If you like chocolate, good news. Moderate chocolate consumption is a good thing. Chocolate is especially good if you eat the dark kind.
Antioxidant benefits: A number of studies show that dark chocolate with a high cocoa content packs a great antioxidant punch. Cocoa powder and chocolate are derived from beans that contain high levels of flavonoids, which are natural antioxidants. Cocoa itself has the highest content of an antioxidant called procyanidin. These antioxidants are believed to help fight cancer, stroke, and heart disease.
Research has shown that chocolate's antioxidant effects can also be good for your heart. In one study, people who ate dark chocolate with a high concentration of cocoa powder reported lower levels of negative LDL cholesterol, higher levels of good HDL cholesterol, and higher blood antioxidant levels.
Blood pressure benefits: Cocoa may also reduce blood clotting, similar to the effects of aspirin, and stabilize arterial plaque, which makes plaque less likely to travel through the bloodstream and cause a heart attack or stroke. But unlike aspirin, researchers believe that procyanidins can also increase production of nitric oxide, keeping arteries flexible and improving blood flow.
GREGORY CHANDLER, Attorney at Law
