This might come as a surprise, but olive oil is one of the best fats for your gut microbiome so Sarah and Stacy are dedicating the entire hour to magical oil! They're are breaking down all the science behind what makes olive oil so great, its variety of impressive health benefits, which type of olive oil is best, and why you should be using olive oil in all of your cooking (including cakes)!
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The Paleo View (TPV), Episode 326: The Olive Oil-cast!

(0:00) Intro
(0:40) News and views
Big news! Stacy's family has a new addition: an 8 week old Boston Terrier puppy! Since she snorts like a pig, they've named her Penelope (after the movie).
Stacy is glad they waited til now to get a pet because the boys (particularly Cole and Finn) are at the perfect age where they can responsibly look after a pet.


(8:30) Today's topic: Olive Oil!
In researching her upcoming new microbiome-focused book, Sarah has discovered a lot of cool, exciting information about olive oil!
Side note:
Book title and pre-order dates will be announced soon-ish
This isn't a specifically 'Paleo' book, but since it's about gut health, there's a lot of overlap


A big thanks to our episode sponsor, Fresh Pressed Olive Oil Club!
Fresh Pressed Olive Oil Club is a monthly subscription that sends the highest quality olive oil right to your door.
All oils are hand-selected by club founder, T.J. Robinson, aka the Olive Oil Hunter and one of the world’s leading authorities on olive oil.
We've got a special, limited offer for our listeners: $1 for a $39 bottle when you sign up for a membership! Take advantage of this offer before they run out: freshpressedoliveoil.com/thepaleoview


(18:41) The science behind what makes olive oil so great
What's in olive oil that makes it so healthy?
Olive oil is very unique in terms of fatty acid composition. Olive oil is up to 83% oleic acid, which is responsible for many of the cardiovascular benefits.
It's also very high in vitamin E, particularly the most important form of vitamin E, alpha-tocopherol.
It also has a least 30 types of phenolic compounds which are anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, potentially anti-tumor. These phenolic compounds are the big difference between a cheap olive oil and a high quality extra virgin olive oil.

Olive oil health benefits
It can lower markers of inflammation like C-reactive protein.
In rheumatoid arthritis, olive oil supplementation can reduce joint pain and swelling. In fact, olive oil and fish oil can mediate the effects of arthritis.

It can lower risk of cardiovascular disease
Increase microbial diversity in the microbiome
It can lower blood pressure
Lower LDL cholesterol
Improves blood vessel health
Decreases risk of stroke
Early evidence suggests it can reduce the risk of Alzheimer's
Studies show olive oil rich diets may aid weight loss
Improved blood sugar regulation and improved insulin sensitivity
These studies an mainly done within the context of the Mediterranean Diet



(29:48) Olive oil and the gut microbiome
There's a variety of animal studies looking at high fat diets and whether the type of fat matters. The short answer? It does.
Palm oil, butter oil, and safflower oil reduce gut diversity and increase "unhealthy" gut bacteria.
Your microbiome is one of the biggest drivers of your health.
Olive oil is the second best type of fat for supporting Bifidobacteria and Lactobacillus and microbial diversity in the gut. The best is fish oil, but it's not great for cooking.

Studies show refined olive oil doesn't have these effects as extra virgin olive oil. The phytochemical content of extra virgin olive oil is key in mediating the microbiome benefits.
Sarah is fascinated by all this information because she wasn't expecting there to be another fat other than fish oil that was almost equally as beneficial for the microbiome.
The caveat is that Sarah hasn't seen any papers on avocado oil at this point so the jury's