Olive Leaf Extract is a natural formula in vegetarian capsules produced from olive leaves, designed to control lipidemia. It is supported by three clinical studies which have confirmed its ability to lower LDL-cholesterol and triglyceride levels, increase HDL-cholesterol and fight lipid peroxidation, now available to buy at Supersmart.

What exactly is Olive Leaf Extract?

Olive Leaf Extract a natural-source dietary supplement produced from olive leaves. It contains a very high level of oleuropein, a bioactive phytonutrient specific to the olive tree, which helps control blood lipids and prevent carbohydrate absorption.

It is aimed at anyone who wants to improve their cardiovascular health and maintain the integrity of their blood vessels. Individuals with the following risk factors are likely to be particularly interested in this product:

• Those who are overweight.
• Those with type 2 diabetes.
• Those prone to circulation problems.
• Those with high blood pressure.
• Those who are stressed.
• Those who have hypercholesterolemia.

What compounds are in Olive Leaf Extract?

The beneficial effects of the olive tree are attributed to its exceptionally high content in phenolic compounds, molecules known for their antioxidant potency. In the olive tree, these compounds play a part in defending the tree from insects, infection, multiple microbial attacks and UV radiation (1-2), but they are also biologically active when ingested by humans. They are known to reduce the risk of a number of diseases by combatting free radicals and improving enzymatic balance.

Oleuropein is the most abundant phenolic compound in the olive tree (3) (accounting for around 25% of the extract). It is oleuropein that gives extra virgin olive oil its characteristic bitterness, but there are many other such compounds found in Olive Leaf Extract: apigenin, caffeic acid, catechins, coumaric acid, diosmetin, ferulic acid, gallic acid, hesperidin, hydroxytyrosol, luteolin, oleoside, quercetin, rutin, tyrosol, vanillin, verbascoside…

As the oleuropein in olive leaves has been scientifically shown to be responsible for the plant’s benefits, Olive Leaf Extract is formulated to contain an optimum amount of this compound.

What are the mechanisms of action of Olive Leaf Extract?

Olive Leaf Extract’s effects on the cardiovascular system.

Olive leaves have been used in phytotherapy since antiquity apparently for their antilipidemic, antiseptic and antiviral properties.

Scientific research has since confirmed these applications and identified new properties: antimicrobial (4-5), antiviral (6), antifungal (7), gastro-protective (8), blood glucose-lowering (9), blood pressure-lowering (10), antioxidant (11-12), antiatherogenic (13), hypolipidemic (14), anti-inflammatory (15), neuro-protective (16), vasodilatory (17) and anti-ageing (18).

There are three precise mechanisms of action which are responsible for the majority of Olive Leaf Extract’s effects on the cardiovascular system:

1) Cholesterol-lowering action

The olive tree’s polyphenols, particularly oleuropein, act on cholesterol excretion (19). They promote the elimination of excess cholesterol via the bile ducts, duodenum and finally faeces.

2) Antioxidant action

The antioxidant potential of oleuropein is exceptional. When elderly institutionalised individuals followed a diet enriched with an extract of oleuropein and its derivatives for six weeks, their antioxidant capacity was shown to improve (20). It is a natural solution to combatting oxidative stress and inhibiting LDL oxidation (21).

3) Action on sugar absorption

By binding to sucrase and maltase, two digestive enzymes, oleuropein limits sugar absorption and thus reduces spikes in blood glucose. It also does this by slowing down the activity of the sugar transporter, GLUT2.

Is it supported by scientific studies?

The effect of Olive Leaf Extract capsules has been directly measured in three clinical trials (22).

1) One year’s supplementation with 250mg a day

Following 12 months’ daily supplementation by subjects with elevated cholesterol levels, researchers recorded:

• A 20% reduction in ‘bad’ LDL-cholesterol.
• A 13% increase in ‘good’ HDL-cholesterol.
• A 10% decrease in total cholesterol and a 5% decrease in triglycerides.

2) Four weeks’ supplementation with 250mg a day

In overweight subjects, there was a significant improvement over four weeks in the expected ratio of coronary risk as compared with placebo. A clear decrease in triglycerides was observed.

3) Eight weeks’ supplementation with 250mg a day

The third study examined the ability of Olive Leaf Extract to reduce oxidative stress. Results showed that daily supplementation with 250mg reduced levels of MDA (malondialdehyde) by almost a third, a urinary marker of oxidative stress.

Why use extracts of olive leaf rather than olives?

Studies suggest that the leaves and fruit are equally rich in oleuropein (23), but the olive leaf is considered a more renewable natural source for extraction (24). Hence its use in Olive Leaf Extract, and its ingredient Olécol®.

Five good reasons to choose Olive Leaf Extract to maintain healthy blood vessels

1) The antioxidant content of olives depends to a large extent on variety, maturity and preservation. Therefore, if you live a long way away from the Mediterranean region where they’re grown, you can’t really rely on eating olives all year round to boost your cardiovascular health. With its exceptional and stable content in olive tree polyphenols, Olive Leaf Extract provides a solution to this problem, offering populations the world over the opportunity to fully benefit from the advantages of a Mediterranean diet.

2) Eating a Mediterranean diet is associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality (25). Scientific studies have in large part attributed these protective effects to the role played by the olive tree (26).

3) The bioavailability of oleuropein in humans is very high – between 55% and 60% (27). Maximal plasma concentration occurs two hours after oral administration. Studies have also shown that oleuropein crosses the blood-brain barrier easily.

4) The Mediterranean diet was recognized by UNESCO in 2010 as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

5) Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of mortality across the world, claiming more than 17 million lives each year.

Additional steps to maximise the benefits of Olive Leaf Extract

To further enhance the efficacy of Olive Leaf Extract, you can adopt these additional measures throughout the supplementation period:

1. Significantly increase your intake of fruit, vegetables, nuts and whole grains.
2. Make liberal use of herbs, spices, garlic and onion.
3. Only use olive oil for dressings and rapeseed oil for cooking.
4. Eat at least one yoghurt a day (preferably sheep’s milk).
5. Limit your intake of poultry and red meat, and instead choose fish and seafood whenever possible.
6. Be physically active every day (go for a walk after a meal, take part in sports, do some exercises …).
7. Take a daily multivitamin supplement.

These measures are part of the Mediterranean diet which is based on the long-term food habits of Mediterranean populations. They are a good accompaniment to supplementing with Olive Leaf Extract though not essential for obtaining the benefits of this product.

Note: this product should not be used as a substitute for a varied, balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle. It’s important to follow the guidelines on how to take it and the recommended dose, and to use it by the ‘best before’ date. It is not recommended for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, or for children under 15. Keep out of children’s reach. Store in a cool, dry place.

Buy Olive Leaf Extract to help lower cholesterol and blood sugar.

Organic Moringa leaf extract is a dietary supplement produced from the plant Moringa oleifera, traditionally-recognised for its exceptional nutritional value and ability to reduce levels of sugar and lipids in the blood.

It’s an aqueous extract made from organically-grown Moringa leaves.

What benefits does Organic Moringa leaf extract offer?

Moringa has attracted significant interest among the scientific community. Every year, dozens of studies are published highlighting the therapeutic potential of the plant’s leaves (1), confirming the empirical evidence that has accumulated over thousands of years.

This scientific research shows that Organic Moringa leaf extract offers four key benefits:

• It helps lower blood sugar levels. Like berberine, Moringa helps reduce fasting and post-prandial glycaemia levels. In one clinical study (2) of type 2 diabetics, 40 days’ supplementation reduced participants’ glycaemia by around 30%. This effect may be due to the isothiocyanate compounds in Moringa leaves which increase insulin sensitivity in peripheral tissues (3) and reduce the activity of intestinal sucrase.
• It combats processes linked to inflammation. Inflammation is one of the body’s defence mechanisms, but if it persists for a long time, it becomes pathological, triggering and exacerbating a number of chronic health problems. Moringa inhibits the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines by macrophages and reduces the activity of genes involved in inflammation (4-5). These anti-inflammatory properties are due mainly to the presence of isothiocyanate and terpenoid compounds.
• It lowers blood cholesterol levels. One clinical study (6) showed that supplementing for 50 days reduced total serum cholesterol levels by 2% and increased ‘good’ HDL-cholesterol by 7%. Since increased LDL-cholesterol levels are known to impair healthy cardiac muscle function, Moringa’s lipid-lowering effects thus help improve cardiovascular health. Here, it’s the plant’s phenol and flavonoid compounds which are likely to be responsible (7). They appear to inhibit two key enzymes involved in cholesterol metabolism: lipase and cholesterol esterase (8).
What benefits does Organic Moringa leaf extract offer?

• It helps inhibit neurodegeneration. This mechanism of action is probably due to its high content of polyphenols and other antioxidants which reduce oxidative stress (9).

What exactly is Moringa?

Moringa is a plant that has been recognised, used and valued for thousands of years in traditional Ayurvedic medicine. It’s the only genus in the plant family Moringaceae and is grown in the world’s tropical regions and in Madagascar, primarily for the exceptional nutritional value of its leaves (10-11). These contain vitamins (particularly vitamins C, B6 and B2), minerals (primarily iron and magnesium), important amino acids and fatty acids (12-3), as well as precious antioxidants including rare carotenoids, flavonoids and phenols (14).

Several studies have shown that Moringa leaves were used for their anti-inflammatory (17), anti-hypertensive (18), diuretic, antimicrobial (10), antioxidant (20), anti-hyperlipidaemic (21), cardio-protective and liver-protective (22-23) properties. According to Ayurvedic medicine practitioners, Moringa may prevent more than 300 diseases (24)!

What is in Organic Moringa leaf extract capsules?

Organic Moringa leaf extract is an aqueous extract made from the plant’s leaves.

It contains three major types of compound, in addition to the above-mentioned vitamins, minerals and fatty acids:

1. Polyphenols, including flavonoids and phenolic acids. The principal flavonoids are quercetin, rutin, chlorogenic acid, kaempferol, myricetin and benzylamine (moringine) (25), while the most abundant phenolic acids are salicylic, gallic, coumarinic and caffeic acid (26) as well as chlorogenic acid. The latter plays a role in glucose metabolism: it is at least partly responsible for the anti-diabetes properties of the extract (27-28).
2. Alkaloids, in particular glucosinolates and isothiocyanates, which are primarily responsible for Moringa’s anti-inflammatory effects.
3. Saponins, which reduce cholesterol absorption by binding to molecules and acids in bile (29).

In 2007, researchers examined the active principles of Moringa oleifera leaves (30). They found that two additional molecules, niazarin and niaziridin, increase the biological activity of the antibiotic compounds and facilitate gastrointestinal absorption of the vitamins and other micronutrients present in the leaves.

How should Organic Moringa leaf extract be taken?

Moringa oleifera is considered to be extremely safe. It features in the composition of a wide variety of medicinal preparations. No serious side-effects have been demonstrated in human studies (31).

The recommended dose is three capsules a day, to be taken with food, for at least five weeks.

You may also be interested in other quality phytonutrients available to buy from our catalogue:

• Apple Polyphenols, a supplement of polyphenols from apples.
• Bioperine, a black pepper extract.
• Broccoli Sulforaphane Glucosinolate 300 mg, a broccoli extract standardised in sulforaphane.
• Butterbur Extract 50 mg, an extract of butterbur.
• Catuaba Power, a catuaba extract.
• Chrysantellum americanum 400 mg, a natural extract of Chrysantellum americanum.
• Natural Iodine 500 mg a natural source of iodine with multiple benefits.
• SesaPlex 100 mg, a patented extract of sesame seeds.
• Olive Leaf Extract, a Mediterranean triple-action formulation against cholesterol.

Written: March 2019.

Note: this product should not be used as a substitute for a varied, balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle. It’s important to follow the guidelines on how to take it and the recommended dose, and to use it by the ‘best before’ date. It is not recommended for women who are pregnant or breastfeeding, or for children under 15. Keep out of children’s reach. Store in a cool, dry place.

Buy Organic Moringa to improve blood sugar and cholesterol levels.