Drinking extra virgin olive oil should be viewed as an investment in your long-term health. Like any worthwhile investment, it requires consistency and commitment if you want to give yourself the best chance of experiencing its potential benefits.
This isn't about a TikTok-fuelled 30-day "silver bullet." It's about building a simple daily habit that can become part of a healthy lifestyle for years to come.
To stay motivated, it helps to appreciate not only the benefits you may notice relatively quickly, but also the less visible, preventative benefits that may develop over time as part of an overall healthy diet and lifestyle.
What you may notice within the first 30–60 days
Everyone's experience is different, but some people report benefits such as:
- Fewer cravings and less food "noise"
- Feeling fuller between meals
- Better digestion
- More regular bowel movements
- Improved energy levels
- Healthier-looking hair and skin
- Improved mental clarity and focus
- Supporting normal immune function as part of a nutritious diet
- Helping with weight management when olive oil replaces, rather than simply adds to, less healthy sources of fat and excess calories
The potential long-term benefits
Research suggests that regularly consuming extra virgin olive oil as part of a healthy dietary pattern—particularly a Mediterranean-style diet—may help to:
- Support heart health
- Help lower LDL ("bad") cholesterol while maintaining or increasing HDL ("good") cholesterol
- Support healthy blood glucose control and reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes
- Help reduce chronic, low-grade inflammation
- Support long-term brain health and potentially reduce the risk of cognitive decline and dementia.
- Contribute to dietary patterns associated with a lower risk of certain cancers
The key word throughout is consistency.
These potential long-term benefits don't come from drinking olive oil for a few weeks—they come from making it part of your lifestyle over many years. Extra virgin olive oil isn't a quick fix, but when combined with a balanced diet, regular physical activity, good sleep and other healthy habits, it can play an important role in supporting long-term health.
So yes... you've guessed it. If you want to give yourself the best chance of enjoying the potential long-term benefits of extra virgin olive oil, you'll need to make a long-term commitment to it.