Lo que Harvard demostró sobre el aceite de oliva y la memoria: 28 años, 92.383 personas, media cucharada

What Harvard demonstrated about olive oil and memory: 28 years, 92,383 people, half a tablespoon

There are studies that confirm what we already suspected. And there are studies that also provide numbers and evidence.

In May 2024, researchers from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health published in JAMA Network Open the longest follow-up to date on olive oil and brain health. They analyzed the eating habits and cause of death of 92,383 people over 28 years, cross-referencing data from the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. The result: those who consumed at least 7 grams of olive oil daily — a little over half a tablespoon — had a 28% lower risk of dying from dementia, regardless of their genetic predisposition and the overall quality of the rest of their diet. The data holds even when the specific action is isolated. Replacing 5 grams of margarine or mayonnaise daily with olive oil reduced the risk by an additional 8% to 14%. When the replacement was butter or other vegetable oils, the protective effect did not appear. It's not fat in general. It's this particular fat.

Why olive oil and not another? The hypothesis managed by the researchers combines two mechanisms: the monounsaturated fat profile, which promotes cardiovascular health and, with it, cerebral blood flow; and compounds with antioxidant activity that only appear in extra virgin olive oil, capable of curbing some of the oxidative damage associated with cognitive decline.

European science is heading in the same direction, though with more regulatory caution. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) authorizes a single health claim for olive oil polyphenols: that they contribute to the protection of blood lipids from oxidative damage. To be able to state this, an oil needs at least 5 mg of hydroxytyrosol and its derivatives per 20 grams — one and a half tablespoons. This is a demanding condition, and not all olive oils meet it with significant margin. There's the nuance that is almost never told: not all olive oil has the same polyphenol content. An early harvest oil, collected when the olive is still green, can reach 500-1,400 mg/kg. And the window closes quickly: within a few weeks of maturation, the concentration of polyphenols can drop by more than half. The harvest date is not a technical detail on the label. It's the difference between an oil that barely meets the scientific threshold and one that falls far short.

This is why at 370 we harvest the olives for 370+ within their first 72 hours of optimal maturation, with a deliberately low oil yield: it takes 13 kilos of olives for just one liter, compared to 4-5 kilos from an already ripe olive. This is not a production figure. It's everything we choose not to take, so that more of what science has just confirmed matters remains in the oil.

Half a tablespoon a day. The number is simple. Choosing the right oil, less so.


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