No, EVOO is not a scam.
While there is nothing wrong with canola oil, there is no evidence that it is superior or healthier than EVOO. You provide no studies or citations. Show any studies that show that canola oil is healthier for the heart and all-cause mortality. The studies that show the benefits of olive oil are almost endless.
Cold-pressed EVOO retains most polyphenols and phenolics. The cold press is necessary because refining removes most polyphenols from olive and other vegetable oils.
“Extra virgin olive oil clearly contains the highest levels of polyphenols among oils.”
Bottom line: EVOO is better because of the refining process involved with other oils.
“While canola oil contains minor amounts of polyphenols, it is not a significant dietary source.
To get higher polyphenol intake, emphasize other plant foods like olive oil, berries, nuts, and herbs.”
“Canola oil contains small amounts of polyphenols, mainly sinapic acid and sinapine.
The polyphenol content is much lower compared to olive oil and other plant foods.
One tablespoon of canola oil contains around 8-10 mg of polyphenols.”
“Polyphenols have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects in the body.
They may help reduce risk of chronic diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.”
“Olive oil is high in polyphenols, which are responsible for its bitter flavor.
It contains phenolic acids like hydroxytyrosol, tyrosol, and lignans like pinoresinol, hydroxypinoresinol and acetoxypinoresinol.
Extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) contains over 20 different polyphenols, including hydroxytyrosol, oleocanthal, oleuropein, and luteolin.”
Most other cooking oils like canola, vegetable, corn, and soybean oil contain minimal polyphenols.(mainly because they are highly processed.)
Some oils like sesame, peanut, and rice bran oil may contain small amounts of polyphenols.
Coconut oil contains very few polyphenols.
Flaxseed oil is moderately high in polyphenols compared to other oils, but much less than olive oil.
Olive oil is also rich in phenolic compounds.
“The main phenolic compounds in olive oil are tyrosol,
hydroxytyrosol and oleuropein, were found responsible for reported
health benefits”
Is Extra Virgin Olive Oil the Critical Ingredient Driving the Health Benefits of a Mediterranean Diet? A Narrative Review
Polyphenol rich olive oils improve lipoprotein particle atherogenic ratios and subclasses profile: A randomized, crossover, controlled trial
A comprehensive review on different classes of polyphenolic compounds present in edible oils
Health benefits of polyphenols: A concise review
Identification of the 100 richest dietary sources of polyphenols: An application of the Phenol-Explorer database
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/47661728_Identification_of_the_100_richest_dietary_sources_of_polyphenols_An_application_of_the_Phenol-Explorer_database
Extra citations: Copy and paste any of these titles into Google search to view the citations.
Consumption of Olive Oil and Risk of Total and Cause-Specific Mortality Among U.S. Adults. (Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2022)
Olive oil consumption and risk of cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality: A meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. (Frontiers in nutrition, 2022)
Effect of olive oil consumption on cardiovascular disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes, and all-cause mortality: A systematic review and meta-analysis. (Clinical nutrition (Edinburgh, Scotland), 2022)
Olive oil intake and risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality in the PREDIMED Study. (BMC medicine, 2014)
Olive Oil Consumption and Cardiovascular Risk in U.S. Adults. (Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2020)
The role of olive oil in disease prevention: a focus on the recent epidemiological evidence from cohort studies and dietary intervention trials. (The British journal of nutrition, 2015)