Let’s face it, almost everyone loves chocolate, I not making an exception! However, not so many people love dark chocolate, which unfortunately is the healthier
one out of the two kinds. The reason is simple: there is more cocoa in dark chocolate
than milk chocolate. It is the cocoa that gives chocolate all its healthful
goodness (and its bitter taste).
In addition to body protecting antioxidants, the health
benefits of dark chocolate include improving cardiovascular health especially
by lowering blood pressure. This is so even when the fat in dark chocolate is mostly
saturated. To my surprise, the saturated fat in cocoa, being a plant-based fat,
changes into a monounsaturated fat in the liver and therefore is not bad for
the body.
Dark chocolate also helps body cells better control blood
sugar and surprisingly, dark chocolate has a low glycemic index that doesn’t
create a spike in blood sugar levels the same way sugar normally does. Dark
chocolate also contains plenty of minerals, such as copper, potassium and
magnesium that are essential to the body’s functions. And yes, dark chocolate
does contain substances that make you feel good and happy!
At first, I wasn’t a big fan of dark chocolate. I thought
“what’s the use of having chocolate (and eating the calories) if it is not good
enough”. Well, now that I have tried it many, many times, I have started loving
dark chocolate as much as milk chocolate. There are many delicious kinds out
there, my favorite being one that has mint flavor in it. Experiment!
Therefore, go ahead, have some chocolate, even every day!
The higher the cocoa percentage, the better. Just remember that dark chocolate
is not a low-calorie food…
Nutritional facts per 40 gram serving of chocolate
containing 60-69% cocoa solids: 21 g carbs, 2.5 g protein, 15.3 g fat, 3.2 g
fiber, 232 kcal
Love and health,
Anna-Kaisa
Sources: AllChocolate, Chocolate and Health: http://www.allchocolate.com/health/basics/
Fat in cocoa: Yale-New Haven Hospital “Chocolate: Food of
the Gods” : http://www.ynhh.org/about-us/chocolate.aspx
Nutritional info: National Agricultural Library, National
Nutrient Database: http://ndb.nal.usda.gov/ndb/foods/list
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