Could switching to olive oil lower your risk of dying from dementia? Let’s find out!

Girish Shukla • Updated: 4 hours ago • Follow

Olive oil is stored in a jar

It is a known case olive oil is good for your health in many ways. That Mediterranean Sea Staple offers much more than its unique taste. Now a new study has emerged that further proves this fact. It suggests that replacing fats such as mayonnaise and margarine in your diet may reduce the risk of fatal dementia.

The new study was presented at the annual meeting in American Society for Nutrition- NUTRITION 2023. This is the first study that has investigated the effect of olive oil on brain health. The study has come to light at a time when many countries are reporting an increase in Alzheimer’s and other dementia-related diseases.

Here’s what Anne Julie TessierRD, PhD – a postdoc at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health – had to say while presenting the study:

“Our study strengthens the dietary guidelines that recommend vegetable oils such as olive oil and suggests that these recommendations not only support heart health, but potentially brain health as well. Choosing olive oil, a natural product, over fats such as margarine and commercial mayonnaise is a safe choice and can reduce the risk of fatal dementia.”

Wondering what dementia is?

Dementia is an umbrella term used for a range of conditions such as loss of memory, language, reasoning, problem solving and other thinking skills. These conditions can be severe enough to interfere with your daily functioning. Alzheimer’s is known to be the most common form of dementia. As no cure has yet been found, it is considered fatal.

Dementia

So what does the new study suggest?

For the study, the researchers observed over 90,000 Americans over a period of three decades. Of these, 31,801 participants were men and 60,582 were women. Within this period, 4,749 people died due to dementia.

According to the researchers’ observations, people who regularly consumed more than half a tablespoon of olive oil had a 28% reduced chance of dying from dementia compared to people who rarely or never consumed it.

In addition, replacing a teaspoon of mayonnaise or margarine with olive oil was associated with an 8-14% reduced risk of fatal dementia.

It is crucial to note that most of the people who died were APOe4 carriers – a gene responsible for increasing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in people, causing their bodies to make more cholesterol. The results appeared consistent even after adjusting for APOe4.

Although the research is only observational, it certainly suggests that the chances of olive oil having properties that are beneficial for brain health are high.

“Some antioxidant compounds in olive oil can cross the blood-brain barrier, potentially having a direct effect on the brain,” Tessier said in a press release. He further added, “It is also possible that olive oil has an indirect effect on brain health by benefiting cardiovascular health.”

What else is olive oil good for?

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans suggests replacing saturated fats with unsaturated fats such as olive oil. This will benefit by lowering the “bad” LDL cholesterol level in the blood and thus reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
A study reported in Journal of the American College of Cardiology two years ago says that using the same more than half a tablespoon of olive oil can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by 14%, compared to infrequent or no consumption of olive oil.

Pour olive oil into a small bowl

Olive oil has also been shown to be helpful in reducing inflammation and the risk of type 2 diabetes. Replacing other fats with this healthy option has resulted in 8-34% reduced chances of dying from all causes, including neurodegenerative disease-related mortality, cancer-related mortality, and cancer-related mortality.

While the new study looks promising, more research needs to be done to prove olive oil’s impact on brain health. Further research also needs to be done to determine the optimal measurements of olive oil to stay healthy. That said, this study certainly adds even more evidence that olive oil has several health benefits and people should incorporate it more into their diet.

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