Health Benefits of Organic, Raw Chocolate: Health Supportive Nutrition

Health Benefits of Organic, Raw Chocolate

 

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The below provides a general overview on this topic and may not apply to everyone. Any treatment protocol should be discussed with a qualified healthcare practitioner ... Please refer to: Medical & Legal Disclaimer.

 

Chocolate is healthy superfood that is bursting with antioxidants. Additionally, it benefits your heart, helps increase alertness and improves mood - all with very little caffeine. However, to reap the health benefits, you have to choose the right chocolate: chocolate that is pure, 100% organically grown, and minimally processed

 

Rich in Nutrients

In its natural state chocolate is bursting with antioxidants to fight radicals - even more than fruit, vegetables, tea or wine!

Chocolate supplies micronutrients, such as potassium, zinc, magnesium and iron, and is one of the richest food source of antioxidants that neutralize free radicals--rogue oxygen molecules that can accelerate aging and cause numerous health problems.


Food Remedies

Dark Chocolate Lowers Blood Pressure

Chocolate aids in relaxation of blood vessels so your blood easily travels where it needs to.

According to Dr. Dirk Taubert, MD, Ph.D, and his colleagues at the University of Cologne, Germany, dark chocolate -- not white chocolate -- can lower high blood pressure. Taubert's study involved six men and seven women aged 55-64 who had been diagnosed with mild high blood pressure -- on average, systolic blood pressure (the top number) of 153 and diastolic blood pressure (the bottom number) of 84. Every day for two weeks, they ate a 100-gram candy bar and were asked to balance its 480 calories by not eating other foods similar in nutrients and calories. Half the patients got dark chocolate and half got white chocolate. Those who ate dark chocolate had a significant drop in blood pressure (by an average of 5 points for systolic and an average of 2 points for diastolic blood pressure). Those who ate white chocolate did not.

 

Heart Protection:

Another study compared how blood platelets responded to a flavonol-rich cocoa drink with 25 grams of semi-sweet chocolate pieces and a blood-thinning, 81-milligram aspirin dose. The research found similar reactions to the two from a group of 20- to 40-year-olds: both the drink and the aspirin prevented platelets from sticking together or clotting, which can impede blood flow. In conclusion, flavonol-rich cocoa and chocolate act similarly to low-dose aspirin in promoting healthy blood flow. Reducing the blood's ability to clot also reduces the risk of stroke and heart attacks.

Lead study author Dr. Carl Keen cautioned that his team isn't suggesting that people eat a couple of candy bars instead of taking their daily dose of aspirin. "We're not advocating that people consume flavonol-rich foods in place of aspirin," stressed Keen, who is also the University of California-Davis nutrition department chairman. For people who cannot take aspirin, however, he said eating flavonol-rich foods "may be a useful approach."

  • Ref. Rein D, Paglieroni TG, Wun T, Pearson DA, Schmitz HH, Gosselin R, and Keen CL. Cocoa inhibits platelet activation and function Am J Clin Nutr 2000;72:30-5.

Chocolate also weakens heart attacks. A new study showed that regular chocolate eaters who had heart disease were less likely to die following a heart attack compared with the people who didn't regularly consume chocolate.

 

Increases Brain Power

Research suggests that the flavonols in dark chocolate increase cerebral blood flow, which may trigger the creation of new blood vessels and brain cells. A recent study showed that older adults performed better on cognitive tests after eating small portions of the sweet stuff.

 

Saves Your Teeth!

Chocolate has a cavity-fighting compound. Rresearch showed that a compound in chocolate -- theobromine -- may be just as good as fluoride at hardening tooth enamel. However, most commercially prepared chocolate has lots of sugar in it, which is associated with tooth decay.

 

Antioxidants in Dark Chocolate

Cornell University food scientists found that cocoa has nearly twice the antioxidants of red wine and up to three times those found in green tea.  Antioxidants are substances that inhibit oxidation or reactions promoted by oxygen and peroxides, and that include many held to protect the living body from the deleterious effects of free radicals. Examples include beta-carotene, vitamin C, and alpha-tocopherol. A 40-gram serving of milk chocolate contains about 400 milligrams of antioxidants, the same as a glass of red wine, according to research published by Joe A. Vinson of the University of Scranton, Pa.

  • Ref.: Vinson JA, Proch J, Zubik L. Phenol antioxidant quantity and quality in foods: cocoa, dark chocolate, and milk chocolate J Agric Food Chem. 1999 Dec;47(12):4821-4.

Dark chocolate has more than 13,000 ORAC units and milk chocolate has about 6,700, according to the Chocolate Manufacturers Association in McLean, Va. Unsweetened powdered cocoa starts out with almost twice as much antioxidants as dark chocolate, but when it's diluted with water or milk and sugar to make hot chocolate, the flavonoid total per serving plummets to about half that in milk chocolate.

  • Ref.: Miraglio A, Chocolate’s Potential for Health Benefits Nutrition Notes May 2001

Serafini's study: Serafini's included seven healthy women and five healthy men aged 25-35. On different days they each ate 100 grams of dark chocolate by itself, 100 grams of dark chocolate with a small glass of whole milk, or 200 grams of milk chocolate. An hour later, those who ate dark chocolate alone had the most total antioxidants in their blood; and they had higher levels of epicatechin, a particularly healthy compound found in chocolate. The milk chocolate eaters had the lowest epicatechin levels of all.

Longevity: Fesearchers from the Harvard School of Public Health found that those who eat chocolate and sweets up to three times each month live almost a year longer than those who eat too much or those who steer clear of junk altogether.

  • Ref. Lee IM, Paffenbarger R Life is sweet: candy consumption and longevity BMJ 1998; 317: 1683-1684.

 

Important Information on Chocolate:

    • Dark chocolate is higher in flavonoids than milk chocolate. The way that cocoa powder and chocolate syrups are manufactured removes most flavonoids. Raw, organic cocoa and chocolate only offer the health benefits listed above.
     
    • Choose rich, 100% organic chocolate and cocoa. 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. Therefore, choose dark chocolate and enjoy it in moderation.
     
    • Chocolate Recipe Substitution: When a recipe calls for chocolate, use dark chocolate (usually less sugar) or even better cocoa powder. To substitute 1 oz of unsweetened chocolate, use 3 Tbsp of dry cocoa + 2 Tbsp of sugar + 1 Tbsp of vegetable oil.

 

The Downside:

 
  • Chocolate is toxic to your pets! Chocolate and caffeine are not metabolized by birds the same way they are in humans. Chocolate contains high levels of theobromine, a chemical that makes chocolate bars harmful to pets. Although baker's chocolate and dark chocolate are the most toxic. Most chocolate bars contain less real chocolate / cocoa, but the other ingredients that are commonly found in chocolate / candy bars are not good for your pet. The general rule is that the more raw chocolate a candy bar contains, the more toxic it is for your pets.
    • Lead Toxicity: Cocoa and chocolate products have some of the highest levels of lead found in any food item. However, the low lead concentration in cocoa beans compared with those of manufactured cocoa and chocolate products indicates that most lead contamination in those products occurs after the beans are harvested and dried, during the shipping of those beans and/or the manufacturing of cocoa and chocolate products.
     

    • Dr. Brostoff blamed the "exorphins" (external morphine-like substances) in chocolate for "gut problems" and even "psychological sequelae."

      • Ref.: Brostoff J., Second World Congress on CFS and Related Disorders held in Brussels, Belgium, Allergy in CFS September 1999. "
     
    • Chocolate can trigger migraine attacks.
     
    • Too much chocolate will cause weight gain!

 

 

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Information contained on this website is provided as general reference only. For application to specific circumstances, professional advice should be sought.

GreenAndHealthy.Info strives to maintain accurate and up-to-date information; however, mistakes do happen. If you would like to correct or update any of the information, please send us an e-mail. THANK YOU!