cocoa compound increases brain's blood flow
 

Tests showed that people who drank flavanoid-rich cocoa beverage had ~10-15% increase in blood flow to the brain. those who drank cocoa without flavonoids had no significant increase in brain blood flow. Cocoa that retains its flavonoids is quite bitter, so they are often removed in mass produced cocoa.
Tests were reported by Norman Hollenberg of harvard Med school, et. al. studying the Kuna Indians on the San Blas Islands off Panama (these are the artisans who make "molas" for those of you who are interested in textile folk art). These people have a very low incidence of hypertension and heart attacks, stroke and vascular dementia. when they move from the islands , this protection is lost. the difference between the population who stayed and the people who left the island was their intake of cocoa. on the island, the people drank at least 2 cups /day. the mainlanders typically did not.
(Information from Science News, March 3, 2007, vol 171 p. 142--i am sure Hollenberg's report must appear somewhere, though have not accessed it)

thank you dear olsen -the article from science news
 

I eat organic chocolate - my favorite brand is a great big bar called-
CHOCOLOVE -yum! :D
they have two kinds I love strong dark chocolate plain / or with orange ...
http://www.chocolove.com/10greatbars.htm
love.
tena

Compounds In Special Cocoa May Enhance Brain Blood Flow And Improve Cognitive Health
22 Feb 2007

A special cocoa made to retain naturally occurring compounds called flavanols may have the potential to help maintain healthy brain function and chart the course for future research that could lead to new solutions for preventing cognitive decline and dementia, according to a panel of scientists who presented new data at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Several studies suggest that consumption of a special cocoa made to be rich in flavanols, a naturally occurring nutrient abundant in fresh cocoa, may improve blood vessel function. Now, scientists believe the potential blood flow benefits associated with consumption of this flavanol-rich cocoa may extend to the brain -- which could have important implications for learning and memory.

"This research is impressive in that multiple laboratories are coming to the same conclusion about this flavanol-rich cocoa, and the findings give us completely new insights into how this flavanol-rich cocoa may impact health in a variety of ways not previously known," said symposium organizer Harold H. Schmitz, Ph.D., chief science officer at Mars, Incorporated, which helped sponsor the symposium and has supported research on cocoa flavanols for more than 15 years. "The findings raise the possibility that products utilizing this cocoa could be developed to help maintain healthy brain function throughout several life stages. More research examining the potential of this cocoa in this important area of public health need is clearly warranted."

During the session entitled "The Neurobiology of Chocolate: A Mind-Altering Experience?," a panel of scientists presented evidence from several recent studies that demonstrated the enhanced brain blood flow after study participants consumed a specially formulated flavanol-rich cocoa beverage that was supplied by Mars, Incorporated. One study, conducted by Ian A. Macdonald, PhD, from the University of Nottingham Medical School in the United Kingdom, found that the consumption of this cocoa resulted in regional changes in blood flow in study participants, suggesting that cocoa flavanols may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of vascular impairments within the brain itself.

"Our study showed that acute consumption of this particular flavanol-rich cocoa beverage was associated with increased blood flow to grey matter for 2 to 3 hours," Macdonald said. "This raises the possibility that certain food components like cocoa flavanols may be beneficial in increasing brain blood flow and enhancing brain function among older adults or for others in situations where they may be cognitively impaired, such as fatigue or sleep deprivation."

Norman K. Hollenberg, MD, PhD, of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, presented new findings based on his ongoing work with the Kuna Indians of Panama, who are heavy consumers of cocoa. The indigenous population still living on the Islands near Panama consume a type of cocoa rich in flavanols on a daily basis and experience unusually low rates of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Hollenberg's latest findings, which are published this month in the International Journal of Medical Sciences, used death certificates to compare cause-specific deaths of island-dwelling Kuna to those who live on mainland Panama -- who do not drink the flavanol-rich cocoa that is so prominent on the islands.

Hollenberg and colleagues found the Kuna Indians living on the islands had significantly lower rates of heart disease and cancer compared to those on the mainland. The relative risk of death from heart disease on the Panama mainland was 1,280 percent higher than on the islands and death from cancer was 630 percent higher. In his AAAS presentation, Hollenberg suggested that the same mechanism resulting in improved blood vessel function that he and others have observed following consumption of Mars' special cocoa could also be responsible for the enhanced brain blood flow he and Professor Macdonald have independently reported in previously published research. Specifically, Hollenberg and others have observed that these improvements in blood vessel function following flavanol rich cocoa consumption are paralleled by an increase in the circulating pool of nitric oxide, a critical molecule in the circulatory system that helps dilate blood vessels and keeps them pliable.

Hollenberg fed flavanol-rich cocoa to healthy volunteers who were over age 50 and observed a "striking blood flow response" that evolved over several weeks. "Since this cocoa preparation is so well tolerated, it raises hope that the brain blood flow response it stimulates can result in maintenance of healthy brain function and cognition, which is an issue that unfortunately plagues many older adults today," Hollenberg said. This advancement in science related to brain health is especially exciting at a time when the nation's 78 million baby boomers are aging. The need to impact cognitive function and brain health will only continue to grow with this aging population.

###

Additional panel members included Henriette Van Praag, PhD, of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, California, and Hagen Schroeter, PhD, of Mars, Incorporated.

Advancements in Cocoa Science Mars, Incorporated is leading the exploration of the full nutritional and medical potential of cocoa's naturally occurring flavanols. For more than 15 years, the Mars commitment to research is evidenced by more than 100 peer-reviewed research publications on cocoa and more than 30 patents held by Mars scientists.

To help maximize the amount of cocoa flavanols in chocolate, scientists at Mars, Incorporated developed a patented process called Cocoapro® that helps retain consistent levels of cocoa flavanols that occur naturally in cocoa beans. Mars products that are made with the Cocoapro process include Dove® Dark Chocolate and CocoaVia® snacks. Cocoapro cocoa is the most studied cocoa in the world in terms of health impact.

For more information on the many research studies on cocoa flavanols, visit http://www.cocoapro.com/.

Mars, Incorporated is one of the world's top producers of chocolate, and has a strong commitment to health research. With well over 15 years of research into the potential health benefits of cocoa flavanols, and decades of research invested into improving the cocoa plant and farming techniques, Mars, Incorporated has become the global leader in cocoa science. Mars uses patented and proprietary methods of processing cocoa beans to retain much of the naturally occurring flavanols, marking these products with the Cocoapro® seal, a hand holding a cocoa bean to signify the careful handling.

1) Bayard V, Chamorro F, Motta J, Hollenberg NK. Does flavanol intake influence mortality from nitric oxide-dependent processes? Ischemic heart disease, stroke, diabetes mellitus, and cancer in Panama. International Journal of Medical Sciences. 2007;4:53-58.

Contact: Lori Fromm
Weber Shandwick Worldwide
Article URL: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medi...p?newsid=63409




Send your press releases to pressrelease@medicalnewstoday.com

I'm sorry to say that I am starting to suspect chocolate as one of the causes that triggers my spontaneous choreic movements. I'm not sure, but it's been happening more and more and whereas before chocolate used to do me good and make my Sinemet dose last longer, it now seems to be disruptive.
What are your experiences with chocolate, everybody?

Chocolate
 

Hi:

I used to live in Panama and spent time in the San Blas Islands with the Kuna Indians. I don't remember drinking cocoa with them but I do remember drinking it with the Guaymy Indians. They lived in the mountains of western Panama and treated cocoa as a ceremonial drink. We were camped out and every evening they would prepare hot cocoa. Best hot chocolate I ever tasted. So happy to hear that it has a beneficial effect.

All the best,


Lloyd

Wow, Lloyd, hot cocoa with the Kuna indians sounds so exotic. I love molas. I like chicken mole, made with cocoa. Did the Kuna make dishes like that?

Thanks for posting info about this, Olsen and TenaLouise. Do you know where one can buy the stuff?

And so nice to see you Teresa. You've been missed!

mole
 

Hi ZucchiniFlower

Never had Mole in Panama but had it in West Texas. The Kuna didn't like to have outsiders camped out on the islands where they lived so they gave us an uninhabited island where we set up camp. Every day we would take Indian dugouts to explore the mainland. I got Malaria twice while living the jungles of Panama (14 months). I have akways wondered if the malaria contributed to my PD.

All the best,

Lloyd

Lloyd, it sounds pretty rustic, to say the least. Were you there to explore a new culture?

More details: (Epicatechin is also in green tea.)

Cocoa ingredient 'rivals penicillin'



The health benefits of one ingredient of cocoa are so striking that it "may rival penicillin and anaesthesia in terms of importance to public health". Roger Highfield reports

The ingredient - epicatechin - can reduce the risk from diseases such as stroke and heart failure, Norman Hollenberg, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, told the journal Chemistry & Industry.

Prof Hollenberg has spent years studying the benefits of cocoa drinking on the Kuna people on the San Blas islands off the coast of Panama. They drink up to 40 cups of cocoa a week. Among the Kuna, he found that the risk of stroke, heart failure, cancer and diabetes was reduced to less than 10 per cent.


"Epicatechin could potentially get rid of four of the five most common diseases in the western world," Prof Hollenberg told the journal.

The cocoa that the Kuna drink is homemade and very rich in chemicals called -flavanols, notably epicatechin, which is known to have cardio-vascular benefits.

Flavanols are removed from commercial cocoas because they tend to have a bitter taste.

**************

Epicatechin

Cranberry juice is a time-honored remedy for treating urinary tract infections. Early theories assumed that the juice’s effectiveness was due to its high acid content. Recent clinical studies, however, indicate that trimers (three-molecule aggregates) of epicatechin in the juice act to inhibit the adhesion of bacteria to the cells that line the urinary tract.

**********

"Pure epicatechin consumed by humans had much the same effect as did consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa."

http://www.chocolate.org/health/epicatechin.html


More info on Mars new chocolate:

http://www.sciencenews.org/articles/20060225/food.asp

Panama
 

ZucchiniFlower

I was in Panama many years ago before tourists flooded the place. In the Kuna territory I was part of a support group that was looking for possible routes for the PanAmerican Highway. In the Guaymy region we were exploring for minerals and metals.

All the best,

Lloyd

Medical News Today
Studies Highlight Cocoa's Remarkable Health Properties
12 Mar 2007

Two recent studies suggest compounds in natural cocoa have significant health-giving properties.

One study by Prof Norman K. Hollenberg from Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, US was published in the International Journal of Medical Sciences.

Hollenberg spent years studying the effects of cocoa-drinking on the Kuna people in Panama. He suggests that epicatechin, a flavanol found in high levels in natural cocoa, should be classed as a vitamin and is as important as penicillin and anaesthesia in terms of its potential to impact public health.

Although only an observational study, Hollenberg's results from his work with the Kuna has been described as "so impressive" by Daniel Fabricant, a nutrition expert, that it "may even warrant a rethink of how vitamins are defined".

Hollenberg and colleagues used death certificates from 2000 to 2004 to look at causes of death between the Kuna who live on the San Blas islands and those on mainland Panama. The Kuna on the mainland do not drink the flavanol-rich cocoa.

They found that the risk of 4 of the 5 most common killer diseases: cancer, diabetes, stroke and heart failure, is reduced to less than 10% in the island-based Kuna people, who drink up to 40 cups of epicatechin-rich cocoa a week.

Fabricant is vice president for scientific affairs at the Natural Products Association. He suggests that: "the link between high epicatechin consumption and a decreased risk of killer disease is so striking, it should be investigated further. It may be that these diseases are the result of epicatechin deficiency."

The other study, sponsored by Mars Incorporated and conducted in Germany, was published in the Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology. It suggests that drinking cocoa rich in flavanols can reverse impairment in the functioning of blood vessels, such as that caused by atherosclerosis.

In this study the participants were male smokers - a group known to have problems with blood vessel function. The participants were given cocoa drinks made with different levels of flavanol: from 28 to 918 milligrams.

In each case, the optimal effect in the blood flow happened after two hours.

179 milligram of flavanols gave a 50 per cent improvement in blood vessel performance, which carried on increasing in proportion to flavanol increase.

The improvement in blood vessel function for the highest level of flavanol, 918 mg, was so great that it was equal to that found in a person with no known cardiovascular risk factors.

They followed this up with a seven day sustained trial, where participants were given three drinks a day, totalling 918 mg, and monitored their blood vessel performance at intervals over the day, and then for a week after they stopped taking the drink.

The researchers said that the blood vessel benefits from consuming the flavanol-rich cocoa for a week was comparable to "long-term drug therapy with statins".

While the improved performance was sustained while they continued to drink the cocoa, after a week of not drinking it, the blood vessel performance returned to their previous levels.

Commercial cocoa production removes flavanols like epicatechin because they taste bitter. They can also be destroyed by many conventional cocoa and chocolate processing methods. Tea, wine, chocolate and some fruit and vegetable also contain epicatechin.

According to a statement that accompanies an announcement of the second study, Mars has patented methods of processing cocoa beans to keep the naturally occurring flavanols in the cocoa and chocolate.

The statement emphasizes that consumers should be aware that "contrary to repeated reports, the percent cacao or cocoa does not indicate cocoa flavanol content. Only careful handling of the cocoa can help to retain cocoa flavanol content."

Nutrionists advise members of the public not to take this news as a reason to increase their consumption of chocolate and cocoa.

"Does Flavanol Intake Influence Mortality from Nitric Oxide-Dependent Processes? Ischemic Heart Disease, Stroke, Diabetes Mellitus, and Cancer in Panama."
Vicente Bayard, Fermina Chamorro, Jorge Motta, Norman K. Hollenberg.
Int. J. Med. Sci. 2007, 4: 53-58.

http://www.medsci.org/v04p0053

"Sustained Increase in Flow-Mediated Dilation After Daily Intake of High-Flavanol Cocoa Drink Over 1 Week. "
Heiss, Christian; Finis, David; Kleinbongard, Petra; Hoffmann, Arne; Rassaf, Tienush; Kelm, Malte; Sies, Helmut.
Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology. 49(2):74-80, February 2007.

http://www.cardiovascularpharm.com/p...856145!8091!-1


Click here for more information on Chocolate and Health (Mars Inc).

http://www.cocoapro.com/index.jsp

Written by: Catharine Paddock
Writer: Medical News Today

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/heal...p?newsid=65046

My husband(PWP) loves black chocolate which is at least 73% cocoa solids and very bitter to my taste.He has had to give up eating it as it makes his tremor so bad.This add to a list of caffeinated beverages which have the same effect.

dark chocolate/ coffee
 

if you have sugar in these it will give you a dip in the
blood sugar levels...
I battle hypoglycemia and PD, and you can tremor because of too high or too low blood sugar!
finding a balance is hard but not impossible,
it is only impossible if you think it is! :eek:

Thanks
 

Thanks for that thought and I will observe but I am pretty sure it is the caffiene

cocoa
 

Zucchini, thanks for the article with extended info about the study.
to answer your question: Molas are different from the mole dishes of south america--they are fabric art with "reverse" applique--the base material has many many materials layered upon it and the stylized artisitic pattern (usually of animals-esp lizards) are cut out of each layer applied and the cut surface is sewn onto the bottom layer. i know this is a great explanation (NOT!) and wish I knew how to send pictures, I would include one here.
madelyn

aargh.
 

Wouldn't you know it. Here I was looking forward to eating relatively guiltless chocolate - and everything Cocoavia I can find contains peanuts. I am allergic to peanuts. So many people are allergic to peanute, you'd think they would have thought of that. I'm very disappointed.

birte

the truth about choclate is often bittersweet! *smile
 

Critical Care Nurse 2007 Feb; 27(1): 11-15

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Articles by Alspach, G.

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PubMed Citation
Articles by Alspach, G.

Editorial

THE TRUTH IS OFTEN BITTERSWEET...: CHOCOLATE DOES A HEART GOOD

Our parents, grandparents, physicians, dentists, countless friends, total strangers, and, more recently, the ever vigilant food nazis (aka, Center for Science in the Public Interest) have long admonished us to avoid indulging in the sensual pleasures of chocolate.

The payoff for such abstinence, we are promised, is a diminished likelihood of developing maladies ranging from acne to obesity, tooth decay, atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, diabetes, hypertension, and all their evil and lethal sequelae. So life is full of trade-offs and those of us in nursing who have now and then traded Hershey for health have learned to live with such hypocrisy in our professional lives. How could we reasonably argue against logic that considers this substance, however luscious, is laden with sugar, calories, and fat?

As it turns out, evidence has been accumulating to suggest that such generalizations regarding the nutritional sinfulness of chocolate are neither adequate nor accurate. One of the recently identified virtues of chocolate, by contrast, is its lofty ranking as the third largest dietary source of antioxidants1—those chemicals beloved for their free radical-fighting properties that preserve cell membranes, protect DNA, prevent the oxidation of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol that leads to atherosclerosis, and prevent plaque formation within arterial walls.

Chocolate is derived from the cocoa bean, one of the most concentrated sources of flavanols, a subgroup of the natural antioxidant plant compounds called flavonoids, found in tea, red wine, tomatoes, and other foods believed to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Flavonoids, in turn, are a subgroup of compounds called polyphenols.

2. Cocoa beans are a potent source of polyphenols. The specific antioxidants in chocolate (ie, cocoa flavanols) include catechin and epicatechin, which are single flavanol molecules structurally similar to the antioxidants found in grapes and tea.3 According to the Cleveland Clinic’s Heart & Vascular Institute Guide,2 flavonoids are thought to


exert antioxidant protections against free radicals,

help reduce platelet activation,

contribute to vasodilation to improve blood flow, and

positively influence production of eicosanoids to foster their role in cardiovascular health.

In addition to supplying antioxidants, chocolate also has been found to improve endothelial function,4,5 demonstrate abundant antioxidant activity,3 and inhibit platelet activation (clumping) and function,6–9 all of which would afford a cardio-protective role to this former nutritional no-no.

Furthermore, the fat in chocolate comes from cocoa butter and consists of approximately equal amounts of oleic acid (a monounsaturated, heart-healthy fat) and stearic and plamitic acids (both saturated fats). Although saturated fats are ordinarily linked with a higher risk of heart disease, stearic acid has been found to have a more neutral effect on cholesterol, neither raising nor lowering LDL-cholesterol levels. Palmitic acid, on the other hand, does affect cholesterol levels but represents only one third of fat calories in chocolate.2 Other research indicates that much of the fat contained in chocolate exists primarily in the form of stearic triglycerides, which increase high-density lipoprotein (the "good cholesterol")10 and, rather than being retained as either sinful adipose or clogging cholesterol, readily is cleansed from our corporal souls via gastrointestinal excretion.3,10 In short, chocolate may not only not be bad for us; some forms of chocolate may actually be good for us.

As a journalist, I am bound to pursue the "who-knew-what" and "when-did-they-know-it" approach to data investigation; therefore, the following is a not-to-be-confused-with-all-inclusive yet thought-provoking synopsis of some of these findings.

Rich Source of Antioxidants

Chocolate is the third highest daily source of antioxidants for US consumers, preceded by coffee and tea.

Of the approximately 6000 antioxidants identified to date, about 4000 are categorized as polyphenols.

In both an in vitro animal model as well as an in vivo human study, epicatechin, a major polyphenol found in chocolate, inhibits plasma lipid oxidation because of its ability to bind to LDL. In an animal model of atherosclerosis, cocoa powder significantly inhibited atherosclerosis; lowered cholesterol, LDL, and triglycerides; raised high-density lipoprotein; and protected LDLs from oxidation.1

Lowers Blood Pressure

Buijsse and colleagues11 from the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment in the Netherlands examined cocoa’s relationship to cardiovascular health in 470 Dutch men aged 65 to 84 years. The men underwent physical examinations and were interviewed about their dietary intake when they enrolled in the study in 1985 and again at 5-year intervals. Over the next 15 years, men who consumed cocoa regularly had significantly lower blood pressure than those who did not. Over the course of the study, 314 men died, 152 due to cardiovascular diseases. Men in the group with the highest cocoa consumption were half as likely as the others to die from cardiovascular disease. Their risk remained lower even when considering other factors, such as weight, smoking habits, physical activity levels, calorie intake, and alcohol consumption.

Enhances Blood Flow

Evidence exists that consumption of flavanol-rich chocolate causes a rise in epicatechin antioxidant levels and in antioxidant activity and a fall in fat oxidation (a necessary step in the formation of plaque) in a dose-related manner. Processes that retard plaque formation within arterial walls favor smooth and efficient blood-flow.12

Harvard researchers found that healthy adults who consumed flavanol-rich cocoa beverage for 5 successive days had significantly greater acute and sustained increases in peripheral blood flow compared to those who consumed a flavanol-poor cocoa beverage.

After menopause, women experience increased risk for cardiovascular disease, which can be associated with endothelial dysfunction. A double-blind study5 of 32 postmenopausal hypercholesterolemic women, randomly assigned to consume a high- or low-flavanol cocoa beverage for 6 weeks was the first to identify beneficial vascular effects of flavanol-rich cocoa consumption in this population. In addition, the study results suggested that reductions in plasma soluble vascular cell adhesion markers after chronic consumption of a flavanol-rich cocoa may be linked to the improved vascular reactivity.

Facilitates Nitric Oxide Synthesis

Scientists in Germany14 compared the effects of consuming a high- versus low-flavanol cocoa beverage in adults known to have a single cardiac risk factor. Participants in the high-flavanol group demonstrated both significant increases in circulating nitric oxide levels as well as significant vasodilatation compared to those in the low-flavanol beverage group.

The same lead German researchers15 more recently reported results using the high- versus low-flavanol cocoa beverage technique with a sample of smokers, who consumed either the high- or low-flavanol cocoa in random order. Using the sample as its own controls, consumption of the flavanol-rich cocoa was associated with significant improvement in blood flow and significant increases in circulating nitric oxide, while neither change was observed when the same subjects ingested the low-flavanol cocoa.

The Department of Nutrition at University of California at Davis16 found that healthy men who ingested flavanol-rich cocoa demonstrated acute elevations of circulating nitric oxide, enhanced flow-mediated vasodilation in conduit arteries, and augmented microcirculation. Effects were thought to be mediated by the flavanol (-)-epicatechin.

Inhibits Platelet Activation

Researchers studied the effects of administering a flavanol-rich cocoa beverage alone and together with 81 mg ("baby") aspirin on platelet function. Ingestion of the beverage alone resulted in modest, aspirin-like effects on platelet function, while the combined effects of the beverage and aspirin were additive in nature, suggesting enhanced clot prevention afforded by cocoa flavanols.7

May Improve Cognitive Performance

As the body’s most metabolically active and oxygen-demanding organ, the brain is particularly susceptible to free radical damage, which has been implicated in cognitive decline and memory loss as people age and in Alzheimer’s disease. A recent study17 of young, healthy subjects using functional magnetic resonance imaging found that ingestion of a flavanol-rich cocoa was associated with increased blood flow to cerebral gray matter, suggesting that cocoa flavanols might play a role in treatment of cerebral impairment attributable to poor blood flow, including dementia and stroke.

May Reduce Overall Mortality

In a 15-year study conducted in Amsterdam with 470 elderly (65 to 84 years) men who were free of chronic diseases at baseline and 5 years later, the amount of cocoa intake was inversely related to both cardiovascular death as well as death from all causes. Of the 314 men who died during the course of the study, 152 deaths were attributed to heart disease. Those who consumed the highest amounts of cocoa, however, were half as likely to die from cardiovascular disease compared to those who consumed little or no cocoa and those who ingested the most cocoa were less likely to die from any cause. Although blood pressure is typically associated with risk of cardiovascular death, that was not the case in this study, however, where lower blood pressure did not account for the reduced cardiovascular mortality associated with cocoa intake.11 The study authors suggest that the lower mortality risk is mediated by other mechanisms, possibly by flavan-3-ols.

Some Necessary Qualifications

When discussing the potential health benefits of chocolate, it is essential to distinguish that these advantages are dose dependent, that the optimal "dose" of chocolate is unknown, that they do not apply to all types of chocolate, that they are not universally accepted, and that many have been identified through financial underwriting from cocoa and chocolate industry vendors and markets throughout the world.

Advantages Are Dose Dependent

Although some of the proposed benefits of chocolate consumption (eg, lowering blood pressure) are positive and linear, neither is limitless because processed cocoa products such as candy bars, cookies, and cakes are typically laden with substantial calorie loads, which can readily offset their antioxidant benefits. In addition, a number of steps aimed at reducing the rather pungent, bitter taste of cocoa products achieve this goal by reducing the amount of flavonoids contained in the product. The more processed the chocolate, the more flavonoids (and all of their related health benefits) are lost.2

Most Beneficial Dose Is Unknown

What constitutes the optimal serving of dark chocolate to reap its entire menu of cardiovascular benefits is not known. Until that amount is determined, the usual admonitions regarding moderation apply and are hedged in language appropriately vague—eg, "enjoy a small piece of dark chocolate once in awhile" and "enjoy chocolate in moderate portions a few times per week."2 When volunteers are needed to ingest one of those flavanol-rich cocoa beverages, however, I’d like to make public notice here of my availability for the experimental group.

Advantages Depend on Type

Many types of processed cocoa products, mainly chocolate, are available today: dark chocolate, which contains the highest concentration of cocoa; milk chocolate, with a lower concentration of cocoa; and white chocolate. On the basis of this broad distinction, the health benefits ascribed to chocolate relate nearly exclusively to the dark, bittersweet-tasting chocolate and to products with a cocoa content of 60% or more.

As a general rule, the darker the chocolate, the more likely it is to offer health benefits. Because polyphenols are found in the cocoa bean but not in milk, cream, sugar, or other additives added to other types of chocolate, the darker the chocolate, the better. By contrast, the lighter color yet sweeter-tasting milk chocolate is often prepared in products that dilute the cocoa concentration with other ingredients that both minimize antioxidant activity and add harmful forms of saturated fat and calories. In addition, researchers at the National Institute for Food and Nutrition Research in Rome2 believe that milk may interfere with absorption of antioxidants from chocolate. White chocolate, which is devoid of antioxidants, offers no health benefits.

Cocoa Flavanoid Research Underwriting

Anyone reading the results of research in this area should be careful to note that much of this work—particularly early work—has been financed by corporate entities such as Mars and Hershey or is conducted in European countries such as Germany, Italy, and the Netherlands where chocolate delicacies have been created to be enjoyed by millions. Such self-interest, while understandable, still warrants due consideration in both reading the results as well as implications of this work.

Nonetheless, as you enjoy that Valentine’s Day box of chocolates this month, you might want to reach for those dark chocolate morsels. Pop a few in—just for the health of it!

References


Vinson JA, Proch J, Bose P, et al. Chocolate is a powerful ex vivo and in vivo antioxidant, an anti-atherosclerotic agent in an animal model, and significant contributor to antioxidants in European and American diets. J Agric Food Chem. 2006;54:8071–8076.[Medline]
DeNoon D. Dark chocolate is healthy chocolate. WebMD Medical News; August 27, 2003. Available at: http://www.ClevelandClinic.org/heart...tion/nutrition. Accessed November 22, 2006.
Raloff J. Chocolate hearts: yummy and good medicine? Sci News. 2000;157:177–192.
Engler MB, Engler MM, Chen CY, et al. Flavonoid-rich dark chocolate improves endothelial function and increases plasma epicatechin concentrations in healthy adults. J Am Coll Nutr. 2004;23:197–204.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Wang-Polagruto JF, Villablanca AC, Polagruto JA, et al. Chronic consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa improves endothelial function and decreases vascular cell adhesion molecule in hypercholesterolemic postmenopausal women. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2006;47(suppl 2):S177–S186.[Medline]
Murphy KJ, Chronopoulos AK, Singh I, et al. Dietary flavanols and pro-cyanidin oligomer from cocoa (Theobroma cacao) inhibit platelet function. Am J Clin Nutr. 2003;77:1466–1473.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Rein D, Paglieroni TG, Wun T, et al. Cocoa inhibits platelet activation and function. Am J Clin Nutr. 2000;72:30–35.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Weisberger JH. Chemopreventive effects of cocoa polyphenols on chronic diseases. Exp Biol Med. 2001;226:891–897.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Holt RR, Schramm DD, Keen CL, et al. Chocolate consumption and platelet function. JAMA. 2002;287:2212–2213.[Free Full Text]
Wan Y, Vinson JA, Etherton TD, et al. Effects of cocoa powder and dark chocolate on LDL oxidative susceptibility and prostaglandin concentrations in humans. Am J Clin Nutr. 2001;74:596–602.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Buijsse B, Feskens EJM, Kok FJ, Kromhout D. Cocoa intake, blood pressure, and cardiovascular mortality: the Zutphen elderly study. Arch Intern Med. 2006;166:411–417.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Wang JF, Schramm DD, Holt RR, et al. A dose-response effect from chocolate consumption on plasma epicatechin and oxidative damage. J Nutr. 2000;130:2115S–2119S.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Fisher ND, Hughes M, Gerhard-Herman M, Hollenberg NK. Flavanol-rich cocoa induces nitric-oxide-dependent vasodilation in healthy humans. J Hypertens. 2003;21:2281–2286.[Medline]
Heiss C, Dejam A, Kleinbongard T, et al. Vascular effects of cocoa righ in flavan-e-ols. JAMA. 2003;290:1030–1031.[Free Full Text]
Heiss C, Dejam A, Kleinbongard T, et al. Acute consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa and the reversal of endothelial dysfunction in smokers. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2005;46:1276–1283.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Schroeter H, Heiss C, Balzer J, et al. (-)-Epicatechin mediates beneficial effects of flavanol-rich cocoa on vascular function in humans. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2006;103:1024–1029.[Abstract/Free Full Text]
Francis ST, Head K, Morris PG, Macdonald IA. The effect of flavanol-rich cocoa on the fMRI response to a cognitive task in healthy young people. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2006;47(suppl 2):S221–S223.[Medline]
Grif Alspach, RN, MSN, EdD
Editor

Madelyn, I'm familiar with the fabric molas. Sorry if it seemed I confused the two. I like both! You can find amazing molas on Ebay. Check it out!