Olive oil is one of those things that would be catastrophic to miss in my kitchen. After all, the olive tree is a timeless wonder, which some people believe was a gift from the goddess Athena to humanity. And in those ancient times, they called it ‘liquid gold’.

Olive oil has many uses. For instance, I use it in cooking, adding to my numerous salads, and when I run out of body oil, I have olive oil, out of hair oil, olive oil, out of moisturizer olive oil … and the list goes on. I try as much as I can to include it in my beauty routine for skin and hair.

But before we start on the benefits of olive oil, let’s demystify the different types of the oil that you usually come across when you are out shopping, and you might not be sure which one is the best.

Different Types of Olive Oil

Extra Virgin Olive Oil: This is the best to use though it will cost you extra. It is made by cold pressing the olive fruit and no chemicals or hot water is added during its extraction. It has an acidity level of less than 1% and it’s valued for its color, aroma, and flavor.

Virgin Olive Oil: This is the one that is mostly used in cooking and it’s not as expensive as the Extra Virgin Olive Oil. It has an acidity level of about 2 percent to 3.3 percent.

Pure Olive Oil: It is a blend of virgin olive oil and refined olive oil and is simply called olive oil. It cannot be used for salad dressings due to its high acidity and it’s mostly used for heavy-duty, high-heat cooking.

Olive Pomace Oil: It is the lowest grade of olive-based oils. It is blended with virgin olive oil to make it acceptable to consumers, though the level of the virgin olive oil in it is quite low, making it only suitable for high-heat cooking.

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Now that you know the difference, be careful which one you choose.

Below are some of the Benefits of Olive Oil for the skin

Skin Moisturizer: Since it contains Vitamin E and antioxidants which protect the skin from the harsh weather it penetrates deep into the skin and provides a long-lasting shield of moisture to keep the skin soft and supple. It is best applied to damp skin.
Improves Skin Tone: Massage it into your skin after mixing a few strands of saffron with olive oil and watch the significant improvement on your skin tone.
Face Scrub: When mixed with sea salt it acts as a great scrub for exfoliating all the dead cells leaving fresh smooth skin underneath.
Improves skin texture: Mix olive oil with lemon juice and honey then apply on the body and leave for 15 minutes and then rinse off to get a fairly soft skin.

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Benefits of Olive Oil for the Hair

To get that shiny and soft hair that we all want, massage olive oil into your shampooed hair then rinse after 5 minutes.
Treats dandruff and dry itchy scalp: Mix equal amounts of olive oil, lemon juice and water and massage into your damp scalp. Leave it for 20 minutes then rinse and shampoo.
Controls frizz: Put a little olive oil onto your fingers and run them through your hair after you’ve styled it. That should keep it frizz-free.
For easy manageability of your hairdo a hot oil treatment with olive oil.

If you have oily skin, do not apply the oil on your face as olive oil and oily skin don’t play well.