Teaspoon of olive oil intake may lower risk of dementia-related death, Harvard study suggests

About a teaspoon of olive oil a day is linked with lowering the risk of death due to dementia by roughly 30 per cent, particularly in women, according to a new research. Teaspoon of olive oil intake may lower risk of dementia-related death, Harvard study suggests Replacing five grams a day intake of mayonnaise and margarine with olive oil in equal amounts was found to be associated with a 14 per cent and eight per cent lower risk of death due to dementia, respectively. An international team of researchers, including those at Harvard University, US, observed over 92,000 adults in the US for 28 years to study the effects of olive oil intake on the risk of dementia-related death. "Consuming at least 7 grams per day of olive oil was associated with a 28 per cent lower risk of dementia-related death compared with never or rarely consuming olive oil," the authors wrote. This highlighted a "potentially specific role for olive oil," as the team found that the highest olive oil intake had the lowest dementia-related death risk.