At the Olympia Health & Nutrition Awards ceremony for 2018, the results of the first clinical studies using Greek high phenolic olive oil were revealed.

The results showed improvement of the clinical picture of people suffering from serious illnesses such as Alzheimer’s disease and leukemia. The first two clinical trials were performed using two Greek high phenolic olive oils that had been selected from thousands of samples by the team of Professor Prokopios Magiatis at the University of Athens.

These important revelations were made during the ceremony for the 2018 Olympia Health & Nutrition Awards, which had 2.500 entries, more samples than any other olive oil competition in the world. The awards ceremony was organized for the third time by the University of Athens and the World Olive Center for Health (WOCH), a non-profit organization that aims to improve the economic situation for the entire olive and olive oil sector in Greece and internationally.  

In the clinical trial supervised by Professor Magda Tsolaki of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, high phenolic Halkidiki early harvest EVOO donated by Yanni’s Olive Grove reduced symptoms in patients with mild cognitive impairment (a precursor stage of Alzheimer’s disease) much more than simple olive oil after consumption of 40 grams a day for one year.

This is the first time that the action of high phenolic olive oil in the protection of the central nervous system appears to be verified in humans, although many extensive studies have been carried out using experimental animals at various universities around the world.

In a second study, which was supervised by Peloponnese University Professor Paola Rojas, olive oil extraordinarily rich in oleocanthal from Lianolia variety olives of Corfu, which was donated by the Dafnis family —  The Governor EVOO —  was given to patients with chronic lymphoblastic leukemia for a period of three months. The impressive results showed a decrease in white blood cells and the specific death of cancer cells.

At the same time, the olive oil also improved a number of biochemical markers without having any negative effect on patients. This is the first time that there are strong indications of the therapeutic properties of high oleocanthal olive oil in oncology patients, and this is considered a very important innovation in the Greek scientific community.

In addition, E-LA-WON high phenolic olive oil will participate in scientific research on multiple sclerosis at the University of Athens.

“We have very serious data on the healing properties of high phenolic olive oil. We need to continue the studies that have begun in Greece and the US,” stressed the president of the World Olive Center for Health, Dr. Eleni Melliou. She invited the hundreds of producers who attended the ceremony to support the funding of studies through the non-profit organization. Dr. Melliou also announced the establishment of special scholarships to support research.

The aim of the World Olive Center for Health (WOCH) is to provide certification for olive oils that meet the criteria for the EU health claim, train producers, and support targeted research to highlight the healthy and therapeutic properties of all olive products, with the ultimate aim of increasing their economic value.

The Olympia Awards started in 2016 at the International Olympic Academy in Ancient Olympia with 565 entries from 15 countries. In 2017 there were 800 entries, and in 2018 more than 2000 entries. This year it was the largest international olive oil competition worldwide in terms of number of entries. The awards ceremony took place in the framework of the European program INTERREG MED “ARISTOIL”, which includes Greece, Cyprus, Spain, Italy and Croatia.

by Elina Mammi