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Interesting tidbits on health issues

Interesting tidbits on health issues

Ol?© for Olives?
I'm curious to know if olives are good for you? If so, which ones? I know they contain lots of salt, but other than that, are they beneficial or harmful in the diet?
-- Anonymous

(Published Thursday, May 24, 2001) Olives have an undeservedly bad reputation as a high-fat food, but actually their fat content is modest and I think they are a fine addition to the diet. The only problem might be their high salt content. If you're salt sensitive, you can soak olives in water for a day or two to get some of the salt out. Olives are fruits, and four large black olives contain roughly 25 calories and 2.5 grams of fat (mostly heart-healthy monounsaturated fat).

All olives are equally healthy - the differences between them have to do with texture, color, and flavor, which result from varietal differences, degree of ripeness, and method of processing. You might be interested to know how olives are transformed into the many varieties of green and black olives found on the market today. In general, green olives are under ripe with firmer flesh and a lower oil content. Olives picked in a riper stage are a deeper green color. Olives that are tree-ripened turn dark brown or black, naturally. Green olives are soaked in a solution of lye, which removes a bitter-tasting substance called oleuropein. Then they're thoroughly washed to remove the lye and placed in a barrel of salt brine. The salt concentration depends on the type of olive - you may be familiar with manzanilla, a Spanish green olive that you can get unpitted or stuffed with pimientos, almonds, or picholine, a nutty-tasting French green olive.

Black olives go straight into a brine solution, which promotes a lactic-acid fermentation. Then they're treated with lye to remove the oleuropein. Some ripe olives are debittered with salt alone. After curing, olives may be packed in a vinegar solution with or without flavorings (garlic, herbs, etc.) or in olive oil. Some of the best varieties are Greek kalamata, French ni?§oise, and Italian ligurian. I personally avoid California black olives, which are relatively tasteless imitations of the real thing. Actually, they are unripe green olives whose black color is obtained by exposure to air after lye extraction-a bland American version of a wonderful Old World edible.


Olives have an undeservedly bad reputation as a high-fat food, but actually their fat content is modest and I think they are a fine addition to the diet. The only problem might be their high salt content. If you're salt sensitive, you can soak olives in water for a day or two to get some of the salt out. Olives are fruits, and four large black olives contain roughly 25 calories and 2.5 grams of fat (mostly heart-healthy monounsaturated fat).

All olives are equally healthy - the differences between them have to do with texture, color, and flavor, which result from varietal differences, degree of ripeness, and method of processing. You might be interested to know how olives are transformed into the many varieties of green and black olives found on the market today. In general, green olives are under ripe with firmer flesh and a lower oil content. Olives picked in a riper stage are a deeper green color. Olives that are tree-ripened turn dark brown or black, naturally. Green olives are soaked in a solution of lye, which removes a bitter-tasting substance called oleuropein. Then they're thoroughly washed to remove the lye and placed in a barrel of salt brine. The salt concentration depends on the type of olive - you may be familiar with manzanilla, a Spanish green olive that you can get unpitted or stuffed with pimientos, almonds, or picholine, a nutty-tasting French green olive.

Black olives go straight into a brine solution, which promotes a lactic-acid fermentation. Then they're treated with lye to remove the oleuropein. Some ripe olives are debittered with salt alone. After curing, olives may be packed in a vinegar solution with or without flavorings (garlic, herbs, etc.) or in olive oil. Some of the best varieties are Greek kalamata, French ni?§oise, and Italian ligurian. I personally avoid California black olives, which are relatively tasteless imitations of the real thing. Actually, they are unripe green olives whose black color is obtained by exposure to air after lye extraction-a bland American version of a wonderful Old World edible.



Dr. Andrew Weil