Heart healthy choices: go with the virgin oil!

Olive oil has long been known to have a wealth of health benefits. Whether used for cooking, dipping or just taken straight, one to two tablespoons daily has been proven to lower bad cholesterol.

But wait! Don't just go out there and start gulping down any bottle of the stuff that you can get your hands on. As the research shows, there is one type that stands high above the others. Virgin olive oil (especially the "extra" variety) is the best type when it comes to heart disease defense. So what's the difference anyway?

Well virgin oil comes from the first pressing of the olives, giving it more polyphenols than the others. Coupled with monounsaturated fatty acids, which are good for you, this type of antioxidant lends itself to reducing heart disease risk. Virgin olive oil contains more of these antioxidant polyphenols, thus lowering LDL cholesterol and defending the heart.