Got chocolate?

If you think chocolate is a big no-no for a healthy diet, then I’d say you’re wrong. It’s a typical thing that people follow tradition as in they go by the myths that have been circulating around the world. Chocolate is fattening…chocolate is not healthy…yada yada yada! Well obviously if you eat any food at all, you have to know how to control it by not over-consuming it. This ‘concept’ doesn’t just apply to chocolate. At least I can point out some benefits of chocolates that people don’t know.

To start off, chocolate is actually packed with natural compounds called antioxidants that can protect your body and promote good health. In fact, dark chocolate and cocoa have more antioxidants than do foods like blueberries, green tea and red wine. This is because chocolate is a plant- based food. Yup yup, don’t be surprised!

"The main ingredient in chocolate is cocoa beans - the seeds of the fruit of the cocoa tree," said Debra Miller, Ph.D., Senior Nutrition Scientist with the Hershey Center for Health and Nutrition, who has studied chocolate's health benefits extensively. Scientists theorize that plants naturally produce antioxidants to help them survive harsh growing conditions and to protect them from environmental stress. These same compounds can aid the humans who eat the plants too (In this case, it’s CHOCOLATE!).

Recent studies suggest that the antioxidants in foods may reduce the risk of many kinds of illness, from heart disease to cancer. Antioxidants like those found in dark chocolate and cocoa have also been linked to some of the hallmarks of good cardiovascular health such as enhanced blood flow, healthy cholesterol levels and, in some cases,reduced blood pressure.

Antioxidants in the blood stream essentially neutralize substances called free radicals, small reactive molecules that cause damage to cells which scientists believe may be the triggers for serious diseases such as cancer and heart disease. They also may cause cognitive deterioration associated with aging. That means chocolate can reduce aging. Notice how you feel young-er when you’re eating chocolate? And obviously, for most people chocolate is a stress reliever. That sounds cliché but it’s true. Chocolate does wonders not just to my tummy, but the whole system of my body (Now that seriously sounds like an exaggeration!).

Basically, chocolate is a great health product. Most people may still argue that it is fattening but clearly, there are numerous health benefits from consuming chocolate, especially those with high cocoa content such as cocoa powder and dark chocolate. Chocolate is universal thing. It’s endless and everyone enjoys it regardless of their age! That’s how the exquisite taste of chocolate tempts people, like me ;) To the ‘unbelievers’ out there, just fill your tummy with chocolate! If not, maybe chocolate bath sounds better.

sources: www.everyone-loves-chocolate.com, www.flickr.com