My Thoughts on Dark Chocolate - what’s not to like?

Here's news that's hard not to like. Studies

have indicated that chocolate may not be

as bad for your health as we have always believed and been told. It is important now

to say that all chocolate is not created

equal. Dark chocolate contains a lot more

cocoa than other forms of chocolate and the cocoa is the part that is good for your

health. There are growing evidence that

chocolate and cocoa may be beneficial to health and prevent heart disease, strokes

and metabolic diseases.

Let’s look at what does the cocoa beans contain that are good for you. The cocoa

beans are loaded with plant flavonoids. Flavonoids keep cholesterol from gathering

in blood vessels, reduce the risk of blood clots, and slow down the immune responses that lead to clogged arteries. Flavonoids have also shown to cut high

blood pressure, improve the lining of blood vessels and platelet function and to

ameliorate insulin resistance. In a study done where 21 healthy adults were divided into two groups; one group got a Dark Chocolate bar with full flavonoids and the

other group got a normal dark chocolate bar every day for two weeks. The results

indicated healthier blood vessel function in the group that received the full-flavonoid dark chocolate.

Five studies reported that chocolate consumption had a beneficial effect on the risk

of developing cardiovascular diseases or metabolic disease. In 2011 a study supported these studies as it reported that the highest chocolate consumption

showed a reduced risk in Cardio vascular disease by 37% and 29%. In a Swedish

study it showed that women with the lowest chocolate intake per week, were 3.6 times more likely to suffer from a stroke than women with the highest chocolate

intake.

In the latest study in Australia, 2013 people had a daily intake of dark chocolate. The results showed lowering effects on blood pressure and cholesterol. It is also

revealed that those who ate dark chocolate had lower levels of blood glucose and

“bad” LDL cholesterol and higher levels of “good” HDL cholesterol than those

who ate white chocolate.

Despite all these findings that dark chocolate may reduce the risk of cardiovascular

diseases; dark chocolate should still be consumed in moderate amounts. While a

little dark chocolate is good, a lot is not better. A small portion, 45g dark chocolate every day is good for you, but remember that even dark chocolate is loaded with

calories, fat and sugar: Enjoy the good news and enjoy your dark chocolate in

moderate amounts.