The next time you eat a piece of chocolate, you may not have to feel so guilty about it. Despite its bad reputation for causing weight gain, a number of health benefits in the amount we consume may be associated with this delicious delicacy.
Quantity? Excess? The bad reputation of chocolate
Chocolate gets a lot of bad press because of its high fat and sugar content. Its consumption has been associated with acne, obesity, high blood pressure. As well as coronary artery disease and diabetes.
However, according to a review on the health effects of chocolate published in the Netherlands Journal of Medicine, it MIGHT NOT be so bad after all.
The authors point to the discovery that cocoa, the key ingredient in chocolate, contains biologically active phenolic compounds.
This has changed people’s minds about chocolate and has spurred research on how it might affect aging and conditions like oxidative stress, blood pressure regulation, and atherosclerosis.
benefits of chocolate
Chocolate’s antioxidant potential may have a variety of health benefits. The higher the cocoa content, like in dark chocolate, the more benefits there are. Dark chocolate may also contain less fat and sugar, but it’s important to check the label.
Eating chocolate can have the following benefits:
- lower cholesterol levels
- Prevent cognitive decline
- Reduce the risk of cardiovascular problems
Furthermore, chocolate bars do not contain only cocoa. The benefits and risks of any other ingredients, such as sugar and fat, should be considered.
What is the amount of chocolate that can be consumed per day?
According to María del Carmen Iñarritu Pérez, professor at the Department of Public Health of the Faculty of Medicine (FM) of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), the basic ingredient of chocolate is cocoa, which represents multiple benefits in the body and in the mood of those who consume it.
The UNAM researcher pointed out that bitter and semi-bitter chocolate that contain a greater amount of cocoa, between 70 and 80 percent, provide more benefits to both physical and emotional health and therefore is the one that is most recommended to consume.
Cocoa is packed with numerous antioxidants, actually more than green tea or red wine.
In this sense, commercial chocolate bars, from large chains, are not the best for health, since they generally only have between 20 and 25 percent cocoa, so their benefits are lower and the amount of calories for sugar and milk are higher.
When we talk about dark chocolate, we generally refer to the one that has more than 70% cocoa in the mixture and milk chocolate is the one that has approximately 45% cocoa and the rest sugar. That is why we say that milk chocolate is not a healthy product.
That said, the amount recommended by the expert, for the well-being of health, is 10 grams of dark or semi-sweet chocolate daily, containing at least 70 percent cocoa, otherwise it will only end up harming the body with a excess fat and calories.
Related Notes:
Heart problems after COVID-19: 7 warning signs to watch out for
Chronic insomnia? Here are 5 methods to fall asleep quickly
Animal study suggests that Omicron boosters do NOT provide a benefit