The False Notion of Every Food within Mediterranean Diet Being Healthy

There are many people who think that everything that is eaten in the traditional Mediterranean diet is healthy. However, olive oil that is commonly consumed in such a diet has been found to dilate and damage the endothelium(one-cell lining of blood vessels), which allows plaque to build up and constrict the blood vessels that can lead to heart disease and heart attacks.


Best Heart Benefits From Canola and Fish Oils -- Not Olive Oil
http://connecticare.com/GlobalFiles/HealthNews/article.asp?ID=091e9c5e8000735f&Cat=0&Num=6

"The olive oil meal caused vessels to constrict by 34%, whereas the canola oil and salmon meals caused insignificant changes in blood vessels, Vogel reports. Because such constrictions injure the blood vessels' endothelium, they contribute to heart disease."


What Is Atherosclerosis?
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/atherosclerosis/

"Atherosclerosis (ath-er-o-skler-O-sis) is a disease in which plaque (plak) builds up inside your arteries. Arteries are blood vessels that carry oxygen-rich blood to your heart and other parts of your body.

Plaque is made up of fat, cholesterol, calcium, and other substances found in the blood. Over time, plaque hardens and narrows your arteries. This limits the flow of oxygen-rich blood to your organs and other parts of your body.

Atherosclerosis can lead to serious problems, including heart attack, stroke, or even death."

The omega 3 fatty acids from foods such as fish in the diet can improve the endothelial function, and therefore prevent the olive oil from constricting and damaging the endothelium.

Effect of omega-3 fatty acids supplementation on endothelial function: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22317966

"Supplementation of omega-3 fatty acids significantly improves the endothelial function without affecting endothelium-independent dilation."

Olive oil taken without omega 3 fatty acids would be detrimental. People who assume that every food found within the traditional Mediterranean diet are mistaken.

The postprandial effect of components of the Mediterranean diet on endothelial function.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11079642

"CONCLUSIONS: In terms of their postprandial effect on endothelial function, the beneficial components of the Mediterranean and Lyon Diet Heart Study diets appear to be antioxidant-rich foods, including vegetables, fruits, and their derivatives such as vinegar, and omega-3-rich fish and canola oils."

Beneficial fats that contain high amounts of omega 3 can be found in foods like tofu, soya beans, soybean oil, soymilk, flaxseeds, walnuts etc. A good balance of omega 3 and 6 is already found in soybeans but if one can choose to consume flaxseeds to gain more omega 3 fats. 

Necessary Fat Intake For Proper Brain and Blood Vessel Function

The brain is made up 60% of fat and fat is very necessary to be consumed to ensure proper brain functions. Vegan diet groups like 30 BAD(bananas a day) have gotten the wrong biased view that fat should be avoided for the sake of weight loss, and I realize that their level of bias seems to relate very accurately to their low level of food and health intelligence. Other health diet preachers who have appeared in food documentaries have gotten the biased view that all oils are detrimental for the endothelial cells in the blood vessels but this is not true, it is only olive oil that has been found to pose such a problem.

There is science research that has found olive oil to be able to dilate blood vessels possibly due to the polyphenols that have an astringent effect. So people who have problems with their blood vessels might be wise to avoid olive oil and take other kinds of fat.

Dr Vogel's research properly explains how olive oil can significantly injure the endothelium and that the effects of other oils used in the research such as canola oil had insignificant effects on the endothelium.

http://connecticare.com/GlobalFiles/HealthNews/article.asp?ID=091e9c5e8000735f&Cat=0&Num=6

"The olive oil meal caused vessels to constrict by 34%, whereas the canola oil and salmon meals caused insignificant changes in blood vessels, Vogel reports. Because such constrictions injure the blood vessels' endothelium, they contribute to heart disease."


The postprandial effect of components of the Mediterranean diet on endothelial function.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11079642

"CONCLUSIONS: In terms of their postprandial effect on endothelial function, the beneficial components of the Mediterranean and Lyon Diet Heart Study diets appear to be antioxidant-rich foods, including vegetables, fruits, and their derivatives such as vinegar, and omega-3-rich fish and canola oils."

Since Dr Vogel's research has found that oils such as canola "caused insignificant changes in blood vessels", other oils such as flaxseed and hemp oils should be alright to consume. Oils rich in omega 3 has been found to improve endothelium function.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22317966
Effect of omega-3 fatty acids supplementation on endothelial function: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

"Supplementation of omega-3 fatty acids significantly improves the endothelial function without affecting endothelium-independent dilation."


Beneficial fats that contain high amounts of omega 3 can be found in foods like tofu, soya beans, soybean oil, soymilk, flaxseed oil, walnuts etc. A good balance of omega 3 and 6 is already found in soybeans but if one can choose to consume flaxseed oil to gain more omega 3 fats.

The recommended daily requirement for fat intake is 65grams. So each meal could contain about 20grams of fat.

A 14g tablespoon of flaxseed oil contains 14grams of fat and about 7000mg of omega 3. A 14g tablespoon of soybean oil contains about 1000mg of omega 3. 7 full pieces of walnuts of 28g contains 18grams of fat and 10000mg of omega 3.

Flaxseed oil
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fats-and-oils/7554/2

Soybean oil
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/fats-and-oils/507/2

Walnuts
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3138/2