"If you eat a small portion of dark chocolate
each day, you reduce your risk of getting a heart attack or stroke," say
US scientists in a study in the Journal of the American College ofNutrition. [I will add that dark means very dark, like baker's chocolate, or the highest percentage of cocoa you can get. This is also helpful for those of us who are lactose intolerant, as there is less milk in the chocolate].
-->
The researchers found that dark chocolate is
high in flavonoids. Flavonoids come from plants and are found in pure
chocolate such as in cocoa or dark chocolate (baker's chocolate).
Flavonoids improve the function of blood vessels and prevent the build
up of plaque on artery walls, part of the circulatory system. It was pointed out that commercial
chocolate sold as milk chocolate has very little, if any, pure cacao
present in the commercial product. Choose wisely when you purchase."
Another article prepared by the Donsbach
Foundation states that "we find that chocolate has twice the
antioxidants of green tea, is a natural anti-stress drink (if you drink
your chocolate in hot cocoa form) and is an effective cough syrup. The
article suggests using "pure cocoa without sugar, mix with hot milk or
hot water, add two tablespoons of honey" to make one of the best cough
suppressants available.
More About CHOCOLATE
A study some years back at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine was
focused on blood platelets and blood clots. The study participants, some
of whom were fond of eating chocolate, were given a list of foods to
avoid - the list included chocolate. It seems that some of them ended up
indulging their cravings for chocolate during the study. Amazingly,
their indulgence led to researchers to an important discovery which is
believed to be the first of its kind.
Through
biochemical analysis, the researchers are now able to explain why just a
few squares of chocolate a day can reduce the risk of heart attack
death in some men and women by almost 50%. It turns out that the
chocolate decreases the tendency of platelets to clot in narrow blood
vessels. "What these chocolate 'offenders' taught us is that the
chemical in cocoa beans has a biochemical effect similar to aspirin in
reducing platelet clumping, which can be fatal if a clot forms and
blocks a blood vessel, causing a heart attack," says Diane Becker,
M.P.H., Sc.D., a professor at The Johns Hopkins University School of
Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health. Becker cautions that her
work is not intended as a prescription to gobble up large amounts of
chocolate candy, which often contains diet-busting amounts of sugar,
butter and cream. But as little as 2 tablespoons a day of dark chocolate
- the purest form of the candy, made from the dried extract of roasted
cocoa beans - may be just what the doctor ordered.
-->
Image Credit: PublicDomainPictures and TAugustine on Pixabay
Updated 10/31/18
No comments:
Post a Comment