******This is not medical advice, this is simply my experience and my opinion. Please seek medical advice from a trained professional******
Olives are a super food and a main staple in the Mediterranean Diet, and for good reason. They are loaded with healthy fats, antioxidants and Vitamin E, which help reduce risk of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and stroke. All of which are rampant in our society.
Olives contain an antioxidant called oleuropein, that is only found in olives. All antioxidants help reduce inflammation in the body which is the precursor for all of the diseases listed above. But the only way to get this specific one is to eat some olives!
As a general rule, Americans are one big inflammatory mess, with insulin resistance...so it's not surprising that so many people are sick. I always thought I was healthy until my cancer diagnosis, but the more I learn, the more I am realizing that I have never been truly healthy because what blood work my doctor's did do clearly showed that I wasn't. There was a handful of years from about 2010-2016 that I was probably the healthiest I have been, but I always had a nagging feeling that I was pre-diabetic, even though the doctor's said I was fine. They also always told me thyroid was fine, but my herbalist said I wasn't. When I took herbs to support my thyroid my symptoms went away... Mainstream doctor's have a different range of "normal/acceptable" than most functional or integrative doctor's, which is interesting, but according to my integrative doctor's standards I've been unhealthy for a really long time.
My A1c was 5.4-5.6, my fasting glucose was always a little higher than others who ate similar diets (we are all different, but I think I discovered the reason for this recently) and I always stored weight in my mid section and it would never go away and since my late 20's I've had to get up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. I would love to know what my insulin levels were back then. When you initially start to have higher glucose levels, insulin steps in to control your glucose levels. So, the first sign that you're having issues is elevated insulin...not elevated glucose or A1c, because the insulin is doing it's job to keep it down. But overtime the body can't keep up anymore, or it becomes resistant to the insulin and then your glucose/A1c starts to rise. Luckily, my A1c is now 4.9 (under 5 is the goal according to most alternative doctors), I rarely have to get up to go to the bathroom anymore in the middle of the night, which means better sleep.
While my C-reactive protein was always good, I didn't realize that there are a handful of other blood markers that also need to be looked at to evaluate inflammation in the body. I'm sure I was a hot mess back in the day. While my inflammatory markers have improved since working with my nutritionist and integrative oncologist, there is still work to be done!
All, that to say, we need healthy fat in our lives:) Eat some olives. And this olive tapenade.
Eating straight olives I can only do a few, if cheese were involved I could knock 'em down...but I try to save cheese for special treats. When Rod was on nights (basically the 5 years leading up to my diagnosis) my dinner often consisted of olives, cheese and red wine. And, none of it in moderate quantities. Oops.
This recipe I love using as a dip for veggies, so it's a great way to get in some Omega 3s with the olives, olive oil and anchovies!
Don't be afraid to mix up the olives either! Kalamata are my favorite, but I was out of those today, I used a melange mix that had a few kalamata, mostly green olives, radishes, onions and garlic. So, good.
Make up a double batch and throw some in the freezer so it's all made up. You'll still have a few anchovies left over so make up some of this Caeser Dressing to finish off the last few anchovies!
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