Contents:
- Medical Video: Health Benefits of Olives You should Know this
- Nutritional content of olives
- Fat
- Carbohydrates and fiber
- Benefits of olives
- Fight infection
- Improve heart health
- Improve bone health
- Prevent cancer
Medical Video: Health Benefits of Olives You should Know this
Olives (Olea europaea) aka olive has been famous since time immemorial as a fruit with many benefits. In Indonesia, this fruit is commonly used when it has been processed into olive oil, which can be used as cooking oil, oil for treating facial beauty, oil for nourishing hair, and much more.
Actually, the benefits of olives are not only used as oil. Blackish-green or purple fruit is also useful if consumed directly. The benefits of olives come from nutrients, vitamins, minerals, and their organic compounds, including iron, fiber, copper, vitamin E, phenolic compounds, oleic acid, and various antioxidants. In addition, olives also have a low glycemic index.
Nutritional content of olives
Olives contain 115-145 calories per 100 grams, or about 59 calories for 10 olives (assuming an average weight of 4 grams of olives). This content consists of 75-80% water, 11-15% fat, 4-6% carbohydrates and a small amount of protein.
Fat
Olives are fruits that have a high fat content of 11 to 15 percent. But the fat in this fruit is good fat. The most abundant fatty acids are oleic acid, which includes monounsaturated fatty acids, and is 74 percent of the total content of olives.
Oleic acid is associated with several health benefits, such as reducing swelling and reducing the risk of heart disease. It can even fight cancer.
Carbohydrates and fiber
Olives have a low carbohydrate content, only four to six percent. Most of these carbohydrates consist of fiber. There are as many as 52 to 86 percent of the fiber produced from the total carbohydrate content in olives.
Benefits of olives
Fight infection
Olives are very rich in antioxidants, such as oleuropein, hydroxytyrosol, tyrosol, oleonic acid, quercetin. Olives can reduce oxidative damage in the body and help fight infections caused by bacteria.
Improve heart health
Olives contain oleic acid which can improve heart health by regulating cholesterol levels and protecting LDL cholesterol from oxidation, and can help reduce blood pressure. High cholesterol and high blood pressure are risk factors for heart disease.
The content of hydroxytyrosol in olives can also protect the heart. This antioxidant acts as an anticoagulant to thin the blood, which reduces the possibility of blood clots and blocks blood flow.
Improve bone health
Osteoporosis is characterized by a decrease in bone mass and bone quality. This can increase the risk of fractures. The level of osteoporosis is lower in Mediterranean countries (which are diligent in eating olives) than in other European countries, which causes researchers to speculate that olives may be protective for bones. Some compounds found in olives and olive oil have been shown to help prevent bone loss in experimental animals.
Prevent cancer
The content of antioxidants and oleic acid which is high in olives can help reduce the risk of cancer. This has been proven in a study that olives can interfere with the life cycle of cancer cells in the breast, large intestine and stomach. But further research is still needed.
