It’s been a cold few weeks. Our friends over in Tassie had their coldest day on record at minus 12, and I’ve been shivering in my ugg boots at home. It’s around about now, each year, that that I head overseas. Bound for warmer climes. Stay tuned on this front…
I struggle in the winter. I have to work hard to keep my immunity up because of my autoimmune disease. You can catch up on that here. And I write regularly about how I try to keep things on track. Not by pushing too hard, but by experimenting and working at daily habits to build real wellness. And I’m constantly on the lookout for little things that keep me keeping on…
So here’s one that’s come across my radar a few times now – olive leaf extract, a natural product that can be taken all year round (but particularly in winter) to boost your immunity and manage viral infections, especially when fever is present. In Australia, Olive Leaf Australia is widely available in leading health food stores, or online.
And just so you know, this is a sponsored post, but opinions are all my own and I researched the topic and came to these conclusions myself. You’ll find my position on sponsored posts and advertising here.
I asked Jo to look into this one a little more. This is what she came back with…
1. The Mediterranean diet factor:
If you’re a regular follower of this blog, you’ll know Sarah’s done lots of work looking into this diet, in particular, spending six weeks with National Geographic’s Blue Zone team in Ikaria last year investigating it in detail. You’ll be able to catch up here and here.
There’s so much to be said for this diet. It’s one of the most widely promoted and scientifically proven healthy lifestyles in the world. It’s rich in antioxidants – which we’ll get to in a moment – such as grapes, olives, berries and of course, red wine and extra virgin olive oil. It’s full of whole foods, no processed stuff, which is just the way we should be eating.
And the whole thing kinda centres really heavily around the olive trees, the leaves of which contain compounds enabling the trees to live – often – for more than 1000 years, withstanding heat and cold, and attacks from pests, viruses and bacteria. Research has shown when you package those compounds into a nifty bundle for us to use, we reap much the same benefits.
2. The antioxidant factor:
Extra immunity boosts are critical at this time of year. Sometimes it’s hard to make sure we’re getting enough of antioxidants in our diet, so why not cut straight to the chase with OLE. There’s 400 per cent more antioxidants in OLE than in the equivalent amount of Vitamin C, and a recent university study showed that Olive Leaf Australia’s OLE contains up to 40 times the total antioxidants of even the freshest extra virgin olive oils.
Further research* conducted at Australia’s Southern Cross University identified olive leaf as the most powerful, free radical-scavenging antioxidant of 55 medicinal herbs. Ergo, OLE is a great supplement to try, instead of taking 938473298 different herbs.
3. The sugar-related factor:
Olive leaves help support normal glucose levels in your blood. So taking Olive Leaf Extract can help to maintain blood sugar levels and stabilise insulin activity in high-risk Type 2 diabetes sufferers. Taking OLE also helps reduce the risk factors for developing Type 2 diabetes, this clinical trial found.
4. The Fight the Flu factor:
The core way that OLE helps to fight invading organisms is two-fold**:
- The olive leaf compounds help to stimulate phagocytosis, which is a big word, but it’s essentially what happens when your immune system cells engulf and destroy invading organisms.
- They interfere with the ability of bacteria and viruses to replicate themselves and cause infection in your system.
5. Some extra factors Olive Leaf Australia would love you to know, too:
- You should always ask for the extract made from fresh leaves (when you ask for a fresh juice, you wouldn’t expect to get a reconstituted drink – it’s the same for olive leaf extract). Scientific testing shows that liquid olive leaf extracts made from fresh leaves have a broader spectrum potency. Olive Leaf Australia harvests the leaves at sunrise and concentrates them before lunch, to give that “freshly squeezed” quality.
- The fresh-picked olive leaf extracts contain no alcohol, sugar, starch, yeast or gluten. No artificial flavours, colourings or preservatives.
- Kids love it; it comes in a mixed berry flavour for them.
- Combined with regular exercise, OLE can contribute to a healthy heart and cardiovascular system.
- Olive Leaf Extract is an extremely powerful natural antioxidant and free radical scavenger, suitable for maintaining wellbeing all year round.
Research details:
* Stevenson, L. “Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) Report on Olive Leaf Australia’s Olive Leaf Extracts.” Southern Cross University (2005).
** 1. Roxas M, Jurenka J. Colds and influenza: a review of diagnosis and conventional, botanical and nutritional considerations. Alt Med Rev 2007;12(1):25-48.
2. Roxas M, Jurenka J. Colds and influenza: a review of diagnosis and conventional, botanical and nutritional considerations. Alt Med Rev 2007;12(1):25-48.
Anonymous. Olive leaf: monograph. Alt Med Rev 2009;14(1):62-66
Have you tried Olive Leaf Extract? Use it with your kids? Please share your experience and thoughts below.
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