Oh For The Love Of Chocolate!
What woman or man for that matter does not love chocolate. Choosing the right chocolate is the key and the kind to eat is quality dark chocolate. It is loaded with nutrients and full of antioxidants, free radicals are the prerequisite for cancer, and antioxidants can help destroy free radicals before they spread. Further studies even show that chocolate lowers the risk of heart disease. The very best choice for chocolate is 70% or higher, (the higher, the better). A 100 gram bar contains around 11 grams of fiber, iron, magnesium and copper over 50% RDA for the first three and 89% RDA for copper. It also has 98% of manganese not to mention potassium, phosphorus, zinc and selenium. However as with everything I write moderation is the key because if you would eat a 100-gram bar you would be consuming around 600 calories!
Dark chocolate lowers blood pressure and improves brain function and can help prevent depression. One of the components found in dark chocolate is theobromine which is similar to caffeine. Theobromine, when consumed in larger amounts, can cause a dip in blood pressure, excitability and give energy. Eat dark chocolate that is minimally processed and low in sugar so you don’t get a crash. Another chemical that can provide a mood and energy boost is anandanide. Phenethylamine that is found in dark chocolate is metabolized in your body as serotonin which is a mood regulator that your body produces.
A more recent study on cocoa’s cardiovascular benefits, done in 2006, proved that dark chocolate could help prevent cardiovascular disease. In a study of 470 elderly men, cocoa was found to reduce the risk of cardiovascular death by 50% over a 15-year period (15). All were tested while consuming different daily doses of cocoa. The conclusions were that cocoa does indeed lower the chances and significance of cardiovascular disease. Though this doesn’t prove that chocolate is indeed responsible for these benefits consistent and repeated positive results in studies done on cocoa indicate that chocolate does have a positive effect on the cardiovascular system.
In another controlled study, cocoa powder was found to significantly decrease LDL cholesterol in men. LDL, or the “lousy” cholesterol is important to keep lower, and HDL or the “happy “is what you want to be higher and in this study chocolate did just that.
Why would cocoa lower LDL? Cocoa, as previously mentioned contains powerful antioxidants which in turn help your body to fight free radicals. (10, 11, 12). And dark chocolate is loaded with organic compounds function as antioxidants including polyphenols, flavanols, catechins, among others.
Dark chocolate can also reduce insulin resistance, which is another common risk factor for many diseases like heart disease and diabetes (13, 14).
Going on vacation someplace hot, warm or tropical? The compounds in dark chocolate may also be great for your skin. However consume for about 12 weeks before traveling. A study of 30 people, the minimal erythemal dose (MED) is the minimum amount of UVB rays required to cause redness in the skin, 24 hours after exposure. In this study, the MED, more than doubled after consuming dark chocolate high in flavanols for 12 weeks (20).
Another study of volunteers showed that 5 days of consuming high-flavanol cocoa improved blood flow to the brain (21). This may also significantly improve cognitive function in elderly people with mental impairment. It also improves verbal fluency.
A recent study done at Harvard University looked at 24 studies done on chocolate in the past. Over 1,000 people were involved in these studies which collectively concluded that dark chocolate — between 50 and 70 percent cocoa — lowered the blood pressure of all participants. Remember eat the good stuff!! The benefits of chocolate were greater in those who already suffered from high blood pressure. This suggests that the flavonols responsible are more effective when blood pressure is high.
While fruit, vegetables and tea are known sources of antioxidants, research shows that the cocoa bean is more potent, with one of the highest concentrations of antioxidants and beneficial nutrients in the world. Cocoa nibs are a great source of antioxidants. Though the flavor may not be sweet try coating them with some organic powdered stevia and add to recipes, it is delicious. www.free2bmediet.com
If you are pregnant no worries, recent studies have shown that chocolate improves fetal growth. It also showed that eating high flavonal chocolate the risk of preeclampsia was reduced by lowering blood pressure and there by improving blood flow to the fetus.
A recent study looks into the cognitive benefits of chocolate consumption. Larger intakes of high-quality chocolate proved improvements of cognitive processing, visual-spatial awareness, abstract reasoning, scanning, working memory, and improved Global Composite scores.
An ongoing 40-year study on the effects of chocolate on cognitive function used data from the beginning of the study and compared it through cross-sectional study. The study concluded that all the types of intelligence measured previously were increased by chocolate consumption — along with spoken word recall.
In another study by British psychologists showed that the flavonols in chocolate specifically help people with their mental math. During the study, people were tested counting backward on a randomly generated number test before and after drinking a cup of hot cocoa. This eating dark chocolate before your exam could be a marvelous idea.
Cocoa can have a beneficial effect on certain cells that produce antibodies. Antibodies help your body fight against bacteria and disease this also has an effect on the lymph system, which helps to coordinate the immune system. It helps the system to produce cells better that means better defense against disease.
So in conclusion, love chocolate? Then eat it, but eat the dark, good, nutritious kind, your body will thank you for it!
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