Gift of olive oil keeps on giving
According to Greek mythology, Zeus once held a contest to see who would be awarded patronage of Attica. The patronage would be awarded to the god or goddess who provided the most useful gift. Poseidon, to show that he would be a great patron, took his trident and struck open the rock of the Acropolis, and from the crevice poured a great spring of water. But when the Athenians tasted the spring water, it was salty, since Poseidon was a sea god. Athena, when her turn came, made an olive tree grow on the Acropolis. From this the Athenians were able to produce oil, from which lamps were lit, anointing the body could take place, and food preparation was possible. Athena won and became the patron god of Athens. (Mythology, Edith Hamilton)
Olives were cultivated in Crete as early as 2500 B.C., according to Peggy Knickerbocker in Olive Oil: From Tree to Table. And today, health experts say that even though Americans have a better health-care system and Greeks smoke more than we do, they live longer and have lower rates of cancer and heart disease than Americans (“Olive oil fights heart disease, breast cancer, studies say,” by Stefan Lovgren in National Geographic News.)
Why is olive oil so good for you? The answer is simply this: Olive oil is high in monounsaturated fat—which is the “good” fat you hear about when doctors are preaching to you about cholesterol. Even the Food and Drug Administration has gotten on the olive oil bandwagon and has allowed the health claim that monounsaturated fat from olive oil can decrease the risk of coronary heart disease.
New studies have shown that oleic acid, which is the main monounsaturated fatty acid in olive oil, can actually cripple a gene that is responsible for 25 percent to 30 percent of breast cancers today. Javier Menendez of Northwestern University, one of the study’s authors, says that the Mediterranean diet, which is laced with olive oil, has significant protective effects against cancer, heart disease and aging.
All of which makes Athena’s tree a pretty good gift.