Diabetes and Chocolate
There are a lot of people suffering from Diabetes. The ones that suffer the most are those that have a sweet tooth. It has long been an issue if diabetics should ditch chocolates altogether or if minimal amount of dark chocolate is beneficial.
Chocolate, specifically the dark variants that are not loaded with sugar, is known to have an array of health advantages and benefits. One of which is for those who have heart conditions. Recent studies have shown that chocolate contains a certain substance called ‘flavonoids’ that can affect the vascular health in a good way. It supposedly lowers the blood pressure and improves blood flow to the brain and heart, making blood platelets less viscous. That being said, one can keep cholesterol from gathering in blood vessels. It also has the ability to slow down the immune responses that lead to clogged arteries.
However, it is an obvious fact that excessive consumption of chocolate is not at all advantageous, but rather threatening to the health. Again, diabetics are suggested to consume chocolates in minimal portions. They can do so while having a meal or right after a meal. The reason behind this is that since the stomach has food in it, the absorption of chocolate will be impeded. Thus, you can prevent your blood glucose from spiking.
And since diet is a very crucial factor in the health of diabetic patients, health experts such as physicians or nutritionists should be inquired first, just to be on the safe side. Every diabetic patient has a unique requirement with regard to diet, and to maintain a healthy one, an open and honest communication with the doctor is best.
Just because you have a health condition doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the joys of eating. It may not be just like how you enjoyed food back when your health is at its peak, but you can always look for alternatives that offer the same pleasure but without the need to sacrifice your health.
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Categories: chocolate articles Tags: CHOCOLATE, dark chocolate, Diabetic, Health
The Science of Chocolate Addiction (Mental Health Guru)
Are you one of the people who love to eat chocolate so much? Are you the type of person who can’t live without chocolate? Do you know why a lot of people are suffering from a chocolate addiction? In this video, you will get to know the explanation behind this chocolate addiction.
Our expert, Dr. Jeff Gardere, Ph.D will give you a brief rundown why people are so addicted to chocolate. Cravings and different discussion will be shown to you, in order for you to know some of the reasons why we can’t help ourselves from eating chocolate.
Also it will be discussed how it is being stimulated by our system, the way we look for or find chocolate and why we crave it badly at certain times.
Watch this video and explore the science of chocolate addiction and what it has to do with our health. Enjoy!
Chocolate The Newest Health Food
You may have already heard that chocolate contains beneficial flavonoids and antioxidants. Flavonoids are naturally-occurring compounds found in plant foods that are full of recognized health benefits. There are more than 4,000 flavonoid compounds, which are a subgroup of a large class called polyphenols. Phenols are believed to help reduce the risk of heart disease by helping prevent atherosclerosis. The flavanols in chocolate appear to help the body use nitric oxide, which is crucial for healthy blood flow and blood pressure, which means that chocolate might help reduce hypertension as well.
Red wine is known for its high phenol content, but an average bar of dark chocolate contains more phenols than 8 ounces of red wine. Scientists at Cornell University and Seoul National University examined the cancer-fighting antioxidant content of hot cocoa, red wine, and tea, and found that cocoa had nearly double the antioxidants of red wine and four to five times more than tea.
Holland’s National Institute of Public Health and Environment found that dark chocolate contains 53.5 mg of catechins per 100 grams. (Catechins are the powerful antioxidants that fight against cancer and help prevent heart disease). By contrast, a cup of black tea contains only about 14 mg of catechins and green tea has about 30 mg of catechins.
A study at University of California Davis found that participants who ate chocolate showed a reduction in platelet activity. This means that chocolate has an anti-clotting, blood-thinning effect that can be compared to aspirin.
A Harvard University study of 8,000, with an average age of 65, revealed that those who consumed chocolate lived almost a year longer than those who did not. Those who ate one to three candy bars per month had a 36 percent lower risk of death (compared to the people who ate no candy), while those who ate three or more candy bars per week had a 16 percent lower risk.
A study of older men in The Netherlands, known for its chocolate, showed that those who ate the most chocolate, an equivalent of one-third of a chocolate bar every day, had lower blood pressure and a 50 percent lower risk of death. The researchers also noted the men eating the most cocoa products were not heavier or bigger eaters than the men who ate less cocoa.
And it’s not just dark chocolate that is the only healthy type of chocolate. Most studies talk about the benefits of dark chocolate, but some of the most recent news about chocolate includes good news for milk chocolate lovers, who have been left out in the past.
The Wheeling Jesuit University in West Virginia did a study that shows that milk chocolate seems to boost brainpower. The groups in the test consumed, on different occasions, milk chocolate, dark chocolate, carob and nothing. Then they were tested for cognitive performance including memory, attention span, reaction time, and problem solving.
According to Dr. Bryan Raudenbush, “Composite scores for verbal and visual memory were significantly higher for milk chocolate than the other conditions.” The study also found that consumption of milk and dark chocolate was associated with improved impulse control and reaction time. It seems that by consuming chocolate you get stimulating effects from substances found in chocolate, such as theobromine and phenylethylamine, which then lead to increased mental performance.
Chocolate really does make you feel good, too. It is known to stimulate the secretion of endorphins, producing a pleasurable sensation similar to the “runner’s high” a jogger feels after running several miles. Chocolate also contains a neurotransmitter, serotonin that acts as an anti-depressant. Studies in England show that even the aroma of chocolate gives a bout of euphoria and will help lift the spirits.
And now people are looking at chocolate for skin care. According to Marlies Spinale, director of Tru Spa, “Like many other antioxidants, cocoa polyphenols are thought to offer the skin protection from free-radical damage caused by sun, pollution, stress, alcohol consumption and other factors. I believe that we will hear more about the benefits of chocolate in skin care.”
Some people have been avoiding chocolate because one of the main ingredients of chocolate is cocoa butter. It was thought that it was an unhealthy fat, but actually cocoa butter is not unhealthy. It is made up of the beneficial fatty acids– oleic acid (a heart-healthy monounsaturated fat also found in olive oil), stearic and palmitic acids. Stearic and palmitic acids are healthy forms of saturated fat. Plus chocolate contains vitamins A, B1, C, D, and E, as well as potassium, sodium, and iron.
So go ahead and indulge in a little chocolate, in moderation of course. I would recommend that you try to find organic chocolate, and stick with darker chocolate because it has more chocolate flavonoids and less sugar. (Sugar weakens the immune system; so don’t consume sugar if you are ill.) And a little bit of milk chocolate is alright when you need an occasional milk chocolate brainpower boost, such as before a test. All you students take note!
Chocolate as a health food can life get any better?
Written by nickdivine
Music is my muse, I daydream a lot, I have O.C.D, I am a germ-a-phobe, I love to organize, I don’t like messy.
Categories: chocolate articles Tags: CHOCOLATE, Food, Health, Newest
Dark Chocolate- The Dark Horse of Good Health
Chemically speaking, chocolate really is the world’s perfect food. – Michael Levin, Nutritional Researcher
Who doesn’t like eating Chocolates? Right from the Kids to Adults, everyone melts at the very sight of the dark brownish slab of delicious goodness and who wouldn’t! And now with researchers and recent reports stating that the Dark Chocolate variety of Chocolate can help boost one’s cardiovascular health along with helping to regulate blood pressure, improve blood circulation and so on… we are sure there couldn’t be better news for Chocolate Lovers world over!
Why Dark Chocolate instead of any other Chocolate?
Some of the most commonly available varieties of chocolate are White, Brown, Milk and Dark Chocolate. However, despite the many health benefits of dark chocolate, it still hasn’t been able to achieve a place amongst the preferred chocolate varieties in India! The answer to this lies in our Indian taste buds, which are still unaccustomed to the bitter taste of Dark Chocolate.
With the medical fraternity going gaga over the anti-ageing and cardio vascular health boosting properties of dark chocolate, it definitely deserves a place amongst our favorite chocolates.
Still not convinced? The following mentioned health benefits of Dark Chocolate should convince you,
Looking beyond the Bitter Taste of Dark Chocolate:
Running parallel to Michael Levine’s description of Chocolate as the worlds perfect food, we list down the reasons which make Dark Chocolate so healthy,
Anti – Oxidant Power House
Many people don’t know that chocolate is a plant based food. In fact Raw Cocoa (basic ingredient for any kind of chocolate) contains a very high level of anti-oxidants and with Dark Chocolate containing high levels of cocoa; it too has a high level of anti-oxidants! The anti-oxidants present in dark chocolate are found in the form of polyphenols known as flavanoids, which help protect the body from free radicals and harmful molecules, thereby slowing down the ageing process while protecting us from Cancer!
With Dark Chocolate containing almost twice the amount of Antioxidants as compared to Red wine, the antioxidants found in dark chocolate help protect against ageing and heart problems.
Heart Matters
Consumption of Cocoa is proven to help relax one’s arteries as well as widen them; it also helps in widening arteries and maintaining them. Dark chocolate helps in preventing the buildup of plaque on the arteries which can block them, it does so by slowing down the rate of the *oxidization of LDL or Bad Cholesterol. Clinical trials have further proven that consumption of dark chocolate prevents the clogging up of arteries by reducing platelet re-activity.
*Oxidization of LDL cholesterol is responsible for the beginning of the accumulation of plaque on the arteries*
Reduces Blood Pressure
Dark chocolate contains vital minerals such as Magnesium and Copper, which help in regulating and maintaining the blood pressure. Research conducted on the same at the University of California, has revealed that individuals who consumed dark chocolates for two weeks had a better and healthier blood functioning, than those who had other forms of chocolate.
Other research conducted on the same has found that Dark chocolate triggers the release of Nitric Oxide within the blood. The presence of Nitric Oxide in the blood is responsible for the relaxation and dilation of blood vessels, which allows for more flow of the blood, thereby reducing blood pressure considerably.
Mood Booster
Dark Chocolate contains many compounds that serve to produce the ‘feel good’ factor on its consumption. The three main compounds found in the chocolate are Theobromine, which is a mild natural stimulant. Caffeine too is found in dark chocolate, albeit in low quantity.
However the compound mainly responsible for the boost in our moods after eating dark chocolate is Phenylethylamine (PEA), which triggers the release of endorphins in our brain. So the next time you find yourself feeling blue, pop in a square of Dark Chocolate!
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Written by Medimange
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