Chocolate is Good For You
As the holidays recede and we all attempt to make good on our New Year’s pledges to eat healthier and lose those stubborn holiday pounds, one piece of news that we can all be happy about is that there are myriad health benefits associated with eating chocolate. Chocolate is loaded with nutrients and fiber, has many different antioxidant compounds, and can help with heart and brain health as well.
One important distinction to make at this point, is that we are talking about dark (70% cacao content or more) chocolate here and not milk chocolate that is loaded with sugar and fat and very little actual cacao. So, don’t go rushing over to the box of milk chocolates left over from the holidays and think that will be great for you!!
According to the website nutritiondata.self.com, a 100-gram bar of dark chocolate contains 11 grams of fiber, 67% RDA for Iron, 58% RDA for Magnesium, 89% RDA for Copper, 98% RDA for Manganese, and also has a significant amount of Potassium, Phosphorus, Zinc, and Selenium. In addition to these vitamins, it is also important to consider that most of the fats are saturated and monounsaturated, with small amounts of polyunsaturated. Keep in mind that 100 grams of dark chocolate also contains close to 600 calories, so this is probably more than a person should consume on a daily basis, but once in a while or in smaller doses should not pose a problem.
Another great benefit of dark chocolate is their antioxidant content. Antioxidants are powerful chemicals that inhibit or prevent the oxidation of other molecules in the body, and, are thought to help play a role in preventing cancer and other diseases. Cacao berries are higher in antioxidant content than such superfoods as blueberries, cranberries, pomegranate, and acai berries.
Dark Chocolate is also thought to have a positive effect on heart health. Chocolate has been shown to lower LDL (the “bad” cholesterol) and raise HDL (“good” cholesterol), and the compounds in dark chocolate also help to prevent the oxidation of LDL, which makes the LDL much less dangerous to other cells in the body1. Cacao has also been shown to reduce insulin resistance which can help folks who have diabetes and heart disease manage risk 2.
As if all of the above positives were not enough, recent studies have shown that consumption of dark chocolate may have a positive impact on brain function. One recent study showed that in people who consumed cacao had significantly improved blood flow to the brain, which could be helpful in the treatment and management of vascular issues in the brain, including dementia and strokes3
The long and short of it is that there are many well documented benefits to consuming dark chocolate, including high levels of fiber, vitamins, and powerful antioxidants. In addition, there have been many studies showing potential benefits to heart and brain health attributed to the compounds found in cacao. It is important to keep in mind that consumption should be moderate, as Chocolate is high in calories and even dark chocolate contains some sugar and fat.
Pete Kuzmich is the Operations Manager at Right at Home, In Home Care and Assistance, in Reno, NV, and can be reached at (775) 826 7999 or by email at pete@rightathomereno.com
