterranean area, usually consuming more olive
oil, is better protected from the risk of thrombosis with respect to
the people that rely more on the consumption of animal fats. Olive
oil can have a therapeutic action on peptic ulcer and can prevent
the formation of gall-stones. In addition food fried in olive oil is
much more nutrient and digestible than that fried with animal fats.
Olive oil production: click on image to
enlarge
Olive oil classifications
The best olive oil is the
extra virgin olive oil . In order to obtain this denomination
(it means it is no way altered) it must be extracted only by
mechanical means, it must not be heated during the process of
extraction, its acidity gradient must not be higher than 1.1 % and
it must possess certain requirements of aroma and taste that are
subject to evaluation by a committee of professional tasters. This
oil is know in Italian as "Olio Extravergine d'Oliva".
All other olive oils that do not
fall in the above mentioned category are commercialized under other
denominations such as:
- virgin olive oil (Olio virgine d'oliva)
- olive oil (olio d'oliva)
These latter ones are insipid oils that
can be treated chemically and mixed with the small quantities of
extra virgin oil in order to improve their taste and color.
The true lover of olive oil knows that
that the extra virgin is by far the best oil in terms of quality,
taste and nutritional supply. He knows that there can be slight
variations of color and taste in his preferred extra virgin oil due
to the particularity of the extraction process . On the other hand
the average consumer does not like surprises and seems to prefer
oils with a more standard taste even if lower in quality. That is
the reason why big firms that commercialize olive oil can resort to
mix different oils in order to offer always the same taste and color
of its product.
Olive oil characteristics
Oil is made up of 80% of
monounsaturated acid fats that resist to oxidation more than the
polyunsaturated and contribute in keeping high the level of HDL (
the "good" cholesterol) and low the level of LDL (the "bad"
cholesterol). Only a very small part of olive oil, from 4 to 12
percent, is made up of polyunsaturated acids, whose oxidation can
harden the walls of the arteries. The low content of cholesterol is
not the only important factor. Two other elements are essentials: E
vitamin and the poliphenols. Acting in synergy these elements can
reduce the risk of some forms of tumors.
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