When you think about health foods, how often do you consider chocolate?

Fortunately, dark chocolate is a superfood! When you consume the right type of dark chocolate, you can look forward to surprising benefits, like boosting your antioxidants, lowering blood pressure and even reducing your risk of cancer.

Read on to discover the surprising benefits of dark chocolate, as well as what type you should be eating.

Dark Chocolate: A Sacred Food with Healing Benefits

Throughout history, dark chocolate (or cacao, as it’s called before being made into a chocolate bar) has been hailed as a health tonic. This is especially true throughout Mesoamerican cultures, who held the belief that the cacao bean was a sacred food handed down by the gods to provide stamina, heal numerous diseases, and reduce fatigue (1).

In fact, the effects of cacao were thought to be so powerful that consumption was reserved specifically for priests, high government officials, military officers and great warriors. It was considered unsuitable for women, children, and the lower classes due to its potency.

What exactly is it about dark chocolate that makes it such a cherished health food? Let’s dive into the research-backed facts behind its benefits.

8 Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate

Many of dark chocolate’s surprising benefits stem from its potent antioxidant compounds epicatechin, catechin, and procyanidins, along with flavonoids and polyphenols. These antioxidants are responsible for putting a halt to DNA damage, reducing inflammation, regulating glucose levels, slowing aging, and more.

Read on to see just how powerful they are in dark chocolate.

1. Lowers Blood Pressure and Improves Heart Health

Not only does dark chocolate make you feel similar to being in love (okay, maybe not that good), but it has major benefits for your heart and blood pressure levels.

Studies show that the compound prostacyclin in dark chocolate is able to help lower blood pressure by increasing vasodilation, the opening and loosening of your arteries and blood vessels (2). In addition, another study revealed that higher chocolate intake is associated with a lower risk of future cardiovascular events (3).

The Kuna Indians of the San Blas islands of Panama, who drink roughly three cups of a cacao beverage daily and have a very low prevalence of hypertension, myocardial infarction and stroke compared to those on the mainland, are a good example of chocolate’s benefits at work. In addition, studies have found that their blood pressure doesn’t rise with age (4).

2. Fights Aging

As we mentioned earlier, dark chocolate is loaded with antioxidant compounds that help fight the DNA damage that causes aging symptoms like wrinkles, graying hair, and disease. In fact, research shows that just a single serving of cacao contains more phenolic antioxidants than most foods and more antioxidants than many Americans get on average per day (5).

Research also shows that the polyphenols and flavonoids in dark chocolate can help protect your skin from UV damage, which is a huge factor in preventing skin aging (6).

3. Reduces Cholesterol

Alongside lowering blood pressure and improving heart health, dark chocolate also has a few cholesterol-lowering tricks up its sleeve. Studies have shown that just one week of dark chocolate consumption was enough to improve lipid profiles and decrease platelet reactivity for both men and women (7). This may be due to the fact that the cocoa butter in dark chocolate contains some of the same heart-healthy fatty acids found in olive oil.

4. Improves Brain Function

Dark chocolate has been studied for its ability to boost cognitive function by improving cerebral blood flow, thanks in part to its high flavanol content. One study showed that the intake of flavonoid-rich foods, including chocolate, wine and tea, results in improved cognitive performance, especially in elderly participants.

Another study out of Italy also found that the flavanols in chocolate could prevent and even reverse age-related memory decline (8).

5. Anti-Diabetic Effects

Research has shown that dark chocolate improves glucose balance, insulin sensitivity and inflammation markers – all symptoms that contribute to the development of diabetes. In one particular study, scientists found these benefits occurred only when participants ate dark chocolate; those who consumed white chocolate received no benefits (9).

Interestingly, a study in Japan found that the risk of developing diabetes was reduced 35 percent among men who consumed “chocolate snack pieces” once per week or more versus those who never or almost never ate chocolate (10).

6. Potentially Reduce Risk of Developing Cancer

To date, studies have confirmed that chronic inflammation contribute to factors that increase your risk of developing cancer, including DNA mutations and cancer cell growth. Research has confirmed that the antioxidants in dark chocolate have a strong ability to fight the DNA damage that could lead to cancer development, as well as reduce certain inflammation enzymes that could encourage its growth (11).

7. Reduces Risk of Developing Neurological Diseases

Flavonoids have been shown to offer significant protection for neurons in your brain and nervous system. Specifically, they reduce neuroinflammation, which has been found to be a major cause of the development of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, their ability to increase cerebral blood flow encourages the growth of new neurons in the hippocampus, which processes memory (12).

8. Increases Satiety and Reduces Appetite

Just when you thought chocolate was banned from your diet while trying to lose weight, research shows it may actually help you keep cravings in check, which can help keep the pounds off. Studies have found that the smell of dark chocolate reduces appetite and improves satiety (13).

How to Choose the Best Dark Chocolate

Obviously, not all chocolate is created equal. To get the most benefits associated with dark chocolate, you want to steer clear of any of the candy bar varieties (even if they are “gluten-free” or “Paleo”) and be sure to choose a bar that contains at least a 75 percent cacao content. This will ensure there are minimal added sugars, so you get the bittersweet goodness without the damaging effects of sugar.

How Often Should You Indulge in Dark Chocolate?

While dark chocolate is loaded with benefits, more doesn’t necessarily equal better. Most of these studies used a moderate amount of dark chocolate consumption, which could be comparable to a square of dark chocolate per day, or a tablespoon or two of dark cacao made into a hot chocolate drink (just make sure you don’t add any sugar).

Even if you don’t eat it every day, try to get in a dose of dark chocolate at least three times a week to boost your antioxidant levels and cash in on the many benefits of this true superfood.

Our friends at Earth Echo Foods want to share this weight loss secret with you…

This Costa Rican chocolate known to melt extra LBs

Most Americans think eating sweets for breakfast is unhealthy…

But according to Stanford researchers, there’s one delicious “dessert” food Costa Ricans eat each morning that…

✅ Keeps them lean past 80…
✅ Slows blood sugar spikes…
✅ Even helps them live 7x longer than Japanese people…

So what’s the #1 “dessert” food that helps Costa Ricans live past 100?

Is it:

Click on your guess…

Or click below to discover Costa Rica’s Blue Zone secret:

>>> Eat this “dessert” for breakfast

Here’s the crazy part – while Costa Ricans are living longer with this morning ritual, Americans trying it are losing 7lbs as a “side effect.” Not a bad bonus, right?

>>> Click here to see this breakfast secret

(Original source article can be found here.)

The post 8 Surprising Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate appeared first on thenutritionwatchdog.com.

By: Cat Ebeling 
Co-author of the best-sellers:  The Fat Burning Kitchen, The Top 101 Foods that Fight Aging & The Diabetes Fix

The Last Word on Coffee—Good or Bad?

Coffee seems to have a bad reputation when it comes to health, and often gets relegated to the list of food and drinks to be avoided. But almost everyone drinks coffee—and what about all those recipes for healthy coffee beverages with yummy additions like butter, coconut oil, coconut milk, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, turmeric, etc. So–Is coffee good or bad for you?

If you ask me, I can’t live without it’s eye-opening pick-me-up in the morning, and according to the rest of the world, it seems to be a pretty popular beverage, given the number of jam-packed coffee shops everywhere, so I know it’s not just me. According to recent statistics, coffee just happens to be THE most popular drink around the world, and it’s estimated at over 400 billion cups are consumed a year. Americans drink about 400 million cups of that dark ‘joe a day—well, make that four hundred million and one, for those days when I am extra tired!

The good news is—coffee CAN be good for you, but like other foods, the type of coffee and the way its prepared make ALL the difference! Even big health organizations like the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the U.S. Surgeon General, the American Medical Association, the American Diabetes Association, the National Cancer Institute, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control are on board with its healthy benefits.

Besides the delightful lift and sense of alertness you get from coffee in the morning, let’s take a look at some of the other things that coffee can do:

Helps Prevent Serious Diseases

Type 2 Diabetes–Coffee has been shown to be very beneficial for those with type 2 diabetes. In several different studies, published by the Journal American Medical Association, it was found that drinking coffee could reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes by 33%. It’s possible that the antioxidants and minerals in coffee could contribute to this effect, but it’s not known for sure.  If you want a proven way to reverse type 2 diabetes naturally, read this page:

This simple technique helps to REVERSE type 2 diabetes, naturally (while getting off harmful drugs)

Parkinson’s Disease—At least six studies have shown that people who drink coffee daily are up to 80% less likely to develop Parkinson’s. And some of the newer Parkinson’s drugs actually contain a caffeine derivative. According to one of the studies’ physicians, Dr. Michael Schwarzschild, MD, PhD of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, “This study is especially interesting since caffeine seems to block a malfunctioning brain signal in Parkinson’s disease, and is so safe and inexpensive. Although the results do not [yet] suggest caffeine should be used as a treatment for Parkinson’s disease, they can be taken into consideration when people with Parkinson’s are discussing their caffeine use with their neurologist.”

Alzheimer’s Disease—Drinking four to five cups of coffee can lower the amount of beta amyloid in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients. Some research seems to point to the fact that coffee helps to reduce inflammation to the brain, which is one of the factors that leads to Alzheimer’s disease. And yet another protein found in Alzheimer’s patients, is the Tau protein. It is thought that these Tau proteins create tangles that kill brain cells and lead to cognitive decline. Coffee with caffeine has a positive effect on tau protein, and it blocks receptors in the brain that this protein attaches to. A new class of drugs may actually result from this recent research.

Colon Cancer—Drinking 1-2 cups of coffee per day is associated with a lower risk of colon cancer and the more coffee consumed the better. This research was published in the Journal of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention. After adjusting for known risk factors, 1-2 cups was associated with 26% reduction in risk of colon cancer, and more coffee decreases risk all the way up to 50%.

Asthma—The caffeine in coffee contains an ingredient, theophyline, which acts as a natural bronchodilator. Three or more cups of coffee a day actually can help to reduce the risk of an asthma attack and relax bronchial tubes.  This review found that even small amounts of caffeine improve lung function for four or more hours. Green tea and black tea also contain this powerful phytochemical.

Migraines—Caffeine contains a natural vasoconstrictor—a compound that causes blood vessels to constrict. While this may not be good for your blood pressure, it works great in the case of headaches and migraines. Caffeine also helps headache medications to work more effectively, and help the body to absorb medication quicker. That is why caffeine is often in over the counter migraine medications.

Reduces Cholesterol and Inflammation in the Body—We all know that inflammation is linked to heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and Alzheimer’s, along with numerous other health conditions. Scientists from Germany, Denmark and Finland found that daily coffee intake is associated with improved cholesterol levels and blood levels of inflammatory compounds.

In an article published in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the European scientists also stated that coffee consumption has favorable effects on markers for subclinical inflammation and oxidative stress. Because subclinical inflammation is a risk factor in heart disease, diabetes, and many other diseases, coffee has a preventative effect on these diseases.

Liver Disease—Coffee is protective of the liver and can help detox the liver after a night of overdoing the alcoholic beverages. Coffee drinkers have up to an 84% less risk of developing cirrhosis, with the strongest effect coming from 4 or more cups a day. The livers of coffee drinkers are also protected from cancer, as studies show coffee drinkers have a 40% lower risk of liver cancer.

Mood, Energy, Athletic Performance and Fat Burning  

Coffee can increase your heart rate, breathing, blood pressure and metabolism—meaning you actually can burn more calories. It elevates your mood and helps eliminate depression, stimulates the brain and increases energy, but if you overdo it, it can cause nervousness and anxiety.

Because caffeine actually speeds up your metabolism, you not only have more energy, you burn more calories. Caffeine also breaks down fat cells and frees up fatty acids in the body for immediate fat burning. In fact, converting fat to energy is 30% more effective with caffeine. And because fat is being burned for energy, blood glucose levels don’t get low.

Caffeine also has a positive effect on athletic performance as well. Caffeine has been shown time and time again to increase the body’s endurance, speed, power, and increase recovery. Part of this is due to caffeine’s effect, and part may be due to the numerous antioxidants coffee contains. Whatever the reason, a cup of coffee before a workout or competition will put you ahead of the pack!

Coffee is Full of Antioxidants

A recent report by Mario Ferruzzi from Purdue University shows coffee as one of the richest sources of polyphenols (powerful antioxidants) in the Western diet. The most abundant of these are phenolics, chlorogenic acid, and caffeic acid. Additionally, levels of the pro-inflammatory substance, interleukin-18, and 8-isoprostane (a marker of oxidative stress) decreased by approximately 10-20%. Adiponectin, levels went up 6%. Obese people have lower blood levels of adiponectin than normal weight individuals, and losing weight increases adiponectin levels. Coffee was noted to improve cholesterol levels, including total cholesterol, and HDL (good) cholesterol.

Coffee’s Dark Side

Coffee can have a dark side, including nervousness, anxiety, and shakiness. Coffee may not be good for those with an irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, or anyone with any type of anxiety or panic disorder. Too much coffee too late in the day can also cause insomnia late into the night and early morning.  (Note:  if you have insomnia, make sure to read Mike’s article here with 5 tips to sleep better and fall asleep easier)

Coffee can also cause problems with the body’s ability to utilize folate, B12, and B6–vitamins that important to pregnant women, and important to all of us for mood regulation. These B vitamins are also important to keep the inflammatory substance implicated in heart attacks, homocysteine, low.

Coffee is very acidic, and it can pull calcium from the body in its efforts to balance out the acid/base levels of the blood.

Too much coffee can be over stimulating to the adrenal glands that produce cortisol. When adrenals are over stimulated on a regular basis, they can burn out.

If you are pregnant or plan to be, it is best to avoid coffee altogether or limit your consumption to one cup a day. Too much caffeine can increase miscarriages, cause low birth weight in babies and increase the risk of cleft palate in your baby. Caffeine also comes through in breast milk, so if you’d like your baby to sleep well, do not nurse soon after drinking coffee.

So, what’s the verdict: ditch your cuppa Joe, or keep drinking it? Personally, I really cannot get going in the morning without a nice stout cup of coffee. It gets me going both mentally and physically.

Keep these things in mind to make sure you are maximizing the benefits of your coffee:

• Use fresh whole ORGANIC beans which maximizes the antioxidants in the coffee and minimizes any toxins. The type of coffee you buy and drink makes a huge difference, as it does for many other foods. Coffee is often highly sprayed with pesticides and herbicides, so it is best to drink organic coffee if at all possible. And never drink coffee out of those nasty Styrofoam cups! Hot coffee leaches out toxic chemicals from the Styrofoam. Styrofoam is terrible for the environment, too!
• Avoid drinking coffee late in the evening or even the afternoon. Caffeine has a half life of 6 hours, so a couple cups take most of the day to clear from your system. I find I cannot drink coffee any time after 12 noon, or I am up most of the night.
• Drink your coffee black. Avoid adding cheap sugary creamers, refined sugar, artificial sweeteners, or that fake non-dairy ‘cream’. If you’d like to add something sweet, try a little maple syrup, stevia, or even a touch of honey or coconut sugar. A great healthy cream option is organic grass-fed cream, or coconut cream.  Coconut cream is loaded with healthy, fat burning medium chain triglycerides, known to help you burn fat and boost your metabolism. Occasionally I add a small amount of grass-fed butter and coconut oil to my coffee which helps me put off breakfast for a while.
• If you get your coffee from a coffee shop, avoid drinking those specialty drinks like frappuccinos, flavored lattes, etc. Some of those drinks are known to contain over 700 calories in one drink!
• Increase your antioxidants by adding in some cinnamon, which also helps control blood sugar and has many other benefits. Organic cocoa powder is also delicious to add to your coffee to give it that delicious mocha flavor. Cocoa is high in magnesium, antioxidants, and helps you lower your blood pressure.

A little bit of coffee can be very helpful at times. Long boring drives in the car, adjusting your time zone clock when traveling, upping your athletic performance, or just getting up and running in the morning. And sometimes that steaming, hot, fragrant cup of coffee is just the perfect thing on a cold morning!

There was recently a very controversial ruling by a judge in California that wants to force coffee shops to put a cancer warning label on coffee just simply because it contains a small amount of a particular carcinogenic substance called acrylamides.  However, the lunacy of this ruling is that foods such as cereal, potato chips and fries contain as much as 100x MORE acrylamides than coffee, and yet there’s no required cancer warning label for those foods.  Plus, coffee actually contains such high amounts of antioxidants, that it offsets any drawbacks from tiny amounts of carcinogens.  For that full story, you can read here about coffee & acrylamides and the cancer warning ruling in California.

Also, on the topic of coffee, don’t miss my co-author Mike Geary’s article here:

3 Tips to make your coffee super healthy

And here’s a really delicious recipe to try sometime too:

PaleoHacks coconut cowgirl coffee recipe

The Death of Black Coffee:

References

American Academy of Neurology (2012). A cup of Joe may help some Parkinson’s symptoms.

Retrieved from https://www.aan.com/pressroom/home/pressrelease/1096

 Greenberg, Boozer, Geliebter, (2006). Coffee, diabetes, and weight control. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Retrieved from http://ajcn.nutrition.org/content/84/4/682.full

Hartley Jack, Caffeine and Sports Performance, retrieved from http://www.vanderbilt.edu/ans/psychology/health_psychology/caffeine_sports.htm

Jiang, Zhang, Jiang, 2014. Coffee and caffeine intake and incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus: a meta-analysis of prospective studies. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24150256

Mercola, (2010).  If you drink coffee make sure it’s organic. Retrieved from American Academy of Neurology (2012). A cup of Joe may help some Parkinson’s symptoms.

Retrieved from https://www.aan.com/pressroom/home/pressrelease/1096

Warner Jennifer, New Clues on Caffeine’s Health Benefits

Study Suggests Antioxidants in Caffeine Play a Role in Coffee’s Impact on Health, WebMD Health News.

The post Coffee & Cancer, Diabetes, and More? appeared first on thenutritionwatchdog.com.