1) Nutritional Characteristics  of table olives
2) How many olives to eat a day?
3) Nutritional Composition
4) Calorie comparison of commonly consumed snacks
5) Questions and answers about the table olive
6) The table olive in the Mediterranean diet

Table olives are a highly nutritious food with a balanced content of fats made up mainly of monounsaturated oleic acid. Eating olives also provides essential fatty acids, fibre, vitamins and minerals..

• Table olives are also an essential element of the Mediterranean diet, and a featured ingredient in hundreds of dishes.

• The table olive is one of the most popular foods in Spain. As well as gracing sophisticated culinary creations, it is a highly nutritious foodstuff. Its fat is very healthy, with a far higher proportion of unsaturated than saturated fatty acids, and in particular monounsaturated oleic acid. The table olive is highly digestible, with a lignin/cellulose ratio of less than 0.5, making its fibre easy for the body to digest. It also has a notable mineral content, in particular calcium, iron, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus and iodine.
  

1) Nutritional Characteristics of table olives

Olives are mainly made up of water, with an energy content of around 150 calories per hundred grammes. The fibre content of the table olive is around 2.6 grammes per 100 gramme edible portion, and 1.73 grammes per 100 kcal, which means that in accordance with labelling rules of Regulation 1924/2006, of the European Parliament and of the Council, of 20 December 2006, it may be deemed a Source of Fibre. Table olives help towards meeting the RDA (Recommended Daily Amount) of fibre, which is 30 g.

As for fat, the proportion is generally 20%. The most abundant fatty acid is oleic acid: 82%, followed by palmitic acid: 13%, linoleic (Omega-6): 5%, stearic: 3%, linolenic (Omega-3): 1%, and palmitoleic: 1%. These figures may vary depending on the ripeness of the olive.

Olives also provide small quantities of carbohydrates and protein, namely 1 gramme and 0.8 grammes per 100 grammes, respectively. 25 g of olives (7 olives) provide approximately 0.28 g of sodium. They also contain a small proportion of other minerals, such as calcium, potassium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus and iodine.


As for vitamins, table olives provide small quantities of group B and liposoluble vitamins such as provitamin A and vitamin E, these last two having an antioxidant effect.
 

2) How many olives to eat a day?

The daily recommendation for a healthy adult is around 25 g of olives per day, or about 7 olives. This quantity could be reduced in the case of overweight or high blood pressure, or increased if energy and mineral demands are higher, as in the case of athletes.

3) Nutritional Composition

[Average for Green Olive and Black Olive (100 gram edible portion)]

Seville Fat Institute. Advanced Scientific Research Council. Nutritional Labelling Values. 2006.

4) Calorie comparison of commonly consumed snacks

(100 gram edible portion)

5) Questions and answers about table olives

What are the key nutritional aspects of olives?

Above all their content of oleic acid and their high quality compared with other typical snack foods.

How many olives should I eat per day as part of a balanced diet?

Our estimate is around 7 per day, equivalent to around 25 grammes, although you could eat larger quantities less frequently.

Can small children eat olives?

Absolutely they can. The only restrictions on eating olives would apply to people who need to follow a low-salt diet (because of high blood pressure, for example), although some varieties do have a lower sodium content, while consumption should be reduced by those who are overweight or obese, who should consume other fats instead.

Are olives a good food for athletes?

They are an excellent food for athletes, as they provide first-class calories along with vitamins and minerals.

Do olives provide the same cardiovascular benefits as olive oil?

Olives contain a great variety of nutrients as a foodstuff. Clearly the type of fat they contain is the same, with the same effects at a cardiovascular level as olive oil.

I have high blood pressure. Can I tuck into a can of olives now and then?

Different limits are placed on sodium intake as a result of high blood pressure. Often, if reduced sodium intake in the diet is not enough to control high blood pressure, drugs will be prescribed to reduce hypertension, in which case moderate sodium intake is permitted, and olives could be eaten in moderation.

Do olives contain fibre?

Yes, table olives contain around 1.5 g of fibre per 100 kcal, and so are considered to be a source of dietary fibre.

What are the differences between green olives, black olives and stuffed olives?

Stuffed olives, naturally, include some other food inside, for example an anchovy. Black olives generally have fewer calories, some varieties containing only 79 kcal per hundred grams, equivalent to around 25 calories per portion, as opposed to green olives, which on average contain 150-177 (around 40 kcal per portion).

Black olives also contain less salt and more iron.

6) The table olive in the Mediterranean diet

Proper nutrition is considered, from a quantitative and quantitative perspective, on the basis of a regular diet. In order to obtain appropriate levels of nutrients, they must be contained in the various foods which make up the menus comprising a "diet plan" in the recommended quantity and variety.

The Mediterranean diet has a series of advantages over other Western diets: the consumption of olive oil as a major proportion of fats (mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids), fish, meat, pulses and vegetables and the citrus and other fruits which are plentiful around the Mediterranean basin.

The table olive has been popular in Spain for centuries, as the source of olive oil and as one of the basic elements of the Mediterranean diet. In fact, and in particular in rural areas, it represented a substantial part of the diet, at least for some of the year, as was used not only as a snack but was eaten in substantial quantities at certain mealtimes, such as breakfast for example.