Real Olive Oil is Rare

Worth its weight in gold

A good olive oil has fantastic health benefits that make it unique and worth its weight in gold.

The story begins in 1957, when scientist Ancel Keys discovered that people living on the island of Crete, in the Mediterranean Sea, had longer lives than any other European population. Even more exciting, their lives were relatively free from chronic diseases like cancer, diabetes, heart disease, age-related cognitive decline, arthritis, and osteoporosis. Keys believed the secret to this robust health lay in what he called "the Mediterranean Diet." A diet high in fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and omega 3 fats from fish, the Mediterranean Diet's centerpiece was pure, unrefined olive oil -- lots of it! In fact 35-40% of the calories in this diet came from healthy olive oil! As valuable as the rest of the Mediterranean diet was, it's since been determined that olive oil accounted for the lion's share of the diet's health benefits.

Thousands of studies have now been done on the virtues of olive oil, and it's been confirmed that it can play a significant role in preventing and reversing each one of the above diseases, along with improving digestion, strengthening immunity (some studies indicate pure, unrefined olive oil can increase antiviral defense 4,000%!), combating ulcers and heartburn, supporting liver function and preventing gallstones.

But while olive oil's fame has grown, the quality of olive oil available has plummeted. The most important thing to know is that there is a very little real (meaning pure, unrefined) olive oil available on today's market!

There are more than a thousand substances present in real olive oil apart from fatty acids. Called phytosterols and phenolic compounds, these substances are responsible for the bulk of olive oil's antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that make it such an effective disease-fighter. However processing destroys these substances -- so the more processed the oil, the less healthy it is.

Theoretically, extra virgin olive oil is real olive oil -- the least damaged by processing. Virgin olive oil is next, while "pure," "olive oil" and "extra light" are categories denoting considerable refining and processing. However, and this is a true scandal, almost all olive oils labeled "extra virgin" simply aren't what they claim to be! All too many are even adulterated with inferior, unhealthy oils! Not only is most olive oil today not healthy, it's downright toxic!

How to find real olive oil? It's sometimes produced in small, estate bottled settings, and you can learn more about what to look for in our blog articles. However it was quite a challenge for us to find one that did the whole process right, so our best recommendation is to take advantage of Beyond Health Olive Oil. If you do, you can rest assured you're getting that rare commodity -- real, pure, unrefined olive oil, with every single one of its health-giving properties!