Off topic: Insulin spike cut in half if take 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil with meal – RCT June 2017

Extra virgin olive oil improves post-prandial glycemic and lipid profile in patients with impaired fasting glucose.

Clin Nutr. 2017 Jun;36(3):782-787. doi: 10.1016/j.clnu.2016.05.016. Epub 2016 May 28.

Carnevale R1, Loffredo L2, Del Ben M2, Angelico F3, Nocella C1, Petruccioli A4, Bartimoccia S2, Monticolo R2, Cava E2, Violi F5.

• 1 Department of Medico-Surgical Sciences and Biotechnologies, Sapienza University of Rome, Latina, Italy.
• 2 Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
• 3 Department of Public Health and Infectious Diseases, Sapienza University of Rome, Italy.
• 4 AFC Patrimonio Servizi e forniture UO ristorazioni, Policlinico Umberto I, Rome, Italy.
• 5 Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy. Electronic address: francesco.violi at uniroma1.it.

BACKGROUND & AIMS:
Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) improves post-prandial glycaemia in healthy subjects but it has never been investigated if this can be detected in pre-diabetic patients. We investigated if EVOO affects post-prandial glucose and lipid profile in patients with impaired fasting glucose (IFG).

METHODS:
Thirty IFG patients were randomly allocated to a meal containing or not 10 g of EVOO in a cross-over design. Before, 60 min and 120 min after lunch a blood sample was taken to measure glucose, insulin, Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP1), dipeptidyl-peptidase-4 (DPP4) activity, triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and Apo B-48.

RESULTS:
The meal containing EVOO was associated with a reduction of glucose (p = 0.009) and DPP4 activity (p < 0.001) and a significant increase of insulin (p < 0.001) and GLP-1 (p < 0.001) compared with the meal without EVOO.
Furthermore, the meal containing EVOO showed a significant decrease of triglycerides (p = 0.002) and Apo B-48 (p = 0.002) compared with the meal without EVOO. Total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol levels did not significantly change between the two groups.

CONCLUSIONS:
This is the first study to show that in IFG patients EVOO improves post-prandial glucose and lipid profile with a mechanism probably related to incretin up-regulation.

KEYWORDS:
Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO); Glucose; Lipid; Mediterranean diet

PMID: 27289163 DOI: 10.1016/j.clnu.2016.05.016 Publisher wants $36 for the PDF

From the web

• “Though virgin olive oil (without the "extra") is produced through the same process and is not blended with other oils, it's made from slightly riper olives. It has a lighter flavor and is around 2% acidity. Use virgin olive oil for cold dishes or low-temperature cooking.”
• “Extra virgin olive oil is mechanically pressed (you may see the term cold pressed) rather than being produced by chemical means. I has an acidity level of less than 0.8%. It is also tasted for flavour before being certified. Fine or Virgin Olive Oil has an acidity of less than 2%. It often uses slighter riper olives.”
• “Virgin means the oil was made by simply pressing olives. It didn't undergo any of the industrial processes used to make 'refined' oils such as canola, sunflower, soybean and the lower grades of olive oil labeled 'Pure,' 'Light,' and simply 'Olive Oil.'”