Frequently Asked Questions:
1) are olive leaves good for the health of my skin?
The ANTIFUNGAL activities of olive leaves are broad and mesmerising.
Olive Leaves are reputed to have many therapeutic properties.
Multiple studies have proven its incredible benefits:
MEDICINAL: Anti-inflammatory, Antibacterial, Antifungal, Antimicrobial, Antioxidant, Antiseptic, Antiviral, Astringent, Cardiotonic, Hypoglycaemic, Hypolipidemic, Hypotensive, Immuno-Stimulant, Immune-Boosting, Inflamomodulatory, Lipotropic, Vasodilator, Photo-Protective
COSMETIC: Anti-inflammatory, Antibacterial, Antifungal, Antimicrobial, Antioxidant, Astringent, Photo-Protective
Please find here highlights extracted from some authoritative scientific studies.
Olive leaves in aqueous extracts can INHIBIT:
But lets step back in time for a moment and mention the olive oil. Shall we?
The ancient Egyptians as per the Romans, were obsessed with being clean as they believed that it would bring them closer to their Gods. They used to blend fine clay with incense ash and olive oil to create their soap cakes and use them to not only keep clean and fresh, but also to protect their skin from the harsh sun.
Olive oil makes a good sunscreen but not the best.
(It only has an SPF of 7.5 but that translates to almost 2.5 hours of protection in the sun if applied correctly. Not only that, it has special plant properties like anti-oxidants, Squalene, and Quercetin that help protect the skin from both UVB and UVA damage.)
On the other hand, olive leaves make THE BEST SUNSCREEN for your skin.
Baring in mind that OLIVE LEAF INFUSION HAS 40 TIMES MORE POLYPHENOLS THAN OLIVE OIL,
it’s amazing to see how helpful it is for our skin:
it cleanses the pores, it’s a great makeup remover, absorbs excess oil, and facilitates the clearing up of acne breakouts by helping to dry them out and by eliminating acne-causing bacteria.
So:
if you have any left-over liquor or if you decide to brew it over-night to enjoy it darker and stronger in the morning, you can bottle it in a vaporiser, and spray it over your body after a shower, after getting tanned, over a skin infection, etc. Let it dry over your hair and face and surround yourself with the beautiful fragrance of olive wood.
P.S. If you have a bathtub, you should add it to your favourites salts.
2) isn’t it bitter?
Fresh olive leaves are bitter. The bitterness it’s from their polyphenols. (see FAQ n.7)
There is nothing wrong with it! It can be fixed with some honey or lemon
HOWEVER
dried olive leaves, tend to become sweeter.
Keeping the leaves intact (Whole), also helps to achive a naturally sweet herbal tea
This was our secret.
3) how many leaves per litre do you recommend?
I would start from 3 grams. You can scale it up or down to your liking.
More leaves = More health benefits.
DOSAGE MUST WORRY ONLY WHO SUFFERS OF LOW PRESSURE.
(side effects explained at the bottom of OUR HOME page)
4) what are your brewing suggestions?
BREWING OLIVE LEAVES IS EXTREMELY VERSATILE AS THEY DON’T CONTAIN ANY CAFFEINE OR TANNIN.
Same leaves can brew multiple times throughout the day and even be left to infuse for hours.
The liquor will visually evolve through a colour scale that goes from golden green to a rich reddish/dark brown.
The darker, the healthier. (see FAQ n.7)
There is also no minimum brewing time, and you could use a small pot (Gong Fu style), or a Gaiwan for multiple extractions. In this way you can enjoy the way the leaves develop in flavour brew after brew and it will help those who like their tea hot at anytime.
Thicker leaves, such as ‘FRONN’ and ‘MEDITERRANEAN WILD SHRUBS’, can be brewed in temperatures up to 95°C .
However with ‘PONTARELL’ or ‘PACE E AMORE’, a brewing temperature of 80/85 °C, will protect the delicate sprouts.
I personally like, especially in Summer, to brew any of the above, in a teapot overnight at 85 °C, and drink it at room temperature in the morning while I have my breakfast or while I’m exercising.
If you wish to brew more than a teapot perhaps a stove pot, then as soon as the water starts boiling: heat off, leaves in, lid on, and then you can strain it and store any leftover in a bottle. You’ll need to keep it in the fridge (bring to room temperature first if still hot), which will then be ready to be enjoyed as an iced tea anytime you wish during the day.
5) is it true that white tea is healthier than green tea?
Yes it’s true!
But first: white tea in not a black tea with milk.
Its name derives from the fine silvery-white hairs on the unopened buds of the tea plant, which give it a whitish appearance.
The making of white tea involves just three steps: picking, withering, and air drying.
It’s therefore considered ‘unprocessed’, and since no firing or steaming processes are involved (as with the green teas), it is only slightly oxidised, approximately 5-10%. The name is derived from the fine white hairs on the tea buds.
Many nutrition experts like Lisa Guy confirm that WHITE TEAS ARE THE HEALTHIEST among all other teas.
She says: “They are treated gently and not overly processed, and so, they retain most of their beneficial antioxidants. Green tea is considered rich in antioxidants. However since white tea is less processed, it retains a higher amount of antioxidants, compared to green.
White tea contains the same types of antioxidants as green tea, but in greater quantity."
Also:
Some experts say that green tea originally become knowned as healthier, the healthiest choice, simply because we could not add milk to it.
(by the way, if you haven’t yet, you should try a matcha latte, lovely alternative to coffee)
6) is it true that most of the caffeine in tea is released during the first seconds of brewing and its health benefits only after?
Yes it is.
Big misconception. When we feel like a low caffeine cup of tea, what we usually tend to do is to steep our teabag as less as possible to achieve a light brewing. Unfortunately that is wrong. like this we are drinking most of the caffeine that we could have extract in 4 minutes.
What is even worst, is that by brewing the tea for so little, we are throwing all of the health benefits away.
Exactly!
The goodness of any tea comes out as the dry leaves give up to the hot water and fully hydrate.
So:
If you are looking for a cup of tea that is low in caffeine, and high in antioxidant, than brew the tea for a few second first, throw all of that caffeine away, and start over again with more hot water.
For more info feel free to visit to visit check out this beautiful article written by Lindsey Goodwin.
7) what are phytochemicals?
Phytochemicals are actually chemicals found in plants ("phyto" in Greek means "plant"), and aim to protect the plant against diseases and various pests. When we consume the plants, we absorb the phytochemicals into our body and allow them to also protect us from those hazards.
The primary phytochemicals derived from the olive plant are polyphenols called
OLEUROPEIN, TYROSOL and HYDROXYTYROSOL.
OLEUROPEIN provides the distinctive tangy, pungent, almost bitter flavor found in high quality extra virgin olive oil. It's the main polyphenol contained in the olive leaves.
TYROSOL, a.k.a. "the molecule of happiness", is famous for its antidepressant and anxiolytic effects, it exerts a positive influence on the brain's neurotransmitter levels, stimulating the production of: serotonin, dopamine and hormones such as epinephrine and norepinephrine, which result in elevated levels of happiness and a greater sense of well-being.
HYDROXYTYROSOL is the strongest of the above, and also is the MOST POWERFUL NATURAL ANTIOXIDANT currently known. Well-documented studies confirm its anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antioxidant and cardio protective health benefits.
8) do you sell organic extra virgin olive oil?
Not at the moment.
But bear in mind that, due to the challenges we face every year, we are not able to guaranty the outstanding produce that we work so hard to achieve.
This year has been horrible for the hills of Mattinata. The trees who struggle to get some water, scarifies their fruits, who drop dehydrated on the floor.
(AND THIS IS WHY I’M CONVERGING MY ENERGIES ON THE LEAVES PLUCKING)
For sure we have a great potential. The only thing that we can guaranty is that it is 100% ORGANIC.