In a nutshell, EVOO – a staple in the Mediterranean diet – has low cytokine levels.
Keeping your cytokine levels in check could be a saving grace in the fight against COVID-19 by potentially reducing the severity of your illness and its related symptoms.
Cytokines play a key role in immune system support, but too many cytokines can cause what experts name a {cytokine storm} – otherwise known as hypercytokinemia. This means that the immune system overreacts to any foreign invaders, which can cause much more severe illness or even death in COVID-19 patients.
These cytokine storms have been found to reduce how much oxygen is in the blood while causing fluid to accumulate in the lungs.
This can make breathing a challenge and raise the chances of the patient experiencing even more adverse side effects.
Researchers have found that olive oil consumption could play a role in the prevention of adverse COVID-19 symptoms and even death. It all boils down to having healthy immune system, something olive oil has been treasured for contributing to for centuries.
High-phenolic olive oil is also high in something called oleuropein, which Ahmad Alkhatib – researcher at the Teeside University Center for Public Health – hails for its potential to encourage antiviral activity in the body.
This has already been explored in the respiratory syncytial virus, a common infection that affects the upper respiratory tract, and researchers like Ahmad have high hopes for high-phenolic olive oils in the fight against COVID-19 too.