Health Benefits of Chocolate: Few studies have proved that chocolate has health benefits. Findings have resulted in the fact that chocolate food can be actually good for the health since it contains more than 300 chemicals, which health benefits derive from. This is in contradiction to the old myth that anything that tastes good can be bad.
Health Benefits of Chocolate
It used to be that old folks warn their children against eating too much chocolate or other folks being very cautious believing that eating this food can be a causative factor in certain illnesses.
But research conducted demonstrated that there is quite a large amount of antioxidants, found in chocolate, and is relatively higher than other high-antioxidant foods. See one of the results of the research:
- Cocoa powder – is found to contain the highest quantity and quality of anti-oxidants.
- Dark chocolate – is found second to cocoa powder. Results also showed that dark chocolate has eight more times the polyphenol antioxidants than those found in strawberries.
- Milk chocolate – is the third kind of chocolate food that contains high antioxidant contents.
Furthermore, in research conducted in 2001, 23 participants who included in their diet dark chocolate and high flavonoid-rich cocoa powder were found to have higher HDL cholesterol, also called the good cholesterol, concentrations as opposed to other control participants. Although the investigation about the health effects of chocolate was done on a relatively small group of people, it suggested that there is more to what the chocolates were believed to have.
Subsequently, another research was done in 2005, where another small test group was involved. The output was similar, suggesting that dark chocolate can actually lower blood pressure in individuals suffering from hypertension. It produced a comparable result as with the other research, wherein LDL cholesterol levels, or bad cholesterol, were found to drop by at least 10 percent.
In these few types of research alone, it can be concluded that chocolate food contains a high amount of good chemicals, which therefore almost completely opposes the old myth and half-truths established long ago about how it can never be a good part of anyone’s diet. This must not be the reason though for people to consume chocolate products at their own discretion.
Remember that there are chocolate foods that can be good for your health while there are others that can be bad, especially those that are high-processed and poorly made. Some of those are chocolate candies and bars, which you often find in stores and are high in calories, sugar, and fat.
It does not necessarily mean that you have to entirely avoid these kinds of chocolate; however, take them in moderation. If you want to enjoy the health benefits of chocolate, you can opt for the healthier version such as the three mentioned above.
Note too that the health benefits found in chocolate are not good for your pets. This is for the reason that the food contains theobromine, a kind of stimulant that pets cannot digest. Even baking and dark chocolate is not advised to be administered to pets. The same is true in cake, puddings, ice creams, candy bars, and cookies that contain chocolate.
Eating Dark Chocolate Keeps the Doctors Away! | Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate
Indeed, this is quite true, as based on scientific research findings that may very well alter the image of chocolate forever — from junk food to healthy food! Isn’t it quite refreshing? Millions all over the world would be thrilled to know that the treatment they all love is also very beneficial for our health.
So start chanting now, eat chocolate for a healthier you!
Well, before, we start getting excited over this, let us discover what the scientific studies have found out about chocolate, dark chocolate in particular – the type that quite a lot of people favor.
Findings have sufficient proof to declare that dark chocolate contains much more health benefits compared to white chocolate and milk chocolate. These two latter types actually have higher contents of fat and lesser health benefits to consumers.
Dark chocolate, also considered bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate, has been found to be very beneficial for people. One of its foremost benefits is that it enhances your mood and keeps you in a lighter, happier state of emotion. It has serotonin that affects a person much like an anti-depressant would.
So now you have discovered why your mood becomes visibly improved after a bar of chocolate on a bad day.
Furthermore, aside from soothing us and lightening up our mood, it also improves the flexibility of our blood vessels and thus, eases the circulation of blood in our system.
Another outstanding aspect of chocolate that is very beneficial for people is the fact that nutrients can be found in it that are now known to prevent cancer. Cacao, an ingredient that dark chocolate has in abundance, contains antioxidants that are essential for the body to have in order to fight free radicals that cause heart ailments and other types of diseases.
Flavonoids can be found in chocolate and is a major enemy of free radicals that may come from other foodstuffs ingested by the body or absorbed from the environment. Flavonoids, called Epicatechins and Catechins, help a lot in protecting the body’s immune system. This is why, consuming chocolate with higher cacao content, or consuming dark chocolate for that matter is healthier.
Who would think that even with the delightfully thick and velvety texture of chocolate, minerals are present in it, minerals such as iron and magnesium? Now, you know that even if you cannot resist chocolate, you are not wasting yourself away. As long as you keep it moderate, eating chocolate is perfectly healthy!
The antioxidants in chocolate have been found beneficial for joints and help in reducing pain and stiffness caused by arthritis. Getting better sleep for a well-rested you on the following day is another benefit offered by chocolate’s antioxidants. Vitamin B is also present which significantly increases the energy level of the brain and body.
Who says that eating chocolate would increase your calorie consumption leading to higher cholesterol and blood pressure levels? Well, they are mistaken – and what’s best, we have the studies to prove it! Eating dark chocolate actually even helps lower the cholesterol and blood pressure levels of the body. That’s definitely a resounding “Yay!” for all chocolate lovers. Even if chocolate has fats and cholesterol, they are the good kind that does not interfere with the production of insulin in the body.
Who says you will become a diabetic if you eat chocolate? These people got it all wrong – a healthy dose of dark chocolate is beneficial for diabetics, who must constantly limit their sugar consumption. Since dark chocolate is low in carbohydrates, it is good for diabetics.
However, citing the health benefits of chocolate does not mean that you have to start eating loads of chocolate now. As in all things, excessiveness is not healthy. Remember to keep things in moderation – especially in consuming your favorite chocolate.
Some Other Benefits of Dark Chocolate
Chocolate has a delicious taste that most of us don’t know is made from plants. Which means it contains many of the health benefits of vegetables. Some of us don’t like eating vegetables but by eating chocolate, we are unaware that it’s the vegetable that we eat that contains hundreds of health-giving benefits.
This benefit is an antioxidant derived from a substance known as flavonoids. The purpose of these antioxidants is to protect the body from free radicals against aging. A large amount of these antioxidants can be found in dark chocolates. This substance known as flavanoid produces Nitric Oxide that aids the body in relaxing its blood pressure. And it also gives a balanced hormone to the body.
Some of the other Benefits of Dark Chocolate included, that this is very good for the heart. Consuming a small bar every single day will help the cardiovascular system work well and also for the heart to have a well-balanced function. And when it comes to heart, there are two benefits that this chocolate can give. It has the ability to lower blood pressure and to lower the body fat index or the cholesterol level.
It can also help people with high blood pressure to lower their blood pressure by just eating a small bar of this dark chocolate which has been shown in some studies. For body fat mass, this dark chocolate has the power to reduce Low-Density Lipoprotein cholesterol, which we have better known as bad cholesterol as high as up to 10 percent of the current cholesterol level.
The other benefit that this chocolate can bring aside from protecting the heart is that this chocolate has an agreeably good taste. It also has the potential to regulate endorphin production which provides a feeling of pleasure and a bit of satisfaction and fulfillment. Its composition contains a substance known as Serotonin which acts as an anti-depressant.
This dark chocolate also contains a substance called Theobromine, and even an amount of caffeine which we all know as the best source to stimulate the body and the brain. A lot of other stimulants are also present in chocolate but are in small contents.
For persons that are more concerned about their body figure, there’s good news since it says that there is no need to stop eating chocolate but only to eat the exact amount. Fat contents in this chocolate do not impact the body’s cholesterol level. A composition of 0.33% of Oleic acid,
0.33 % of Stearic acid and 0.33 % of Palmitic acid are the components of all fats in chocolate. In the book of medicine and other health practitioner guide, this Oleic Acid is monounsaturated fat which Olive Oil is known as a good source.
Another component of this chocolate is Stearic Acid which is a saturated fat that according to some research and studies shows to be of no effect on cholesterol, thus said to be of a neutral state. The last known fat is called Palmitic Acid. This kind of fat is saturated and has the ability to raise cholesterol levels and even risk for heart disease. In summary, only 1/3 of the fat in dark chocolate is bad for cholesterol.
Since there is a presence of 0.33% as bad cholesterol in dark chocolates, it is always suggested to balance the intake of calories which only means not to eat a pound of chocolate a day since this is still a food of high calories. Right intake of chocolate which is around 100 grams, that’s approximately 3.5 ounces would give a maximum benefit that chocolate contains. There are 300 known compounds and components in every single bite of chocolate.
This dark chocolate has a lot more contents antioxidants compared to milk chocolate or any other white chocolate since this dark chocolate has a content of cocoa of 65 percent or even higher.
Insights and Facts for being Chocoholics and its Advantages
Chocolates are really a kind of food that most people say is irresistibly sweet and delicious. Well, a huge part of the chocolate aroma depends on its taste rich, and delicious chocolate which satisfies our desire and craving.
But beyond that feeling, we don’t know that chemical reactions are also working for the benefit of creating a good and satisfying taste. For example, we can feel a feeling of satisfaction and pleasurable sensation like the feeling of being satisfied after a long run or jogging n the field for several minutes.
Facts about Chocolate | Interesting facts about Chocolate
Facts about chocolate are really much unreachable to produce a final statistic or data. Chocolate contains a so-called neurotransmitter and a kind of substance known as serotonin. These compounds have an action similar to that of Theobromine and Phenylethylamine that stimulates and works as an anti-depressant. But the mere fact is still unknown for a scientist to explain what and how these 300 compounds and substances can stimulate our body and gives a positive result in making us feel better and satisfied.
One thing that we are always concerned about is the bad effect or being worried if there are any harmful substances that we may get from eating chocolate or being one of the millions of chocoholics. A person who really loves chocolate is a lot worried to eat so much of it as to mention their need to lose weight and satisfy their craving would only lead.
Other facts about chocolate include rotting teeth to acne. However, despite some good intentions of our scientists to prove something, their group and another group of researchers are beginning to unproved this theory and myths regarding the danger of loving and eating so much chocolate. For example, it is not a fact that consuming chocolate is a threat to healthy good teeth nor it is a false thought that eating this chocolate will only cause acne or even make it worse.
Even though both chocolate and cocoa contain sugar, they have a kind of antagonizing substance that tends to produce a kind of oral bacteria that will finally lead to a fear of having dental decay and any other dental problems associated with decays.
According to a group of Researchers from the Eastman Dental Center in Rochester, New York, they have concluded based on their studies that milk chocolate can contribute a component that fights against any form of tooth decay. Through its composition of a substance known as Phosphate and other minerals that fight and prevent tooth decay.
Conclusion
Chocolates are said not to be consumed as this is not a healthy snack. Nevertheless, its components are essentially high in magnesium and potassium. Chocolate also gives several vitamins such as Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin D, and Vitamin E. And if we mention the calorie contents, a Nutritionist or even a Scientist can never claim that chocolate is a kind of diet food. But then, in a bar of chocolate, the average calorie is approximately 250 calories which is far enough beyond the level of a person on a diet to suppress their craving. Some chocoholics wash the chocolate down with a glass of milk which really tastes good but researchers and scientists have studied that this could only prevent the antioxidants from being absorbed or consumed by the body. It is advised that chocoholics must look for chocolates with nuts and/or orange peel, etc.
But not with caramel, nougat, or other fillings since these flavored fillings are just adding fat and sugar that is not essential to the body anymore and these fillings only throw a lot of the benefits that can be obtained in chocolate eating.
Disclaimer: We are to a Health Advisor. Take advice from your doctor.