30th November 2007
Surfing the web today I found some interesting write ups, that I think worth attaching to my web page should anyone feel the need to read something motivating! (thank you to the media24 team for the articles).
By Melanie Brandl
Olive oil is good for the body whether it's applied to the skin or ingested through salads and other foods. It's actually been a guarantor of health and beauty since antiquity, and now more and more cosmetic companies have rediscovered its natural properties and are using it as a basis for entire lines of personal care products.
"Cleopatra and Nefertiti knew the wonderful effects of olive oil," said expert Margot Hellmiss of
| 'Absorbed quickly' |
In addition the secondary plant materials and the high proportion of vitamin E in olive oil fends off so-called free radicals, which are dangerous byproducts of metabolism, "thereby putting the brakes on cell ageing," said Hellmiss.
Olive oil also is good for the skin. The oil's fat composition is very similar to that of human skin, said Dieter Oberg, who represents a Munich-based organisation offering information about olive oil. Therefore, olive oil generally doesn't cause any allergic reactions.
"In addition it is absorbed quickly, doesn't leave a greasy film behind and helps lock moisture into the skin," Hellmiss said. The result is soft, smooth skin. The higher proportion of unsaturated fat and vitamin E also work on the outside, particularly on sensitive skin. People who tend to have oily skin, however, should refrain from putting on additional oil.
The palette of products that use olive oil as a base has grown in recent years. The British chain, The Body Shop, offers a bath and shower gel and the classic olive oil soap in addition to an olive body spray, which is designed to hold moisture in the skin after a bath. Alternatively, the skin can be treated to a peel made of olive oil and rounded olive oil pits before a fragrant body butter is applied.
The Greek company Korres and the German company, Just Pure, also include olive oil pits in their peeling products. Olive Stones Natural Scrub from Korres and Just Pure's Olive Pit Herbal Peeling are two products that cleanse the face and body, leaving the skin smooth.
| Soft, smooth skin |
German cosmetic maker Sante bases most of its personal care product lines on olives. Shower gel, body lotion and shampoo strike a refreshing note through the addition of lime, ginger or grapefruit. Sante cosmetics from makeup to rouge and eye shadow also are based on olive oil and should be used to feel the effect of the olive's protective, skin-smoothing and healing oil, said company spokeswoman Silke Fleiss.
The company Biotherm in Duesseldorf also appears convinced of the power of the olive. Within five days, the facial cream Age Fitness Power 2 promises to revitalise the complexion and liven up puffy skin. There are two active ingredients responsible for these rapid results: olive water, which neutralizes free radicals, and olive fruit extract, which smooths the skin, according to Biotherm.
For a quick beauty treatment, however, it's sufficient to reach for the olive oil that's in the kitchen cupboard, assuming it holds a bottle of high quality cold pressed olive oil. Four tablespoons full of this type of olive oil warmed up slightly and mixed with sea salt can be used as a skin-tightening peel. Mixed together with lemon juice, olive oil is an ideal overnight treatment for wrinkles, and soaking hands in warm olive oil makes them supple and is good for fingernails as well.
New olive oil products, however, have their critics. Andrea Kraut of the
"The cosmetic industry is reinventing the wheel," she said, adding that she views the trend toward olive oil-based personal care products as a marketing ploy. "Natural cosmetics are in. The Mediterranean lifestyle is in, and, thanks to cooking shows on television, olive oil is in. It's that simple."
Oberg sees it differently. "If you do the test and wash your hands with normal soap and then with an olive oil soap, you feel the difference," he said. - Sapa-dpa
By Anne Harding
These compounds, known as phenols, have been shown in laboratory studies to have anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and blood clot preventing powers, Dr Francisco Perez Jimenez and colleagues of the Hospital Universitario Reina Sofia in
Their study is the first to show a benefit for phenol-rich olive oils on blood vessel function.
| Function poorly after a high-fat meal |
"The intake of food high in phenols compounds could improve cardiovascular health and protect the heart," Jimenez said.
"An example of these foods is virgin or extra virgin olive oil."
Jimenez and his team compared the effect of consuming phenol-rich olive oil or olive oil with most of its phenol content removed in a group of 21 volunteers with high cholesterol.
The researchers measured the ability of the study participants' blood vessels to respond to rapid changes in blood flow after they had consumed a relatively high-fat meal containing either type of olive oil.
Blood vessels have been shown to function poorly after a high-fat meal.
Blood vessel response and function was improved for the first four hours after the high-phenol olive oil meal, the researchers found, but there was no difference in blood vessel function before and after volunteers ate the low-phenol olive oil meal.
The researchers also found increased levels of the blood vessel dilating molecule nitric oxide and reduced levels of oxidative stress after consumption of the high-phenol meal.
Consumers should reach for olive oils labelled "virgin" or "extra virgin," which have the highest phenol content, Jimenez said.
He and his colleagues suggest that phenols' anti-oxidant effects, as well as their ability to help the body use nitric oxide more effectively, could be responsible for their effects.
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