There is considerable evidence that cocoa can provide powerful health benefits, being especially protective against cardiovascular disease.
Dark
chocolate is loaded with nutrients that can positively affect your health.
Made from the seed of the cocoa tree,
it is one of the best sources of antioxidants on the planet.
Studies show that dark chocolate
(not the sugary crap) can improve health and lower the risk of heart disease.
1. Dark Chocolate is Very Nutritious
If you buy quality dark
chocolate with a high cocoa content, then it is actually quite nutritious.
It contains a decent amount of
soluble fiber and is loaded with minerals.
A 100 gram bar of dark chocolate with
70-85% cocoa contains (1):
·
11
grams of fiber.
·
67%
of the RDA for Iron.
·
58%
of the RDA for Magnesium.
·
89%
of the RDA for Copper.
·
98%
of the RDA for Manganese.
·
It
also has plenty of potassium, phosphorus, zinc and selenium.
Of course, 100 grams (3.5 ounces) is
a fairly large amount and not something you should be consuming daily. All
these nutrients also come with 600 calories and moderate amounts of sugar.
For this reason, dark chocolate is
best consumed in moderation.
The fatty acid profile of cocoa and
dark chocolate is excellent. The fats are mostly saturated and monounsaturated,
with small amounts of polyunsaturates.
It also contains stimulants like
caffeine and theobromine, but is unlikely to keep you awake at night as the
amount of caffeine is very small compared to coffee.
2. Dark Chocolate is a Powerful Source of
Antioxidants
words ORAC stands for
Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity. It is a measure of the antioxidant activity
of foods.
Basically, researchers pit a
bunch of free radicals (bad) against a sample of food and see how well the
antioxidants in the food can “disarm” them.
The biological relevance of this
metric is questioned, because it’s done in a test tube and may not have the
same effect in the body.
However, I think it is worth
mentioning that raw, unprocessed cocoa beans are among the highest scoring foods that have been tested.
Dark chocolate is loaded
with organic compounds that are biologically active and function as
antioxidants. These include polyphenols, flavanols, catechins, among others.
One study showed that cocoa and dark
chocolate contained more antioxidant activity, polyphenols and flavanols than
other fruits they tested, which included blueberries and Acai berries .
.
3. Dark Chocolate May Improve Blood Flow and
Lower Blood Pressure
The flavanols in dark
chocolate can stimulate the endothelium, the lining of arteries, to produce
Nitric Oxide (NO), which is a gas .
One of the functions of NO is to send
signals to the arteries to relax, which lowers resistance to blood flow and
therefore reduces blood pressure.
There are many controlled trials
showing that cocoa and dark chocolate can improve blood flow and lower blood
pressure, but the effects are usually mild
However,
there is also one study in people with elevated blood pressure that showed no
effect, so take all this with a grain of salt .
4.
Dark Chocolate Raises HDL and Protects LDL Against Oxidation
Consuming dark chocolate can improve
several important risk factors for heart disease.
In a controlled trial, cocoa powder
was found to significantly decrease oxidized LDL cholesterol in men.
It also increased HDL and lowered
total LDL in men with elevated cholesterol .
Oxidized LDL means that the LDL
(“bad” cholesterol) has reacted with free radicals.
This makes the LDL particle itself
reactive and capable of damaging other tissues… such as the lining of the
arteries in your heart.
It makes perfect sense that cocoa
lowers oxidized LDL. It contains an abundance of powerful antioxidants that do
make it into the bloodstream and protect lipoproteins against oxidative damage .
Dark chocolate can also reduce
insulin resistance, which is another common risk factor for many diseases like
heart disease and diabetes
.
5. Dark Chocolate May Lower The Risk of
Cardiovascular Disease
The compounds in dark chocolate
appear to be highly protective against the oxidation of LDL
.
In the long term, this
should cause much less cholesterol to lodge in the arteries and we should see a
lower risk of heart disease over the long term.
It turns out that we have several
long-term observational studies that show a fairly drastic improvement.
In a study of 470 elderly men,
cocoa was found to reduce the risk of cardiovascular death by a whopping 50%
over a 15 year period .
Another study revealed that eating
chocolate 2 or more times per week lowered the risk of having calcified plaque
in the arteries by 32%. Eating chocolate less frequently had no effect .
Yet another study showed that
chocolate 5+ times per week lowered the risk of cardiovascular disease by 57%
.
Of course, these 3 studies are
so-called observational
studies that can not prove that it was the chocolate that
caused the reduction in risk.
However, given that we have a
biological mechanism (lower blood pressure and oxidized LDL) then I find it
plausible that regular consumption of dark chocolate can in fact reduce the
risk of heart disease.
6.
Dark Chocolate May Protect Your Skin Against The Sun
The bioactive compounds in dark
chocolate may also be great for your skin.
The flavonols can protect against
sun-induced damage, improve blood flow to the skin and increase skin density
and hydration .
The minimal erythemal dose
(MED) is the minimum amount of UVB rays required to cause redness in the skin,
24 hours after exposure.
In one study of 30 people, the
MED more than doubled after consuming dark chocolate high in flavanols for 12
weeks .
If you’re planning on a beach
vacation, consider loading up on dark chocolate in the prior weeks and months.
7. Dark Chocolate May Improve Brain Function
The good news isn’t over yet.
Dark chocolate may also improve the function of the brain.
One study of healthy volunteers
showed that 5 days of consuming high-flavanol cocoa improved blood flow to the
brain .
.
There is considerable evidence that
cocoa can provide powerful health benefits, being especially protective against
cardiovascular disease.
But of course, this doesn’t mean
people should go all out and consume lots of chocolate every day. It is still
loaded with calories and easy to overeat on. Maybe have a square or two after
dinner and try to really savor them.
Be aware that a lot of the chocolate
on the market is crap. You need to choose qualitystuff… organic, dark chocolate with 70% or higher cocoa
content.
Dark chocolates often contain some
sugar, but the amounts are usually small and the darker the chocolate, the less
sugar it will contain.
There are of course other benefits to
chocolate that I have not mentioned… such as the awesome taste.
substitute may use to save money &to
avoids sugar & other tasty ingredients
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