Olive Oil Benefits for Men: Heart, Testosterone and What the Research Shows
Most lists of olive oil benefits for men promise the same three things: a stronger heart, more testosterone and better performance in the bedroom. Only one of those rests on a deep body of human research. The heart evidence is large and consistent, including a long-running cohort of 31,797 American men and a randomised trial of 7,447 people. The testosterone claim rests on a single three-week study, and the erectile-function evidence is about the Mediterranean diet as a whole rather than olive oil on its own. This guide sorts each claim by the kind of study behind it, so you can see which benefits are well supported, which are early signals, and which are marketing that has outrun the research.
For our own oil, see our cold-pressed single-estate extra virgin olive oil.
The Short Answer
- The strongest evidence for men concerns the heart. In US data that included 31,797 men from the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, people who used more than half a tablespoon (7 g) of olive oil a day had a 14% lower risk of cardiovascular disease than non-users over 24 years (Guasch-Ferré M et al., J Am Coll Cardiol 2020, PMID 32147453). That is an observational association, not proof of cause.
- The PREDIMED trial (Estruch R et al., N Engl J Med 2018, PMID 29897866) found fewer major cardiovascular events in high-risk adults given a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra virgin olive oil than in a reduced-fat control group.
- Testosterone claims trace back to one three-week study of 60 healthy Moroccan men. It is an early signal, not an established benefit.
- Erectile-function research tests the Mediterranean diet as a whole, of which olive oil is one part, not olive oil by itself.
- For fertility and prostate health, the evidence we have found is about overall diet patterns, and olive oil is not singled out.
- Olive oil is a food. Symptoms such as erectile difficulty, low energy or urinary changes deserve a conversation with your GP, not a change of cooking oil.
What the Evidence Looks Like, Claim by Claim
Men searching this topic meet a mix of human trials, large population studies, animal work and pure assertion, often presented in the same breath. The table below separates them. A randomised trial in people is the strongest kind of evidence here; a cohort study shows an association that may have other explanations; animal studies show a mechanism worth testing, nothing more.
| Claim for men | Best human evidence we found | Type of study | How much weight it carries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heart and circulation | Guasch-Ferré 2020 (31,797 men plus 61,181 women); PREDIMED 2018 (7,447 adults) | Large cohort; randomised trial of a diet pattern | Strongest of the claims, though still about diet, not a cure |
| Living longer | Guasch-Ferré 2022 (31,801 men plus 60,582 women, 28 years) | Large cohort | Consistent association; cannot prove cause |
| Testosterone | Derouiche 2013 (60 healthy men, three weeks) | Small trial with no unchanged-diet group | Early signal only |
| Erectile function | Esposito 2006 (65 men with metabolic syndrome, two years) | Small study of a whole Mediterranean-style diet | About the diet pattern, not olive oil alone |
| Fertility and sperm | Salas-Huetos 2017 (systematic review of 35 observational studies) | Review of observational studies | Overall diet quality; olive oil not singled out |
Read across the rows and a pattern emerges: the closer a claim gets to hormones and sexual performance, the thinner the olive-oil-specific evidence becomes.
Heart Health: Where the Evidence for Men Is Strongest
Cardiovascular disease is where olive oil has its best evidence, and men are well represented in it. Guasch-Ferré M and colleagues (Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2020;75(15):1729–1739, PMID 32147453) followed 31,797 men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study and 61,181 women in the Nurses' Health Study for 24 years. Compared with people who never used olive oil, those using more than 7 g a day had a 14% lower risk of cardiovascular disease and an 18% lower risk of coronary heart disease. Replacing 5 g a day of margarine, butter, mayonnaise or dairy fat with olive oil was associated with a 5% to 7% lower risk.
Two limits matter. These are associations from food questionnaires, so healthier habits among olive oil users could explain part of the gap. And when olive oil was compared with other plant oils combined, the study found no significant difference, which suggests that much of the benefit comes from replacing animal and processed fats rather than from olive oil alone.
The trial evidence comes from PREDIMED. As republished by Estruch R and colleagues (New England Journal of Medicine 2018;378(25):e34, PMID 29897866), 7,447 Spanish adults at high cardiovascular risk were assigned to a Mediterranean diet supplemented with extra virgin olive oil, the same diet with nuts, or advice to cut dietary fat. The olive oil group had fewer major cardiovascular events (hazard ratio 0.69, 95% CI 0.53 to 0.91). It was a trial of an eating pattern in men and women together, and our full write-up of olive oil and heart health covers it in detail, including the original paper's retraction and republication.
Cholesterol, Blood Pressure and the EU Health Claim
The only olive-oil-specific health claim authorised in the EU and UK concerns blood lipids. The Annex to Regulation (EU) No 432/2012 permits the wording that olive oil polyphenols contribute to the protection of blood lipids from oxidative stress, but only for olive oil containing at least 5 mg of hydroxytyrosol and its derivatives per 20 g, with the effect obtained at a daily intake of 20 g. It is a claim about polyphenols in qualifying oils, not about olive oil in general, and not about lowering cholesterol.
We have not published a polyphenol test for our own oil yet, so we do not apply this claim to it. If cholesterol or blood pressure is your main interest, our separate guides on olive oil for cholesterol and olive oil and blood pressure go through the trials in turn.
Testosterone: One Small Study, Not a Settled Benefit
Almost every "olive oil boosts testosterone" claim leads back to Derouiche A and colleagues (Natural Product Communications 2013;8(1):51–53, PMID 23472458). Sixty healthy Moroccan men ate butter for two weeks, then switched to extra virgin olive oil or argan oil for three weeks. Testosterone rose by 17.4% in the olive oil group and by 19.9% in the argan oil group. Because no one stayed on butter, the rise cannot be separated from simply changing diet, and the men were not low in testosterone to begin with.
That is the whole of the direct human evidence we have found. We cover it, along with the animal studies, in olive oil and testosterone: what has actually been measured. If you think your levels may be low, a morning blood test arranged by your GP will tell you far more than any oil.
Erectile Function and Blood Flow: The Diet Pattern, Not the Bottle
Erections depend on healthy blood vessels, which is why the question overlaps with heart health. The study most often cited is Esposito K and colleagues (International Journal of Impotence Research 2006;18(4):405–410, PMID 16395320). Of 65 men with metabolic syndrome and erectile dysfunction, 35 followed a Mediterranean-style diet and 30 a control diet for two years. Endothelial function and C-reactive protein improved in the diet group, and 13 men in that group against two controls reported a score of 22 or higher on the International Index of Erectile Function.
That diet included more fruit, vegetables, nuts, whole grains and olive oil all at once, so the result cannot be credited to olive oil alone, and the sample was small. Erectile dysfunction can also be an early sign of cardiovascular disease, diabetes or hormone problems, so it is worth raising with a doctor rather than treating with food alone.
Fertility, Prostate and Longevity: What Is Known So Far
For fertility, a systematic review by Salas-Huetos A, Bulló M and Salas-Salvadó J (Human Reproduction Update 2017;23(4):371–389, PMID 28333357) assessed 35 observational studies. Diets rich in fish, vegetables, fruit and whole cereals, and low in saturated and trans fats, were associated with better semen quality; processed meat, sugary drinks and alcohol were associated with worse. Olive oil was not singled out, so the honest conclusion is that overall diet quality is what the research tracks.
For the prostate, we have not found a human trial that tested olive oil on prostate outcomes. Prostate symptoms and PSA testing belong with your GP.
On longevity, a second analysis of the US cohorts by Guasch-Ferré M and colleagues (Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2022;79(2):101–112, PMID 35027106) followed 31,801 men and 60,582 women for 28 years. People using more than 7 g of olive oil a day had a 19% lower risk of death from any cause than those who rarely or never used it. It is a large and consistent association, but still an association.
How Much Olive Oil, and Which Kind
The figures in this research are modest. The US cohorts compared people using more than 7 g a day, about half a tablespoon, with those using almost none. The EU polyphenol claim refers to 20 g a day, about one and a half tablespoons. Our guide to how much olive oil per day sets out what each study actually used.
Practically, the useful move is swapping rather than adding: olive oil in place of butter, margarine or mayonnaise, not on top of them. Olive oil has around 120 calories per tablespoon, so pouring extra over an unchanged diet adds energy without the substitution that the research rewards.
Grade matters too. The polyphenols the EU claim refers to survive best in fresh, cold-pressed extra virgin oil kept in dark glass, and are largely lost in refined and "light" olive oils. Our guide to choosing a quality olive oil explains what to check on any label, including the harvest date.
The Objections Worth Taking Seriously
"Olive oil users are probably just healthier men." Partly, yes. The cohort studies adjusted for diet and lifestyle, but no adjustment is perfect. That is why we lean on the PREDIMED trial for the heart and describe the cohort findings as associations.
"Then why not just use any vegetable oil?" A fair point. In the 2020 US analysis, olive oil did not beat other plant oils combined. The clearest gains came from replacing animal and processed fats. Extra virgin olive oil's distinguishing feature is its polyphenol content, which is the basis of the one authorised health claim.
"Videos say a spoonful before bed fixes testosterone and ED." We could find no human study that tested that. The evidence above is what exists, and it does not support a nightly-dose ritual.
Why Sidr & Stone
If the research rewards fresh, minimally processed extra virgin olive oil used in place of other fats, the practical question is how a bottle is made. Sidr & Stone's extra virgin olive oil comes from our own single-estate farm on the plains outside Marrakech, where we control every step from tree to bottle.
- Single-estate — our own family-owned farm near Marrakech, Morocco; no blending across origins
- Rain-fed — no irrigation; the trees take what the season gives
- Organically grown — no synthetic fertilisers, pesticides or herbicides (not yet certified; certification in progress)
- Single harvest — a small, limited batch; once it is gone, it is gone until the next harvest
- Cold-pressed within hours of harvest — to protect flavour, aroma and polyphenols
- Unfiltered extra virgin — minimally processed; natural sediment is normal
- 100% natural — a single ingredient, nothing added
- Dark glass with a gold label — packaging that protects the oil from light
- 10% of profits to charity
- Fulfilment in the UK, EU, and US
We will not tell you Sidr & Stone is the best olive oil for men — that would be the very kind of claim this article warns against. What we will say is that our oil is single-estate Moroccan, rain-fed, organically grown and cold-pressed within hours of harvest, and that the evidence of that care is in the taste, the colour and the small single-harvest batch.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the main olive oil benefits for men?
The best-supported benefit is cardiovascular: in US cohorts including 31,797 men, using more than 7 g of olive oil a day was associated with a 14% lower risk of cardiovascular disease, and the PREDIMED trial found fewer cardiovascular events on an olive-oil-supplemented Mediterranean diet. Claims about testosterone and sexual performance rest on much thinner evidence.
Can olive oil increase blood flow?
Olive oil has been studied as part of diets that improved markers of blood-vessel function, such as the Mediterranean-style diet in Esposito 2006. That research tested the whole diet, so it cannot show that olive oil alone improves blood flow, and circulation problems should be assessed by a doctor.
Does olive oil increase testosterone?
The evidence is too thin to say so. One three-week study of 60 healthy men reported a 17.4% rise on extra virgin olive oil, but there was no group that stayed on the original diet, and the finding has not, as far as we can find, been repeated.
Is it safe for men to have olive oil every day?
For most people, olive oil is an ordinary everyday food, and the cohort studies above describe daily use. It is energy-dense, so use it in place of other fats rather than on top of them, and ask your GP or a dietitian if you have a medical condition that affects your diet.
How is Sidr & Stone's olive oil different from supermarket olive oil?
It is single-estate, rain-fed, organically grown and cold-pressed within hours of harvest on our own farm outside Marrakech, and it is unfiltered extra virgin. Many supermarket oils are blends from several countries, and some are refined.
Is extra virgin olive oil better for men than regular olive oil?
Extra virgin olive oil keeps far more of its polyphenols than refined or "light" olive oil, and the one authorised olive oil health claim is about those polyphenols. The heart findings in the US cohorts covered olive oil in general, so the grade question is about what you keep, not a separate proven benefit.
Where can I buy Sidr & Stone olive oil?
Our single-estate Marrakech extra virgin olive oil is available to pre-order as a limited single-harvest batch, with estimated shipping from November 2026 and fulfilment in the UK, EU, and US.
Is olive oil a medicine?
No. Olive oil is a food, not a medicine. It has a long traditional history — including being honoured in the Prophetic Sunnah — and a substantial body of modern research, particularly around polyphenols, cardiovascular health, and the Mediterranean diet pattern. It can be a worthwhile part of a healthy routine, but it does not cure diseases and is not a substitute for medical care. Be cautious of any olive oil marketed with specific disease-cure claims.
Final Thoughts
For men, the honest summary is uneven. The heart evidence is real and large: tens of thousands of men followed for decades, and a randomised trial in which an olive-oil-rich diet came out ahead. The rest is thinner. Testosterone rests on one short study, erectile function on research into a whole diet, and fertility and prostate health on diet patterns in which olive oil is one ingredient among many.
That is still a good reason to make extra virgin olive oil your everyday fat, used in place of butter and processed spreads. It is not a reason to treat it as a hormone or performance product, and anything that sounds like one is worth a conversation with your GP. For a parallel look at another oil, see our evidence review of black seed oil benefits for men.
Our cold-pressed single-estate extra virgin olive oil — single-estate, rain-fed and cold-pressed within hours of harvest — is available to pre-order now, with fulfilment in the UK, EU, and US.
Our extra virgin olive oil is grown organically on our own single-estate farm on the plains outside Marrakech: we control every step from tree to bottle, and no synthetic pesticides, herbicides or fertilisers are used. It is not yet certified organic — certification is in progress, and we will publish it as soon as it comes through.
Disclaimer: This article describes published research on olive oil and men's health at the time of writing; research findings may change, and readers should check current sources. Olive oil is a food, not a medicine, and is not a substitute for medical treatment of any condition. For any health concern, including erectile, hormonal or prostate symptoms, consult a qualified medical professional.