Health Benefits of Chocolate

http://www.karenrothnutrition.com Happy Valentines Day everyone. And welcome to Food For Thought Thursday. This day means many things to different people but for most of us, I bet it is the one day we can indulge in chocolate and not feel guilty......or maybe not.

Todays topic is going to cover the health benefits of chocolate and how to choose the healthiest version of chocolate.

But first why is it that so many people consider themselves chocoholics? We have in our brain what are called neurotransmitters and these act like messengers zipping around the brain telling the body what to do. They influence our moods, affect our energy levels and sleep patterns and can even influence how we think. When we eat chocolate it activates certain brain chemicals which can trigger emotions like euphoria. This is why some people just love chocolate, for the emotional spark.

Theres been much in the news about the health benefits of chocolate. But there is definitely a huge difference between the commercial chocolate that you see on the shelves while youre waiting in the check out line at the grocery store and the Healthy organic dark chocolates available to us. The familiar processed chocolate bars have virtually no health benefit because they have added refined sugar and fat. Many contain dry powdered milk, by which the processing of it damages the cholesterol making it harmful to the arteries. These additives cancel out the beneficial antioxidants.

But organic dark chocolate has antioxidant properties, which can actually help to protect the body from cellular degeneration. The polyphenols found in dark chocolate may help to lower blood pressure. The flavanoids prevent the excessive clumping of blood platelets that can cause blood clots and protects the lining of our arteries. So over all its beneficial to heart health. So appropriate for Valentines day dont you think?

Remember that the higher the cocoa content the healthier it is. Rule of thumb, the more bitter the chocolate the healthier it is. When choosing dark chocolate, look for 70% cocoa content or higher.

And if your curious about white chocolate, well all the beneficial antioxidants have been removed so you there are no health benefits from eating white chocolate.

One last note, even dark chocolate with a high cocoa content contains sugar and sugar can suppress the immune system up to 6 hours after consumption. So if you are struggling with a cold or flu or any ill health condition, just be aware that reaching for any food containing sugar, even if its comfort food, can slow down the time it takes you to get well.

Have a happy and healthy Valentines Day.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Chocolate
• valentines day
• holistic nutrition
• healthy cooking
• Karen Roth
• nutrition
• nutritionist

[NutritionalChoice]

Thank you for the positive feedback!

[Mu5clehead]

i bought alkalized cocoa powder

is that good?

[NutritionalChoice]

@Mu5clehead It doesn't have as many of the health benefits no.

[yerbalist]

How sugar can suppress the immune system? What's the mechanism?

[NutritionalChoice]

@yerbalist Cosuming 100 grams (8 tbsp.) of sugar, the equivalent of about two cans of soda, can reduce the ability of white blood cells to kill germs by forty percent.

[gutijunior]

@Mu5clehead

its bad if you eat it in high levels , the key is the amount you intake

[Gabbalicious26]

Thank you so much for this information!

I am a bit of a chocolate addict myself. I've always wanted to stay healthy, yet be able to keep eating chocolate. I realize that dark chocolate is a great option for this! I always try to convince my friends of the health benefits of chocolate but not many believe me :( so it's great to have this solid info! Thank you SO much! :D

[yerbalist]

@NutritionalChoice In vivo?

[Mu5clehead]

hey but raw chocolate has a lot of sat fats

doesnt that make chocolate bad?