CRETAN NUTRITION - MEDITERRANEAN DIET  
 
In the international scientific community there has been currently taking place a discussion towards finding the adequate diet for the promotion of health and the prevention of diseases. From ancient times, the Cretan nutrition seems to gather those characteristics that render it exquisite, as it has been shown by the Seven Countries’ study that initiated in 1960 and continues up to now. According to this survey, which included the longitudinal observation of a group of approximately 700 men from rural areas of Crete, the afore-mentioned group, in comparison to other developed countries, had the fewest deaths from heart attacks and several types of cancer. The population of Crete was the most long-lived of all other countries it was compared to.

Significant was the fact that in 1991, when the section of the Social Medicine of the University of Crete undertook the reexamination of the elder people during the 31st year of the study, the survivors in Crete amounted in approximately the half number of the initial population, whereas in Finland there were not any survivors!

The optimal health and longevity of the Cretans is attributed to their traditional nutrition. That nutrition was quite simple and included mainly olive oil that gave approximately the one third of the daily energy to each individual, whereas the biggest part of the energy came from cereals, bread, legumes, vegetables, fruits and sometimes from small quantities of eggs, cheese, milk, meat, fish and some red wine in every meal. This simple traditional Cretan nutrition has altered in the recent decades mainly by the younger generations. The results are very unpleasant for the population’s health and the early deaths from heart attacks and malignant neoplasms have taken epidemic dimensions.

So, according to nowadays’ facts, we suggest a turn into the traditional diet of Cretans, insisting on the limited use of meat and of other animal products. On the contrary, cereals (mainly bread), legumes, vegetables fruits and olive oil must have a percentage of over 85% in our daily nutrition.

The olive oil, unlike the vegetable oil, is rich in monounsaturated fat acids which are resistant to oxidation and reduce the LDL cholesterol without effecting the HDL cholesterol, that protects from atherosclerosis. Moreover, olive oil comprises a big quantity of antioxidant substances, such as tocopherols and hydroxyphenyl that shield the organism not only from atherosclerosis but from several types of cancer as well, by capturing free toxic roots. It is very interesting that the composition of the olive oil in fat acids is similar to the fat of maternal milk.

The Cretan cuisine with its pure olive oil, legumes, vegetables, and fasting renders Cretans centenarians! This conclusion has been drawn up after an international dietary survey which was held 50 years ago and involved 14,000 men aged 40-45 years from seven countries was brought into light. According to the survey, the Cretans were the healthiest of all participants. Out of a number of 14,000 checked in 1960, it is noted that now only live and they are all Cretans, who are in the tenth decade of their life!

"They're all above 90 years and the important element recorded in the survey is that, apart from eating healthy, the 40 Cretans answered that ever since the research started, they have been fasting incessantly before Easter holidays, before Christmas and during mid-August. Furthermore, ever since, they have not been eating oil on Wednesdays and Fridays, professor of preventive medicine and nutrition of the University of Crete Anthony Kafatos stated.

Dr. Kafatos gives a positive evaluation of the Christian fasting as a parameter that helps keep being healthy. According to the professor, good health is inextricably associated with traditional food and physical exercise. Regarding the negative aspects of nowadays he states that one of them is that the way of cooking has changed, since in 1960 the only oil people used was the traditional, whereas today dubious kinds of butters and oils are being used.  

Dr. Kafatos also explains that the "profile" of the average 40 year-old Cretan in 1960 was as follows: he was 63 pounds, he rarely ate red meat, he ate white meat occasionally, and he consumed some red wine and a lot of legumes and vegetables produced in the island. "The 40 year-old man of 1960 was considered to be a phenomenon in the whole world since he was shielded by both heart diseases and cancer types. According to Dr. Kafatos, 2010 and 2011’s 40 year-old man is an overweight of an average of 83 pounds. He eats red meat almost every day; he consumes too much fat and drinks a lot of alcohol. Moreover, he consumes fewer vegetables, whereas legumes tend to vanish from his diet. Eventually he is more susceptible to diseases.



Olive oil and health

Olive oil is the basis of the Cretan nutrition chain that has proved to be the epitome of proper and healthy nutrition and a longevity factor.

The beneficial attributes of olive oil are due to its chemical composition. Olive oil is composed of elaic acid, linelaic acid, palmitic and steatic acid, as well as from phytosterols in small quantities. From all this elements, the linelaic acid is of the greatest importance for man, as its lack has as a consequence a series of damages, such as the delay of development, and disorders of metabolism.

Olive oil contains 60-80% monounsaturated fat acids which are much more resistant to oxidation procedures compared to polyunsaturated that can be found in vegetable oils.

Moreover, olive oil constitutes a great source of fat soluble vitamins A,D,K and especially E, which protect our organism from several types of cancer (such as the ones of large intestine and breast) as well as from osteoporosis. These vitamins along with olive oil’s polyphenols, can be found only in virgin olive oils as they tend to vanish almost completely in ultra-refined oils. Furthermore, olive oil, because of its antioxidant action delays the ageing of cells, helps in digestion and in the absorption of calcium and improves the health of our skin.

Studies for the beneficial attributes of olive oil in kids’ development support that normal quantities of oil consumption provide the appropriate source of fat acids for the normal calcification of the bones. It has also been supported that a low consumption of linelaic acid can delay normal development and cause dermatological and metabolic disorders. Consequently, olive oil, and especially when it derives from an olive that has been cultivated biologically, that is without any detectable chemical substance, it is apparent to everyone that it constitutes an integral part of our kids’ ideal nutrition.

It is most preferable, that the olive oil is consumed raw, so that the organism can absorb all of its nutritional substances. Even when cooked in the pan, though, olive oil is considered to be the most appropriate, as it is more resistant to high temperatures and to oxidation.

Shield for the heart the Cretan nutrition
What does the study of a French researcher reveals

A study conducted by Dr. S. Remand, has shown that the Cretan diet (olive oil, legumes, vegetables, fruits, some meat and more fish), reduces up to 76% the percentage of heart attacks, without the use of medication, to people who have already suffered one, whereas it also reduces the percentage of deaths up to 70%. The research and new studies that confirm it, have been presented in personal by Dr. Remand at an international conference having as an agenda: “Mediterranean nutrition  and prevention of  chronic diseases” that has taken place at Kapsis hotel, in Agia Pelagia.

Dr. Kafatos, professor of social medicine and nutrition of University of Crete, who has participated in the conference as a coorganizator, has commented on the French doctor’s announcements.

According to his remarks, this scientific study had been buried by companies because it constituted a thorn for cardiologists and surgeons who wanted to perform bypass operations and to give more medicine to patients.

QUESTION: Professor, what was in the topic of the conference?

ANSWER: It was the Mediterranean diet for the prevention of chronic diseases and the promotion of health. The conference was organized by one French company whose primary goal is the presentation of the vegetables’ value for our nutrition. The conference was supported by French vegetable producers. The University of Crete actively participated in its organization.

QUESTION: What was the number of the participants?

ANSWER: There were approximately 200 participants from all over the world. Other than doctors, there were dietitians, chemicals, biologists and researchers as well.

 QUESTION: From the participants, who were the most famous for their researches?

ANSWER: It was the Dutch doctor D. Kromhout, head of the study of the Seven Countries, in the context of which the nutrition attitudes of 16 populations are being studied. There was also Dr. Remand, who conducted the famous research regarding the myocardial infarction. He discovered that because of the Cretan diet, the percentage of heart attacks, without the use of medication, to people who have already suffered one, has drastically reduced to 76%.

QUESTION: Professor, what has the study of the French scientist shown?

ANSWER: Dr. Remand has presented the influence of the Cretan diet in the secondary prevention of the infarction. The research has been conducted to 600 people that had experience a heart attack once. 300 of them, were following the Cretan nutrition guide, that is olive oil, legumes, vegetables, fruits, some meat and more fish. The study was supposed to have a duration of 4 years, but it stopped 27 months later because the results were impressing.

In this group, heart attacks were reduced 76% and demises 70%.

QUESTION: What was the nutrition attitude of the second group?

ANSWER: The nutrition of the second group was based on the suggestions of the American Cardiologic Society. The proposed diet, does not include olive oil, but it includes margarine, vegetable oil, etc.

QUESTION: Are we talking about a new study?

Answer: The initial study and its results were announced in 1994 and they were later confirmed through new studies. Nevertheless, this study was buried by companies because it harmed their interests.

 QUESTION: The 76% reduction of the heart attacks was achieved merely by the Cretan diet or by medication as well?

 ANSWER: Only with the right nutrition, not with the help of medication.

QUESTION: Which are the most common heart diseases that appear in the Greek population and in what rate?

ANSWER: heart diseases constitute the most common cause of death in our country. Then deaths from cancer follow.

QUESTION: What other announcements were made in the conference?

ANSWER: Another significant study that made the difference, and regards the Cretan nutrition as well, was the one of Katerina Tsiopoulou, a Greek scientist that works in Australia. Katerina Tsiopoulou discovered that diabetes mellitus is adjusted very well when the patient follows the Cretan diet.

 
 
The most olive oil in the world!

Vegetables, fruits, cereals, fish and some meat comprise the daily diet of Cretan people. However, the traditional Cretan diet does not include animal fat or seed oil. It only includes extra virgin olive oil, raw or cooked, which is used exclusively in nutrition. From the beginning till the end of a meal, olive oil is present. According to International Organizations’ data, the average olive oil consumption per person in Crete is 35 liters per year, a multiple quantity comparing to the consumption in other Mediterranean regions.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
PRODUCTION PHASES  
 
After the harvest of the olive from the olive grove, the olive is being transferred to the oil press, from which it goes through several phases, so that the procedure of the receiving of the oil can begin. The beginning of the procedure starts with the passing of the fruit from special cleaning machines for the leaves, and washing.

The cleaning from the leaves is being done by an automatic machine which removes leaves. This step is necessary because a large amount of leaves when it is being grinded with the fruit of the olive it gives olive oil a bitter taste and a large amount of chlorophyll (green color) which does not help in the preservation of its quality.

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CHAMBER OF HERAKLION  
 
 
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