drinking olive oil

[goldenbrunette]

i know that olive oil is great used externally to oil hair and also that there are benefits to having a spoonful a day but does drinking it aid growth?? im very curious to find out!

[Eboshi]

If your diet is deficient in monosaturated fats, the olive oil may help in that regard. Drinking large quantities of it may do little more than tax your gallbladder though.

[Lemur_Catta]

Well, it's not so tasty you know :D
I would not advice you to drink it, but try to use it on salads, meat and other things. If you don't drink it, and if you buy the right one, it is really good. It's what we use 99% of the time here to cook.
And it is also good for your health, provided that you consume it raw, without stir frying or anything.

[Carolyn]

I agree cooking with olive oil is delicious. Why not make up a nice vinagarette with olive oil and consume it that way? I take a spoonful of flax oil or cod liver oil as part of my vitamin and supplement routine. I love fish so I really like cod liver oil. Yes I know I'm a weirdo :p

[goldenbrunette]

I went through a phase of drinking it for a couple months last spring..a couple of spoons a day. I fell out of the habit now but I remember at the time it felt good..it may taste odd but you get used to it. I need to put on weight too as I am feeling too skinny for the cold weather

[SHELIAANN1969]

You might poop a lot! :poop: eeek (if you drink it straight)

[3azza]

Instead of drinking it plain, you can add it to everything (raw). If you make soups, stews, salads, drizzling some olive oil at the end is a good idea. We do this where i live. We even add it to cheese sandwiches. I'm sure it does hair and skin some good :)

[Tabitha]

Pesto is also yummy! but nah, I couldn't drink it neat :puke:

[Speckla]

Try 1 or 2 tablespoons with garlic salt and use it to dip bread in. Delicious and nutritious.

[pdy2kn6]

I am not too sure about the answer to your question, I am sure it would be quite good for your overall health. Could I quickly ask, does cooking olive oil (eye when stirfrying or heating up stuff), does it lose its nutrition-ness?

[Speckla]

I am not too sure about the answer to your question, I am sure it would be quite good for your overall health. Could I quickly ask, does cooking olive oil (eye when stirfrying or heating up stuff), does it lose its nutrition-ness?

It depends on the temperature used before it starts to breakdown.

[Darian Moone]

I couldn't imagine drinking it (gag!), but I do use it as a salad dressing all the time. Sometimes I infuse it with fresh herbs and use it to dip bread in instead of using butter. Rubbing into your skin and putting it on my hair has always worked nicely as well.

[danacc]

There was a study that concluded you get more nutrients from your salad if you ate it along with fat. http://www.thefactsaboutfitness.com/news/veg-fat.htm (Who'd have thought no-fat dressing could be worse for you than fatty ones?) I second the recommendations to use is as a vinaigrette. You could also use it as a dip for veggies. That way, you get a double benefit--lovely monounsaturated fat from the olive oil and better nutrient absorption at the same time.

[Anje]

I'm another who can't really imagine drinking it. Then again, I'm a bit sensitive to the stuff, and I think it, erm, speeds things along. Then again, I have a mental image of a bottle of olive oil with a curly straw coming out...

In any case, I think you probably want to limit yourself to a couple tablespoons per day. Be aware of the calories you're consuming, too, even though you're trying to gain a bit of weight. If you need some more fat in your diet, it might be worth while, though I think I'd prefer to eat it in the same situation.

[spidermom]

Drinking it sounds revolting, but I use olive oil in cooking and salad dressings all the time. There is a limit to what I will do for great hair, and drinking olive oil is somewhere over the line.

[Akiko]

I don't think I can drink olive oil... I cook with it though.

[goldenbrunette]

thanks guys...ill carry on drinking it and see how it goes and report back with the results!

[Leabhar]

I've drunk it before (and eaten it on/with/in a lot of foods, too, lol). It's okay, but if you're not used to eating a lot of fat then you will probably have some trouble!

[pdy2kn6]

Is it really fattening? I keep hearing people talk about how they have it as a way of building up body fat?

[Tabitha]

Fat has 9 calories per gram. Olive oil contains roughly 120 calories per tablespoon (15 mls)

[amoulixes]

Is it really fattening? I keep hearing people talk about how they have it as a way of building up body fat?

It's a "good" fat. :) You do need a certain amount of fat to remain alive.

Also, your question about stir-frying/cooking: If olive oil is heated to a certain point (high during stir fry and general frying or deep frying) not only does it loose nutritional value, I believe it can become one of those "bad" fats to avoid. The same thing is true with all oils; some are just better for higher or lower temperatures. I'm not an expert, this is just what I've learned. Olive oil is best consumed "raw." :)

[rach]

I use olive oil in my cooking except when making pancakes - that does taste odd.

neat - no thanks. I'm not keen on vinaigrettes either but many things are stored within olive oil?

[pdy2kn6]

Fat has 9 calories per gram. Olive oil contains roughly 120 calories per tablespoon (15 mls)

Not really sure what to make of that? Sounds confusing lol

[Tabitha]

Not really sure what to make of that? Sounds confusing lol

No it's quite simple. Food is made up of varying amounts of carbohydrate, fat and protein. Fat is the most calorie-dense and contains 9 calories per gram. Protein contains 4 calories per gram and carbohydrate also contains 4 calories per gram (alcohol contains 7 calories per gram). Source: http://www.nutristrategy.com/nutrition/calories.htm

Olive oil is pretty much pure fat. Being liquid it's more often measured in litres (or fluid ounces) than in ounces or grams. For 15 ml/one tablespoon there is 120 calories.

[pdy2kn6]

No it's quite simple. Food is made up of varying amounts of carbohydrate, fat and protein. Fat is the most calorie-dense and contains 9 calories per gram. Protein contains 4 calories per gram and carbohydrate also contains 4 calories per gram (alcohol contains 7 calories per gram). Source: http://www.nutristrategy.com/nutrition/calories.htm

Olive oil is pretty much pure fat. Being liquid it's more often measured in litres (or fluid ounces) than in ounces or grams. For 15 ml/one tablespoon there is 120 calories.

oh, that makes it alot easier to understand. Thanks for the info. I'll have to make sure not to overcook it when I use it, I don';t want to end up eating pure (overcooked) bad fat

[ratgirldjh]

I've drank olive oil on and off for many years.

Somewhere I heard (and later read on-line) about incredibly long lived people and found out that many of them drank up to a cup of EVOO a day!!! Check it out on the internet!!!

In one case (i can't remember the country) they saw these very old men working in the fields who would take EVOO with them for breakfast (1 glass) and they went to talk to them and they were all over 100 years old!!! and still working in the fields!

But for me taking even a teaspoon of EVOO seems to irritate something in my colon and the next day even though I do of course poop a lot - it is hard to wipe away - TMI LOL :D

Virgin Coconut Oil taken internally makes me constipated...

But cold-pressed organic sesame oil seems to lubricate me from the inside without causing the irritable bowel feeling of the olive oil - does this make sense?

I have been wondering if that since I am very vata if this is why they say sesame oil is the best for vata - it sure seems to work best for me... for skin and for taking daily...

[Tangles]

I actually might try this because I have chronically dry skin and hair and also wouldn't mind gaining a couple pounds. There's nothing disgusting to me about a teaspoon of the stuff, though a cup is gross.

[Meechl]

Hi Ladies,
Any updates on drinking olive oil?

Meechl

[elbow chic]

ha, the idea of drinking it makes me gag a little, but surely it is good for you. I like to eat it on tomatoes with a teeny teeny bit of salt.

[ericthegreat]

Drinking olive oil in significant quantities is a BAD idea. Yes, it is technically a healthy kind of fat. But our bodies really only need relatively small percentage of fat in our diet, usually around 20% or so. A hardcore athlete could consume and burn off more fat, but even they shouldn't be drinking cups of oil. Olive oil is still a saturated fat. A teaspoon or so for cooking or a small amount of it drizzled on a salad is okay and healthy, but anything more than that on a daily basis can be dangerous for your health.

[growingpains]

I am not too sure about the answer to your question, I am sure it would be quite good for your overall health. Could I quickly ask, does cooking olive oil (eye when stirfrying or heating up stuff), does it lose its nutrition-ness?

My father told me it releases carcinogens when heated to a certain temp therefore is not recommended to be used in stirfries and whatnot. Better to have cold.

[torrilin]

Eric, I think you've got it backwards. Olive oil is an UNsaturated fat, because it has very few double bonds between the carbon atoms.

Most unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature, and they won't start to solidify until the temperature is around 40F/5C. As posters upthread alluded to, if you cook with an unsaturated fat at high temperatures, you can change the chemical composition. It will gradually get more and more double bonds between the carbon atoms. The more double bonds, the more saturated the fat. After this happens, you may find that your olive oil now cheerfully solidifies at room temperature, so 70F/20C.

For some reason, a lot of saturated fats like butter or lard will be solid at room temperature when they're uncooked, and they'll tend to stay liquid at room temperature after they've been cooked at high heats. I'm not sure what causes this, but it is confusing!

[dRummie]

My father told me it releases carcinogens when heated to a certain temp therefore is not recommended to be used in stirfries and whatnot. Better to have cold.This is true. Actually, this is true of anything if it's burnt - this is why it's not a good idea to eat that blackened piece of toast. Different oils burn at different temperatures, and olive oil happens to have a low "smoke point", as it's called. A good oil to use for stirfries etc. is grapeseed oil. It's another "good for you" oil, but with a much higher smoke point.

Also, olive oil is largely unsaturated - mostly monounsaturated - which allows it to stay liquid at room temp. Monounsaturated fats are also the ones most said to be good for one's health.

[ericthegreat]

Eric, I think you've got it backwards. Olive oil is an UNsaturated fat, because it has very few double bonds between the carbon atoms.

Most unsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature, and they won't start to solidify until the temperature is around 40F/5C. As posters upthread alluded to, if you cook with an unsaturated fat at high temperatures, you can change the chemical composition. It will gradually get more and more double bonds between the carbon atoms. The more double bonds, the more saturated the fat. After this happens, you may find that your olive oil now cheerfully solidifies at room temperature, so 70F/20C.



I've just done my own little research on olive oil and you're right torrilin, olive oil in its pure uncooked form is a monoUNsaturated fat. However, olive oil also has a relatively low smoke point temperature at between 300 to 350 degrees F, so it is not an ideal oil to use for frying. If you do happen to cook with olive oil at temperatures higher than 350 F, then it can transform into an unhealthy kind of fat.

[princessp]

I really can't imagine drinking it~gah. But I have used olive leaf tinctures as a body cleanse along with plenty of fresh water and it definitely works.

[Fethenwen]

I'm also a bit worried about olive oil turning unhealthy because of cooking in high heat, I am trying to transition to using it AFTER I have cooked. I love the taste of olive oil :) No need to drink it, just use it in foods instead.

I have learned to actually instead of frying the food, cook it in a little water and then add the olive oil in the end.

[EdG]

I have learned to actually instead of frying the food, cook it in a little water and then add the olive oil in the end.I also add olive oil after cooking (by boiling or microwaving). There's almost no mess to clean up.
Ed

[Aveyronnaise]

A good actually great alternative for frying and whatnot is grapeseed oil , it doesn't breakdown and is full of good fats. It's really cheap here because of the wine industry , and it has almost zero flavor , which is a good thing.