How many calories in olive oil

Hello everyone! How many are the calories in olive oil? Are there many or few, and what do they contribute to us? Surely we have ever asked ourselves these questions.

In a country and culture like ours, olive oil is the protagonist in our diet. And if we add to this the recent concern of consumers about their nutrition, the calories in olive oil become an interesting topic for everyone.

How many calories in a spoonful of olive oil

First of all, to find out about the nutritional composition of olive oil, we will refer to a document from the Spanish Nutrition Foundation (FEN) where these values are detailed.

According to its composition, for every 100 grams of olive oil the Kilocalories (Kcal) amount to 899. Thus, in a spoonful, which would be approximately 13 grams, it would amount to 117 Kcal.

In addition to calories, 0.4 mg of iron and 5.1 mg of vitamin E are also provided for every 100 grams

How many calories in an olive

And the calories in an olive? Well, for about 100 grams of olives, about 150 calories (kcal) are calculated. It is an approximation since this figure depends on whether it is green or black olives, as well as their size. In any case, as you can see, the intake of olives does not give us excessive calories compared to other snacks that are very caloric.

Does olive oil make you fat?

Obviously, it does make you fat as it has calories like any other food. However, if it is taken in its proper measure within a healthy and balanced diet, with physical exercise, it can even act as a slimming agent. And it is that the properties of olive oil, and especially of extra virgin olive oil, always act to benefit our health.

And why is it so beneficial to our health? Specially due to the “profile” of olive oil: when we speak of the “profile” we will refer to the composition of its fatty acids.

Thus, olive oil consists of three types of fatty acids and in the following percentages: Simple Fatty Acids (17%), Monounsaturated Fatty Acids (71%), and Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (12%). Thanks to this greater presence of Monounsaturated compared to Polyunsaturated, olive oil is more stable than other types of vegetable oil. This composition is always maintained, although it may vary slightly due to climate, soil, whether the olive is harvested ripe or not, the variety of olive with which the oil is produced, etc.

properties are preserved

The stability that this greater quantity of Monounsaturated Fatty Acids gives to olive oil results in a lower oxidation against oxygen. And therefore, in greater resistance to the loss of certain elements that are as beneficial to our health as natural antioxidants. In addition to preserving its organoleptic properties of aroma and flavor that we appreciate so much. This stability is even more evident in Premium olive oil.

On the other hand, the greater stability of olive oil also allows food to be fried without “burning”, without losing its properties and thus enhancing the flavor of our cuisine. Something so typical of our Mediterranean cuisine, such as frying food in olive oil, is possible thanks to the stability of olive oil.

Finally, Monounsaturated Fatty Acid, apart from the stability mentioned, is very beneficial in the prevention of heart diseases. So despite the calories provided, it is convenient to consume it.

In short, all are advantages when consuming olive oil and especially if it is Extra Virgin. Always in moderation, keeping the proportion of calories ingested and burned, we will not gain weight and we will benefit from the healthy properties of EVOO.

I hope you have found it interesting, we will read in the next post! 😉👋

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Calories in olive oil

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How many calories are in olive oil? Are there many or few, and what do they contribute to us? We will explain all this to you at latinajadelgourmet.com, enter and discover.

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Fran

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La Tinaja del Gourmet

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