Is Chocolate Good for You?

There’s so much research out there saying how healthy chocolate is. I believe the research did not take into account all the sugar added to the chocolate treats that most people eat. This means that not only are we eating sugar that will depress our immune system, but we are adding fattening calories.

It’s true that cocoa powder in the dried form has beneficial effects:

1. Increased vascular reactivity.
2. Improved arterial compliance.
3. Increased HDL-C levels.
4. Decreased oxidation of LDL.
5. Reduced insulin resistance.

(According to Clinicaltrials at the University of Utah)

Notice this refers to cocoa powder which has no sugar of any type in it.

More Cocoa Health Benefits:

1. Lowers cholesterol, according to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in 2003. (The white chocolate consumers, the control group in this study, experienced no health benefits.)
2. It is good for your skin; the flavonoids found in dark chocolate offer some protection from UV damage.
3. May improve your ability to see in low-contrast situations, such as poor weather according to study, from England’s University of Reading in 2011.
4. The fiber in chocolate has been shown to reduce the rate of colorectal cancer. It may even slow dementia.
5. Cocoa has anti-clotting, blood-thinning properties (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition).
6. It has been shown to repair liver cells after alcohol consumption!
7. It has been shown to help stimulate insulin, thus stopping the insulin resistance that can lead to diabetes.
8. The ingredient phenylethylamine that gives chocolate the reputation of being the ‘love food’ raises serotonin and dopamine level, which stimulates the nervous system, and even raises libido.
9. Could keep you from coughing, according to doctors at the British National Health Service.
10. Chocolate helps with Math, according study in Northumbria University in the UK.
11. Women who ate more than 45 grams of chocolate a week had a 20 percent lower risk of stroke than women who treated themselves to fewer than 9 grams of the sweet stuff, according to a 2011 Swedish study.
12. Chocolate eaters have lower stress levels finds Live Science Stress Study.

What is Cocoa and Where Does it Come From?

Cocoa comes from the Theobromo cacao evergreen tree which grows well the tropical rainforest. It is a small tree of 4–8 meters and does well in the shade of the larger trees.

Half of the cocoa bean is made of fat in the form of cocoa butter. Cocoa powder is the edible non-fat part of the cacao bean. Most of the fats in chocolate are saturated, but it also contains lots of the “good” fats: oleic and linoleic acids.

Nutritional Benefits of Cocoa:

• Has one of the highest antioxidant concentration of any foods, in the form of the flavonoids: catechin and epicatechin.
• Contains insoluble fiber, which helps lower cholesterol levels.
• Full of magnesium, which helps soothe the nervous system, relax muscles, reduce PMS, and build teeth and bones.
• Contains copper.
• Has vitamin E and vitamin B.

Chocolate’s History:

• Ceramic vessels containing cacao beverage residue have been found by archeologists dating back to 1900-900 BC. One such vessel found on the Gulf Coast of Veracruz, Mexico dates as early as 1750 BC.
• 500 years ago cocoa was called the nectar of the gods.
• Aztec Emperor Montezuma in the 16th century was an admirer of cocoa, calling it the divine drink which builds up resistance and fights fatigue.
• “A cup of this precious drink permits a man to walk a whole day without food” ~ Hernan Corte’s/1519.
• Later cocoa became a luxury item in Europe as an exotic drink and later used with sugar to make solid chocolates.
• Cocoa was used as medicine for a long time; it wasn’t until 1930s that cocoa and chocolate became a sweet treat.
• What I have found in my travels is, the European chocolates are darker which means they are richer in cocoa phenols than those made in North America.

I have “Chocolate Concerns.”  Is Chocolate as Healthy as Claimed?

We know that dark chocolate is healthier than milk chocolate due to its higher polyphenols and lower sugar content. Still, it is made with fat and sugar and those ingredients, as we know, are not good for the body. We regularly test individuals for dark chocolate and it always tests as energy draining.

Do not replace healthy foods such as fresh fruits with chocolate. One raw apple is only 52 calories and has added health benefits. A 100 gram serving of Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate Bar has 531 calories, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. You could eat 10 apples!

The serotonin and dopamine boost by chocolate is only temporary. Like any “high” it will come down, and it is better to enhance your mood with overall good nutrition and lifestyle.

“Our findings indicate that milk may interfere with the absorption of antioxidants from chocolate…and may therefore negate the potential health benefits that can be derived from eating moderate amounts of dark chocolate,” says Mauro Serafini, PhD, of Italy’s National Institute for Food and Nutrition Research in Rome.

Most cocoa studies are funded by chocolate manufacturers because that industry wants to sell you chocolate by convincing you of all the health properties of cocoa.

Most chocolate products are made with GMO cocoa beans. Make sure your chocolate is GMO free.

Today’s chocolate is made with a high fat and sugar content; this is what makes it not at all healthy. There is much evidence that the combination of fat and sugar is toxic to the body. It can cause insulin resistance, diabetes, inflammatory disorders and obesity, hypertension and cardiovascular disease. This combo has been found to activate the same receptors in the brain as cocaine. This is why there are so many chocoholics. It is addictive.

What Kind of Chocolate to Eat:

• If buying chocolate, check the ingredients; do not buy it if it has refined sugar such as cane sugar, brown sugar, or fructose.
• Also, stay away from chocolates made with sugar alcohol or artificial sweeteners; these have many toxic side effects.
• Even the chocolate made with healthy sugars and fats is best taken in moderation.
• Chocolate can fit into a healthy eating plan, but it is best to make your own chocolates for optimum health benefits.
• Lastly, but extremely important: buy fair trade chocolate. There is “…a vast gulf between the children who eat chocolate on their way to school in North America and those who have no school at all, who must, from childhood, work to survive. The children who struggle to produce the small delights of life in the world I come from have never known such pleasure, and most likely, they never will.” – From Bitter Chocolate, by Carol Off

I have been making my own chocolate with healthy ingredients for a few years now and never buy or eat the commercially made stuff. Even the chocolate in health food stores is filled with unhealthy ingredients. All of my chocolate recipes are made with healthy sugars in small quantities.

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