Chocolate is good for you!
First and foremost, happy Valentine’s Day! We hope you have given and received some wonderful sweets from your sweet. Chocolate is one of the most common gifts on February 14th. For choco-holics, the right kind of chocolate will offer several health benefits. So don’t feel bad about indulging this year- chocolate is good for you!
First of all, the benefits can be found from all chocolate however dark chocolate is likely to have the most bang for your buck. This is because dark chocolate has a higher concentration of cocoa butter, with less fatty ingredients like cream and milk.
Lower Risk of Stroke
Being an adult is hard and comes with so many potential medical conditions.-If a little sugar and cocoa can make it better – go for it! Swedish research shows that women who have 2 bars of chocolate (45 grams) a week are 20% less likely to be at risk of a stroke. The flavonoids in chocolate have antioxidant properties that help prevent them!
Prevents Inflammation
If eating chocolate will make your body feel good, why not indulge? According to a study from 2008, 6.7 grams of dark chocolate a day could very work to keep the blood inflammation causing proteins down.
Decreases chance of heart attacks
For whatever reason (we didn’t do scientific research on this, though studies have shown it to be true) chocolate eaters appear to have a slower rate of blood platelet clumping. This means blood clots are observed less in their blood, resulting in fewer chances of heart attacks and other heart disease.
Good for your brain!
Chocolate makes you smarter? We’re okay with that! British research showed that flavanol, a flavanoid found in chocolate, helped people with their internal mental math. Those quick calculations you’ll make in your head have the potential to pick up speed with a steady dose of chocolate each week. We may not suggest you binge, though, as the article seems to suggest!
Helps your Skin
Don’t believe all those ads about chocolate causing breakouts. While it’s true diets high in fat and sugar will have a negative impact on your skin, dark chocolate is a little different. Remember, dark chocolate is made of less fatty ingredients. Those flavonoids we’ve been talking about also helps protect skin from UV rays according to German research.
You’ll live longer!
The only person to live up to 122 years old was a woman who ate 2.5 pounds of chocolate a WEEK! Can you imagine? Believe it or not, Harvard researchers found that eating chocolate can add as much as 2 years on to your life expectancy! That doesn’t mean you should go out and eat every bit of chocolate you can find. Do a little research. The heavily processed chocolate you’ll find lining the shelves of your grocery store is not ideal.
Keep in mind, some of the research we’ve come across was paid for by chocolate manufacturers. That means they may have been trying to spin the health benefits to sound as good as possible. It doesn’t mean the research isn’t valid, it just may be slightly exaggerated as to play as a marketing tool to sell more. Just keeping it real!
Need help picking out the perfect Valentine’s Day gift?