Olive Oil

4. Olive Oil ✦

In Arabic zait ( ) means oil, the word has only been mentioned once, in referral to olive oil (as a fuel though!):

1- "Allâh is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The parable of His Light is as (if there were) a niche and within it a lamp, the lamp is in glass, the glass as it were a brilliant star, lit from a blessed tree, an olive, neither of the east (i.e. neither it gets sun-rays only in the morning) nor of the west (i.e. nor it gets sun-rays only in the afternoon, but it is exposed to the sun all day long), whose oil would almost glow forth (of itself), though no fire touched it. Light upon Light! Allâh guides to His Light whom He wills. And Allâh sets forth parables for mankind, and Allâh is All-Knower of everything." [QS. Al-Noor 24:35]

Benefits:►

Olive oil is a very important source of human nourishment. Contrary to solid butters, olive oil does not increase the level of cholesterol in the blood; rather, it keeps it under control and thus is the oil that doctors most recommend. Meanwhile, whether hot or cold, it reduces the amount of digestive acids and thus protects the stomach from such diseases as gastritis and ulcers.

Activating bile secretion, it ensures that bile's composition develops into its perfect state. Furthermore, it regulates the gall bladder's evacuation and reduces the possibility of gall bladder calculi.

Research also has revealed that olive oil has some ability to prevent the development of coronary artery disease by reducing the level of LDL, a cholesterol detrimental to health, while increasing the level of beneficial cholesterol HDL in the blood.

Vitamins E, A, D, and K in oil are essential for bone development and mineralization in children and adults. It strengthens bones by stabilizing calcium. Olive oil is vital for developing organisms. Such antioxidant elements and fatty acids as linoleic acid, which is of great importance to people, promote hormones and biological cell membrane synthesis. Since these vitamins renew cells, they also are used to treat problems associated with ageing and to feed and preserve the skin.

Since it contributes to the natural development of the infant's brain and nervous system before and after birth, the only oil recommended to mothers by specialists is olive oil. Aside from having a level of linoleic acid very close to that of mother's milk, it functions as a natural source of nourishment as mother's milk when mixed with non-fat cow's milk. Still, olive oil's most significant health property is its effects upon cardiac and arterial diseases. Due to all of these features, olive oil has attracted the attention of specialists in recent years.