If you’re like me, you probably know how much the price of Chocolate and products containing it has risen in recent years. So much that many of us no longer buy Chocolate, except for special occasions. But the latest research says we might better consider Chocolate as medicinal, and ‘eat’ the price…
Pure Dark Chocolate – with at least 70 percent Cacao – may be just the
picker-upper you need to tweak your brain for the long haul…
In my lifetime, the price of a simple candy bar has increased twelve-fold, from a dime to more than a dollar. Large bars of quality, pure Chocolate can cost (C)$5 or more per 250 g. Perhaps younger people, who weren’t around back when I was a kid, don’t realize how much the treat has increased in cost. And I’ll bet they get a lot more money for baby sitting, lawn mowing and other chores than my generation ever did. Heck, kids are getting paid a minimum wage of (C)$14 an hour here in my home province, now, for working at fast food joints and the like. The minimum wage when I got my first job in my teens was a mere (C)$2.35. Any way you look at it, the supermarkets and convenience stores are stocking just as much candy and chocolate product as they ever did, if not more.
But that’s another story.
The latest on Chocolate’s benefits…
Science has come to the aid of Chocolate, finding new ways it can make your life better.
We’ve reported here, previously, on studies that confirm Chocolate contains anti-oxidants that should be valuable in fighting heart disease, and improving cognition.
Now, researchers at the Loma Linda University Adventist Health Sciences Center in California have new proof that Chocolate – particularly pure, Dark Chocolate – is even more beneficial.
Findings from two studies, presented last week at the Experimental Biology 2018 annual meeting in San Diego, show that consuming Dark Chocolate that has a high concentration of Cacao (minimally 70% cacao, 30% organic cane sugar) has positive effects on stress levels, inflammation, mood, memory and immunity. While it is well known that Cacao is a major source of flavonoids, this is the first time the effect has been studied in human subjects to determine how it can support cognitive, endocrine and cardiovascular health.
What they found…
“For years, we have looked at the influence of dark chocolate on neurological functions from the standpoint of sugar content — the more sugar, the happier we are,” noted Dr. Lee S. Berk, who presented the paper at the conference. “This is the first time that we have looked at the impact of large amounts of cacao in doses as small as a regular-sized chocolate bar in humans over short or long periods of time, and are encouraged by the findings. These studies show us that the higher the concentration of cacao, the more positive the impact on cognition, memory, mood, immunity and other beneficial effects.”
My take…
The study’s emphasis on pure, Dark Chocolate – at least 70 percent Cacao – and it’s special note that the effects of consumption become apparent over a short period of time make me wonder if Chocolate isn’t the wonder-snack people working long shifts, students pulling all-nighters, long-distance drivers or Congressional representatives filibustering on the floor of the House need to keep them sharp. Coffee and other alertness aids may be passé!
Berk said the topic requires further investigation, specifically to determine the significance of Cacao’s effects on immune cells and the brain in larger study populations. But I say it wouldn’t hurt to go out and splurge on a bar of high-Cacao Dark Chocolate today, and start dosing yourself with it regularly. Mary Poppins would be pleased: it already contains the spoonful of sugar that helps the medicine go down!
~ Maggie J.