Cardiovascular and Metabolic Benefits of Extra Virgin Olive Oil Phenolic Compounds: Mechanistic Insights from In Vivo Studies

Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) represents a significant source of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) and vitamin E, but it is also considered a functional food, due to the content of peculiar bioactive molecules, such as phenolic compounds, being able to modulate various processes related to aging and the most common metabolic and degenerative diseases. A lot of experimental research has focused on some of these components, but in most cases, the studies were performed in vitro testing compounds at non-physiological concentrations and achieving results that cannot easily be translated in vivo. Recent clinical studies demonstrated that in vivo these compounds are able to regulate physiological functions and prevent several pathological events including metabolic and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), which represent the main causes of death worldwide. This review aims to sum up the major evidence on the beneficial effects of EVOO phenolic compounds in vivo on these pathologies, describing and evaluating the efficacy in relation to the mechanisms of diseases of the whole phenolic fraction and some of its specific components.