The idea of a soap, and later of a vaster range of olive oil-based products, could only be conceived in a company that has sixty years of experience in the selection and packaging of olive oils.
From a chemical standpoint, olive oil is a lipid composed 98%-99% of fatty acids in the form of triglycerides, and a smaller part, the unsaponifiable part, consisting of squalene, b-carotene, a-tocopherol, and five other important substances, all fundamental for an antioxidant and dermoprotective action.
The benefits of olive oil in the diet are by now well known: its great nutritional value, digestibility, aid in gastrointestinal functions, reduction of cholesterol, and prevention of arteriosclerosis.
Recent studies on the use of olive oil and its by-products in cosmetics have emphasized the single characteristics of the eight principles present in the unsaponifiable fraction of the oil, whose dermoprotective and antioxidant action has been scientifically proven. I am showing them here below, referring totally to the precise work done for a university degree thesis:

The active principles contained in olive oil that make it so valuable are:

• Squalene
• ß-Carotene
• a-Tocopherol or Vitamin E
• Long-chain alcohol and fatty acid waxes
• Long-chain alcohols
• Phytosterols and their esters
• Triterpenic acids and alcohols
• Phenols and phenolic acids

· SQUALENE: Squalene is the main hydrocarbon contained 40% in the unsaponifiable fraction, and it is the progenitor of all sterols. It is an unsaturated and apolar substance of the triterpenes family, with the basic formula C30H50. Triterpenes are compounds containing six isoprene units (2-methyl-1,3-butadiene). It is also present, for about 12%, in the secretion of the sebaceous glands, and is therefore a protector of the dermis, over which it spreads a film that keeps in the skin's natural moisture. Moreover, thanks to its hydrophobicity, it is of considerable importance in the protection of the cornea layer of the skin against penetration by endogenous agents. The presence of squalene in olive oil and in its cosmetic by-products enables it to penetrate into the deepest layers of the skin and reform the hydrolipidic film, weakened by sunrays and detergents. It also carries out an extremely important protective action against the oxidative stress of the skin: the two unsaturations make it the skin's main antioxidant agent.

· ß-CAROTENE: ß-Carotene is the progenitor of vitamin A (retinol) and is formed by the synthesis of 8 isoprene units. It is a long-chain hydrocarbon that presents an extensive conjugation, which is responsible for its orange color. The molecule, with a roto-reflection center, is achiral. In olives it is present in concentrations ranging from 2 to 8%. The role of ß-Carotene is that of a colored pigment and biological antioxidant, since it neutralizes free radicals and renders singlet oxygen, the main cause of self-oxidation, inactive. It is often included in top-quality cosmetics for its anti-wrinkle properties and as a filter against ultraviolet rays.

· a-TOCOPHEROL: a-Tocopherol, commonly called Vitamin E, is a specific component of olive oil, of which it forms 90% of the tocopherol mixture, while it is only a partial component in other oils and fats. The molecule has a totally hydrophobic alkyl tail (a-Tocotrienol) and an easily oxidizable tocopherol head. The molecule has three centers of asymmetry in positions 2,4' and 8'; the stereoisomer most present in nature is RRR. a-Tocopherol has a powerful antioxidant action and is particularly suitable for the prevention of free radicals, and therefore of aging. It also acts as a sunscreen, and is thus used in the formulas of the finest cosmetics.

· WAXES: long-chain alcohol and fatty acid esters, with the resulting molecule having a weakly polar head group (the complex containing the ester itself) and a long non-polar tail (the hydrocarbon chain). The waxes are water-resistant materials because of the weak polarity of the ester group, therefore they are waterproofing agents and are widely used for this purpose in the cosmetics industry. They are also found in human sebum, where they have a protective action.

· LONG-CHAIN ALCOHOLS: surfactants widely used in the cosmetics industry for their protective and detergent effect.

· PHYTOSTEROLS AND THEIR ESTERS: highly prized components in cosmetics, where their use is limited by their low availability and high cost. They take an active part in the formulation of emulsions and of a protective film on the dermis.

· TRITERPENIC ACIDS AND ALCOHOLS: specific components of olive oils with a healing effect.

· PHENOLS AND PHENOLIC ACIDS: a mixture of a high number of individual components whose oxidizing and sun filter action is multiplied by synergism.

So why should we use a natural soap obtained from virgin olive oil instead of a soap deriving from animal fats or other vegetable oils, such as coconut, palm, or soybean oil? Why, in conclusion, should we choose Olivella?
First of all, because it is a soap that is obtained 100% from virgin olive oil, and therefore REALLY OLIVE OIL SOAP, not like other soaps that label themselves as such although they only have a negligible percentage. I might also add that the majority of the soaps that boast of being of vegetable origin always contain less prized, less noble, and less expensive oils than olive oil: a quick glance at the list of ingredients always helps.
Furthermore, the salts obtained from this soap, unlike those obtained from animal fats (for example tallow and lard) or other vegetable fats (such as palm, coconut, or soybean oil), are dermatologically closer to the lipidic layer of the skin, and thus less aggressive than others which, acting deeply, dry it out when washing. Indeed, if we wash our hands often with a normal soap, we will see how skin becomes drier and drier and more opaque, less soft and velvety. The soap paste of Olivella is totally free of proteins of animal origin, which are often responsible for local allergic reactions and symptoms of intolerance.
There is also another important point: most of the unsaponifiable beneficial compounds described above go into the soap without undergoing any alterations.