There may be some hope after all for all you chocoloholics out there. If you indulge your sweet tooth with some chocolate, you might not have to feel so guilty about it. Chocolate contains flavonoids called flavanols. A flavonoid is a substance found in plants that helps protect them from environmental toxins and helps repair cell damage. When consumed, flavoniods act as antioxidants in our bodies. They help the body's cells resist damage by eliminating free radicals. Flavanols, the specific flavonoid found in chocolate, works as an antioxidant but also has additional health benefits. Research has indicated that flavanols help lower blood pressure and improve blood flow to the brain and heart. Also, they make blood platelets less sticky and lower cholesterol. However, flavanols are lost the more chocolate is processed. Flavanols are what gives chocolate its pungent taste. Therefore, it is important to realize not all chocolate is good for you. The key is to eat more natural chocolates and particularly dark chocolate. Try to avoid highly processed chocolates and milk chocolates. Learn more about chocolate by clicking on the following link: http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/prevention/nutrition/chocolate.aspxThursday, November 4, 2010
Sweet Tooth
There may be some hope after all for all you chocoloholics out there. If you indulge your sweet tooth with some chocolate, you might not have to feel so guilty about it. Chocolate contains flavonoids called flavanols. A flavonoid is a substance found in plants that helps protect them from environmental toxins and helps repair cell damage. When consumed, flavoniods act as antioxidants in our bodies. They help the body's cells resist damage by eliminating free radicals. Flavanols, the specific flavonoid found in chocolate, works as an antioxidant but also has additional health benefits. Research has indicated that flavanols help lower blood pressure and improve blood flow to the brain and heart. Also, they make blood platelets less sticky and lower cholesterol. However, flavanols are lost the more chocolate is processed. Flavanols are what gives chocolate its pungent taste. Therefore, it is important to realize not all chocolate is good for you. The key is to eat more natural chocolates and particularly dark chocolate. Try to avoid highly processed chocolates and milk chocolates. Learn more about chocolate by clicking on the following link: http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/prevention/nutrition/chocolate.aspx
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I have always heard that some chocolate is good for you, but learning just what kind is somewhat sad considering I dislike dark chocolate and tend to venture towards the processed milk chocolate. It is still interesting to learn what benefits chocolate can have on your body and that it’s not all bad for you. It is also interesting to learn that stearic acid has a neutral effect on cholesterol which means you are not consuming as much direct fat as you may have thought. While its disappointing that this article did not tell me I can go and eat as much chocolate as I want with no negative side affects as I’m sure many of us would love, there is a lot of good information in the article and interesting facts to know about chocolate!
ReplyDeleteI like this post. I am glad to read that dark chocolate is considered better to eat than the processed chocolates. I love dark chocolate and knowing that it is the better choice makes me feel a little better as well. So even if I endulge a bit, I don't have to feel completely guilty =)
ReplyDeleteI am so glad to see that there such thing as a somewhat healthy chocolate. I am definaely what youd call a chocaholic, so reading this article was a sigh of relief of not having to feel bad anymore when i did happen to have a piece.. or two.
ReplyDeleteYes! I love knowing that chocolate has benefits. Dark chocolate has a lot of antioxidants and I am lucky because I prefer dark over milk chocolate. I believe that you can benefit from a lot of foods that may be considered "bad." Because in reality there is no such thing as "good" and "bad" foods; you just have to remember to monitor how much you are taking in and create a balanced diet :).
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