Extra virgin olive oil: More than a healthy fat

The beneficial effects of a Mediterranean diet on human health and, in particular, on lowering risk of cardiovascular disease, has been mainly attributed to its high content to extra virgin olive oil (EVOO). While its main fatty acid, oleic acid, is considered important to these effects, EVOO has other biological properties that depend on, or are potentiated by other minor components of this oil. Initially, the mechanisms considered as possible causes of this cardioprotective effect of EVOO were based on the incidence on the so-called traditional risk factors (especially lipids and blood pressure). However, the high relative reduction in the prevalence of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality were not proportional to the limited findings about regulation of those traditional risk factors. In addition to several studies confirming the above effects, current research on beneficial effect of EVOO, and in particular in conjunction with Mediterranean style diets, is being focused on defining its effects on newer cardiovascular risk factors, such as inflammation, oxidative stress, coagulation, platelet aggregation, fibrinolysis, endothelial function or lipids or on the modulation of the conditions which predispose people to cardiovascular events, such as obesity, metabolic syndrome or type 2 diabetes mellitus. In the current review, we will mainly focus on reviewing the current evidence about the effects that EVOO exerts on alternative factors, including postprandial lipemia or coagulation, among others, discussing the underlying mechanism by which it exerts its effect, as well as providing a short review on future directions.