Vitamins for Wellness

Caveat emptor!

The great olive oil scam. How disappointing to read that what consumers have been buying as extra virgin olive oil, has in many cases turned out to be a refined olive oil mixed with canola, or refined olive oil mixed with an unknown oil. This is a great con perpetrated by the Italians and Spanish olive oil producers, on unsuspecting overseas buyers.We are told that price should be an indicator of the quality of the olive oil. But what’s to stop these bandits from charging high prices for their inferior oils?

“An article by Tom Mueller in the August 13, 2007 Issue of the The New Yorker alleges that regulation, particularly in Italy, is extremely lax and corrupt. Mueller states that major Italian shippers routinely adulterate olive oil and that only about 40% of olive oil sold as “extra virgin” actually meets the specification. In some cases, colza oil with added color and flavor has been labeled and sold as olive oil. This extensive fraud prompted the Italian government to mandate a new labeling law in 2007 for companies selling olive oil, under which every bottle of Italian olive oil would have to declare the farm and press on which it was produced, as well as display a precise breakdown of the oils used, for blended oils. In February 2008, however, EU officials took issue with the new law, stating that under EU rules such labeling should be voluntary rather than compulsory. Under EU rules, olive oil may be sold as Italian even if it only contains a small amount of Italian oil.

In March 2008, 400 Italian police officers conducted “Operation Golden Oil,” arresting 23 people and confiscating 85 farms after an investigation revealed a large-scale scheme to relabel oils from other Mediterranean nations as Italian. In April 2008 another operation impounded seven olive oil plants and arrested 40 people in nine provinces of northern and southern Italy for adding chlorophyll to sunflower and soybean oil and selling it as extra virgin olive oil, both in Italy and abroad. 25,000 liters of the fake oil were seized and prevented from being exported.”

Almost 700 people died, it is believed, as a consequence of consuming rapeseed (canola) oil adulterated with aniline intended for use as an industrial lubricant, but sold in 1981 as olive oil in Spain.
* “of 73 olive oils… in the U.S. Only 4 per cent were pure olive oil. The rest were adulterated” – New York Times

“From Expatica: ‘Nine arrested for fake virgin olive oil fraud’ | “More than 70,000 litres of fake extra virgin olive oil has been withdrawn from sale after police discovered it was not the real thing.The 76,000 litres were in fact sunflower oil which had been coloured and labelled as extra virgin olive oil.
Nine people have been arrested in connection with the scam.

Authorities said there was no danger the fake olive oil, which was sold to restaurants and small shops, was toxic.The fraud was linked to two companies in Mancha Real near Jaén and Baena near Cordoba, both in Andalusia.The companies produced 14 different brands of the fake oil which was put on sale in Catalonia.The brands were known as La Tinaja, Tartessus, La Prensa Aceitunera, Pagos de Olivos, Magina, La Campiña, Embrujo de Andalucía (in five-litre cans or bottles), Los Olivares, La Bodega, La Colmena, La Cantarilla, Conde Da Vila, Aceite del Serra and La Despensa.”

PURE Extra Virgin Olive Oil offers many health benefits : Many human clinical trials have shown that replacement of high saturated fat diets for diets high in monounsaturated fats, mostly from olive oil, have resulted in a significant decrease in both total cholesterol (TC) and particularly LDL “bad” cholesterol; the type of cholesterol known to build up in the arteries and cause atherosclerosis; the hardening and narrowing of the arteries that may lead to blockages and coronary heart disease (CHD) or stroke. These results have been confirmed in studies involving both men and women of varying ages.

“Among the protective phenolic compounds found in extra-virgin olive oil are the antioxidants Hydroxytyrosol and oleuropein, both of which are readily absorbed by the body and have shown to possess potent free-radical scavenging properties. Studies have shown that administration of even relatively low doses of olive oil phenols can significantly increase antioxidant levels in the body and decrease oxidative stress in both humans and animals. ”

Jean Louise Calment’s remarkable health presaged her later record. At age 85, she took up fencing, and at 100, she was still riding a bicycle. Jeanne lived on her own until shortly before her 110th birthday, when it was decided that she needed to be moved to a nursing home. However, Jeanne was still in good shape, and was able to walk until a fall at age 114 years and 11 months, which required surgery.She reportedly attributed her longevity and relatively youthful appearance for her age to olive oil, which she said she poured on all her food and rubbed onto her skin, as well as a diet of port wine, and nearly 2 pounds of chocolate eaten every week. Jeanne Calment smoked until she was 117, and only quit when she could no longer see well enough to light the cigarettes.Perhaps the anti-inflammatory properties of olive oil protected her lungs. One can be sure that the olive oil Jeanne Louise Calmet was using was the good oil, not some adulterated crap like we have had foisted upon us.

All of the foregoing presents a good argument for buying and supporting the local product. Australia now has many fine olive oil producers, who no doubt have found it impossible to compete with not only the prices of the overseas product, but also its lack of regulation.

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The wonders of broccoli are often touted, but does this apply to all broccoli, grown no matter where and under any conditions? It is the isothiocyanates contained in broccoli which empower it with the ability to fight cancer.

Unfortunately what is not mentioned is that broccoli has the ability to pull cadmium from the soil up into its roots. If the soil has been enriched with super phosphate fertilizers, then that will surely contaminate the soil with even more cadmium.

Broccoli is grown on some contaminated sites to take up the residual cadmium, this process is called phytoremediation. This broccoli is not sold in supermarkets.

However, because of the demands on farmers for more production at a faster than ever rate, the use of super phosphate fertilizers has escalated, with consequent contamination of the soil. Broccoli grown on soils heavily fertilized with super phosphates, is most unlikely to be a cancer fighter, but may actually contribute to cancer if you eat enough of it.

It has been claimed that men who eat a couple of servings of broccoli per week, are less likely to be prone to prostate cancer. This may be so if these men eat broccoli which has been grown in contamination free soil.

Broccoli grown in certified organic soils, without the use of pesticides, and not sprayed, or irradiated after it has been picked, is much more likely to be a cancer fighter.

Food grown on cadmium contaminated soils, will increase the cadmium concentrations in consumers of that produce.Cadmium is stored in the kidneys, where it damages the filtration system.

Cadmium does irreversible damage to the kidneys, The kidneys lose their function to remove acids from the blood in proximal renal tubular dysfunction. The kidney damage inflicted by cadmium poisoning is irreversible and does not heal over time. The proximal renal tubular dysfunction creates low phosphate levels in the blood (hypophosphatemia), causing muscle weakness and sometimes coma.

The dysfunction also causes gout, a form of arthritis due to the accumulation of uric acid crystals in the joints because of high acidity of the blood (hyperuricemia). Another side effect is increased levels of chloride in the blood (hyperchloremia). The kidneys can also shrink up to 30%.

Cadmium can also cause cancer, damage the immune system and the central nervous system.

This is not to imply that dire things will happen to you if you eat supermarket broccoli. But over enthusiastic indulgence in supermarket broccoli, because of all that has been written about its wondrous properties, may do more harm than good.