Description

Green or black, in a balanced diet inspired by the Mediterranean diet, olives cannot be missing. Rich in antioxidants and allies for the well-being of the liver, let’s find out how to enhance these fruits of the olive trees at the table. Olives have long been part of the Spanish tables before being known and appreciated as they deserve. Today this food is fully part of the symbolic foods of the Mediterranean diet, internationally recognized for its properties and a very characteristic flavor. Table olives, green, black, with or without bone, stuffed, whole or sliced are part of appetizers, salads, salads, pasta dishes, rice, pates, sauces, bread or together with other components of meat and fish fillings.
Properties and benefits of olives.
Olives originate in Asia Minor and started spreading in the Mediterranean 6000 years ago. They are a source of vitamins A, B, C, E, mineral salts (iron, sodium, phosphorus, magne- sium, potassium and iodine) and provide oleic acid and have a high fiber content (which helps regulate our intestinal system). In addition to their famous benefits for our cardiovascular system, they also have beneficial properties for our musculoskeletal, respiratory, nervous and digestive systems: all this thanks to their high content of phytonutrients and antioxidants.

Olives are rich in many plant compounds, in particular:
Oleuropein: is the most abundant antioxidant in fresh and unripe olives.
Hydroxytyrosol: during olives ripening, oleuropein is broken down into hydroxytyrosol, a powerful antioxidant.
Tyrosol: prevalent in olive oil, this antioxidant is not as powerful as hydroxytyrosol.
Oleanolic Acid: This antioxidant can help prevent liver damage, regulate blood fats, and reduce inflammation.
Quercetin: This nutrient can lower blood pressure and improve heart health.

Green or black olives?
Assuming that in a complete diet and
as varied as possible the olives must not be missing, which ones to choose?
Evaluating the food composition per 100 g of product, the black ones have 0.8 g of carbohydrates, unlike the gram of the greens; always the black ones have 1.6 g of proteins unlike
the green ones that have 0.8 g.
As for the lipid profile, the black ones have 25.1 g of total lipids while the green ones only 15 g. The advice is to use both in
any meal plan. In the case of a composite plate, with greens and blacks present together, increase the blacks compared to the greens.