Olive oil has power to relieve pain
www.chinaview.cn 2005-09-01 09:57:47
Extra virgin olive oil relieves pain in the same way as ibuprofen and may explain the healthiness of a Mediterranean diet, researchers have found.
BEIJING, Sep. 1 (Xinhuanet)-- Virgin olive oil has the same power to kill pain as widely used painkiller, researchers have found.
Paul A. S. Breslin from the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia and colleagues report in the Sept. 1 issue of Nature this week that olive oil contains a newly-found compound, oleocanthal, which suppresses the same pain pathway as non steroidal anti-inflammatory agents, such as ibuprofen, although the two chemicals are not related.
Tests show that it inhibits cox-1 and cox-2, molecules associated with pain and inflammation, just as ibuprofen does.
"Our findings raise the possibility that long-term consumption of oleocanthal may help to protect against some diseases by virtue of its ibuprofen-like COX-inhibiting activity," said Breslin.
"The Mediterranean diet, of which olive oil is a central component, has long been associated with numerous health benefits, including decreased risk of stroke, heart disease, breast cancer, lung cancer, and some dementias." he said.
The researchers calculate that a 50 gram daily dose of olive oil is equivalent to about 10 per cent of the ibuprofen dose recommended for adult pain relief.
Breslin said that the new finding offers another reason for people to adopt the Mediterranean diet, which is rich in fish, unsaturated fat, fresh vegetables -- and olive oil.
"You could take a baby aspirin every day, but the Mediterranean diet offers the same health benefits," he said. Enditem
|
