Dark Chocolate Health and Weight Loss Benefits Revealed - Read it and Weep!

I know I'm not the only chocoholic out there who clings desperately to the idea that dark chocolate supports good health. Gotta love it when the media hands you a (hopefully) bonafide justification for your favorite weakness. Does this sound at all familiar?

'Junk food?'
'
Me?'

'Never eat the stuff. Just some dark chocolate now and then'

'Well, okay, I eat it every day. But it's full of antioxidants! It's good for you!'

Truth time. Is it even possible that something THIS good (Lindt soft centres, anyone?), can be healthy? Let's investigate ...

Warning: if you use the same excuse that I do when it comes to daily chocolate consumption, now might be a good time to play one of the three wise monkeys ......

THE CASE FOR DARK CHOCOLATE

o A 2005-2006 German study from the University of Cologne showed that eating a small amount of dark chocolate each day caused a 10% (on average) reduction in blood pressure. Participants who ate white chocolate did not have a change in blood pressure.

o The same study also indicated that dark chocolate consumption increased insulin sensitivity. Poor sensitivity to insulin can lead to weight gain and eventually diabetes.

o Eating dark chocolate (actually, any chocolate) stimulates endorphin production. Endorphins are also released when you have sex, hence the sensual/pleasure associations often used in marketing chocolate

o Chocolate contains serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant. Again, this goes for all chocolate, but due to dark chocolate's higher cocoa content, the effects may be increased.

o Fat in chocolate is 1/3 Oleic acid and 1/3 Stearic Acid. Oleic Acid is a healthy monounsaturated fat which is also found in olive oil, and Stearic Acid, while saturated, has been shown to have a neutral effect on cholesterol. Yay!

o The cocoa bean plant has been shown to have health benefits similar to that of eating dark vegetables. This is due to flavonoids, which act as antioxidants to balance hormones, relax blood pressure, kill free radicals and prevent against aging. Dark chocolate actually contains around 8 times the number of antioxidants found in strawberries. An Italian Study for the National Institute for Food and Nutrition Research in Rome reported on these and other benefits of eating dark but not milk chocolate after force-feeding (yeah right!) participants ate different combinations of dark and milk chocolate over a period of days.

THE CASE AGAINST EATING CHOCOLATE
(Insert mental image of Kat weeping)

o Those of you who are quick off the mark will have noticed that I only mentioned 2/3 of the fats found in chocolate. The missing 1/3 is Palmitic Acid - a saturated fat which raises cholesterol and increases heart disease risk. And yes, it's even found in the best quality dark chocolate.

o As for those reassuring studies, don't be too easily convinced of their value. The Italian study was performed with only 12 participants ... and was partially funded by a chocolate manufacturer, while the German study (showing lowered blood pressure) had only 13 participants .. all of whom were over 55 years of age. Not exactly a true average of the chocolate-eating population!

o Not only this, but the average drop in blood pressure was only around 10%, and when it comes to antioxidant content, some experts believe that the cooking process kills the antioxidants - even in the darkest of dark chocolates! If this is true, then only raw dark chocolate would be good for you, and indeed has been shown to be quite the superfood, if somewhat hard to come by.

o Chocolate is still extremely high in calories. Long story-short (even though I'm not a true calorie-counter in my nutritional beliefs) - eating too much of any energy-dense food such as chocolate could result in weight gain. And probably will. Particularly if you eat it as an addition to your meals. And I'm guessing (hoping) you don't generally eat chocolate in place of a meal! Eating 100 grams of dark chocolate daily has been shown to add up to around a pound of added weight per week.

SUMMING UP

Dr. Jeffrey Mechanick, the director of the Metabolic Support Service at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, sums up all the evidence with a fairly straight-shooting comment. "I would never tell a heart patient or a diabetic to eat more dark chocolate," he says.

As far as everyday health goes - it's still not such a convincing case, is it? And a little surprising to learn how small the two primary pro-chocolate studies are, given that practically every week a new article or release on the magical benefits of dark chocolate comes out.

I guess it's not that shocking - who wouldn't want to believe that they can get away with a daily indulgence! In this case I think I'll deliberately cover my eyes and ears - while I go ahead and pop that Bittersweet Dark Orange sliver into my mouth. Hey, at least it's organic, right? So maybe it's good for me after all? Hmm ... that's enough research for today!
Remember: Life is Now: Press Play
Kat

Kat Eden
Personal Trainer; Holistic Health Practitioner; BioSignature Modulation Practitioner Melbourne, Australia
Visit my blog: http://bodyincredible.com

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