Olive Oil: One of the First Medicines

Fork U with Dr. Terry Simpson · Jul 30, 2026 · 12m

Olive Oil: The Original Superfood

Before electricity lit our homes, olive oil did.

For thousands of years, olive oil was far more than something people poured over bread. It fueled lamps, preserved food, moisturized skin, and was used in religious ceremonies. Long before it became a staple of the Mediterranean diet, it helped build civilization.

Today, we think of olive oil as healthy. The fascinating part is that people believed it was medicinal long before they understood cholesterol, inflammation, or blood pressure. Sometimes medicine begins with observation. The science simply catches up…