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# Olive oil lowers diabetes mellitus risk
- URL: https://www.foodconsumer.org/olive_oil_lowers_diabetes_mellitus_risk_07/
- Published: 2015-07-17T14:21:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-22T16:13:31.000Z
- Description: Among nearly 145,000 women followed for 22 years in the Nurses' Health Studies, eating more than a tablespoon of olive oil a day was associated with about 10% lower risk of diabetes. Substituting 8 grams of olive oil for mayonnaise cut risk 15%; for butter, 8%.
- Author: Food Consumer
- Tags: Diet, Nutrition, #vivvo-import

Friday July 17, 2015 (foodconsumer.org) -- Consuming olive oil may moderately lower risk for developing diabetes mellitus in women, according to a study recently published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

The study led by Frank Hu at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA and colleagues shows eating more than one tablespoon of olive oil per day (>8 grams per day) was associated with 10% reduced risk for diabetes mellitus in female nurses.

The study used data from 59,930 women aged 37 to 65 years enrolled in the Nurses' Health Study (NHS) and 85,157 women aged 26 to 45 years in the NHS II. All participants enrolled free of diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease and cancer and followed for 22 years.

After adjustment for major lifestyle and dietary factors, use of more than one tablespoon of olive oil per day in salad dressing was found associated with 5% reduced risk of diabetes mellitus. When olive oil was added to food or bread, the risk reduction was 15%.

Substituting olive oil in an amount of 8 grams per day for stick margarine, butter or mayonnaise reduced the risk of diabetes mellitus by 5%, 8% or 15%, respectively.

When someone uses olive oil, it means that he could have lower intake of trans fat and saturated fat, and he is more likely to follow a healthier lifestyle. Trans fat and some lifestyle factors are known to increase risk of diabetes mellitus (David Liu).

Marta Guasch-Ferré, Adela Hruby, Jordi Salas-Salvadó, Miguel A Martínez-González, Qi Sun, Walter C Willett, and Frank B Hu, Olive oil consumption and risk of type 2 diabetes in US women, First published July 8, 2015, doi: 10.3945/ajcn.115.112029, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, ajcn112029