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I'm sure you've heard it before that medical professionals are now saying that chocolate is actually good for you.  For all you chocolate lovers, this is great news, but one thing you need to remember is that dark chocolate is the type that has health benefits, not milk chocolate like many candies out there.  The question is, is it true that chocolate is good for the body?

The support for the claim that chocolate is good for the body has to do with its antioxidant properties.  Remember talking about these with fruits and vegetables?  The idea is that the higher percentage of cocoa chocolate has in it, the higher the percentage of antioxidants in it.  So for example, the darker the chocolate, the higher the amount of cocoa in it.  Milk chocolate has so much other junk added into it to get rid of the bitter cocoa taste and have more of a sweet taste that its percentage of cocoa isn't very high, so it really doesn't have that much antioxidant power to it.  

Here's the problem, though.  A lot of the antioxidant benefits of chocolate are dependent on which cocoa bean is used and how it is processed.  These two factors can have a major effect on the quality of antioxidant benefits in the chocolate you eat, more specifically, the amount of flavonoids in the chocolate.  For example, just because one candy bar contains 50 percent cocoa doesn't mean that it is higher in antioxidants compared to a bar that is 40 percent cocoa.  Again, it's all dependent on the type of bean used and they way it was processed.¹  The general rule of thumb, though, is that the darker the chocolate, the higher the antioxidant power.  So does this mean that it's safe to say you can eat chocolate everyday?  My feeling is no.  Remember, it's still chocolate.  Just because it contains antioxidants doesn't mean that all the other stuff in chocolate is healthy for you.  When trying to get your antioxidants, why not eat your fruits and vegetables instead.  Not only do they have great antioxidant power, but they are loaded with a ton of vitamins and minerals.  For all you chocolate-lovers out there, I'm sure I won't be able to change your mind, but at least I tried.  If you do love chocolate, I would suggest raw chocolate or the cocoa beans themselves for the most amount of antioxidants.  You can find them both at any health food store. 

For more information on the benefits of chocolate, make sure you check out this website.

References:

¹Ursell, A. (2008, October 27). Nutrition Q&A: Is chocolate really good for you?. The Times. Retrieved November 4, 2008, from http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/
diet_and_fitness/article5008739.ece

Tags: nutrition