Pour on the virgin, baby!

By Amy Norton
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - When it comes to heart health, virgin olive oil may have an edge over other vegetable fats, new research suggests.

Reporting in the Annals of Internal Medicine, European researchers say virgin olive oil may be particularly effective at lowering heart disease risk because of its high level of antioxidant plant compounds.

In a study of 200 healthy men, the researchers found that virgin olive oil -- rich in antioxidants called polyphenols -- showed stronger heart-health effects than the more extensively processed "non-virgin" variety.

The findings suggest that virgin olive oil has more going for it than its supply of heart-healthy monounsaturated fat, according to the study authors. Polyphenols, they say, may account for some of the health benefits that have been attributed to the oil.

In fact, virgin olive oil is the only vegetable oil that's rich in polyphenols, Dr. Maria-Isabel Covas, the study's lead researcher, told Reuters Health.