[Virgin olive oil. From legend to scientific knowledge of the nutraceutical aspects]

Proper nutrition has been considered the basis of good health since ancient times. Hippocrates (460-377 BC), father of modern medicine in the western world, claimed that "good health implies an awareness of the powers of natural or processed foods", the Salernitan School (eleventh-twelfth centuries) maintained that "the doctor must observe what food consists of, how much, and when it must be eaten", while Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) believed that "a man's life depends on what he eats". We know that lipids are important in nutrition and extra-virgin olive oil plays a predominant role in this field, recognised for its high levels of monounsaturated fatty acids. An example of a "nutraceutic" or "functional" food right from infancy, it is one of the best medicaments for delaying aging, and is also a good source of phytochemicals including polyphenolic compounds, squalene, alpha-tocopherol, carotenoid that may contribute to its overall therapeutic characteristics. An integral ingredient of the Mediterranean diet, extra-virgin olive oil has always been considered a middle road between food and medicine and there is growing evidence that its health benefits include reduction of coronary heart disease risk factor, prevention of several types of cancer, and the modification of immune and inflammatory responses. The origins of the olive tree date back to the Eneolithical era, or Copper Age, in the sixth millennium BC. Having first appeared in Italy during the Bronze Age, the fruit and oil of the olive tree were widely used in nutrition, medicine, art, literature, and daily life during the Etruscan and Roman civilisations, and throughout the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Mysteriously entwined with our own history, the olive tree has a human shape, strong, resilient, tenacious, filled with fruit, but also wounded, suffering and moving. Well-grounded reasons exist for considering olive oil the best nutritional gift we can offer ourselves as it preserves good health, improves the quality of our life and also makes it more enjoyable.