It’s official... Dark chocolate is good for you so you can eat a bar without feeling guilty!
Nutritional therapist Krista Goodwin reveals that chocolate can help lift your mood, improve your memory and boost brain power.
While most chocolate is made with milk chocolate, news of dark chocolate’s health benefits have boosted its sales by 22%.
Krista Goodwin, nutritional therapist at Nourishing by Nature, said: “The key beneficial ingredient in dark chocolate is cocoa.”
Here’s why it’s good to indulge in that dark chocolate heaven.
Lifts your mood
Findings published in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience suggest chocolate helps reduce the symptoms of depression.
The dark stuff raises levels of several brain chemicals, including tryptophan, which the brain converts into serotonin to lift your mood.
Helps keep you slim
Researchers at the University of California found that adults who ate chocolate frequently had a lower BMI than those who didn’t, even though they didn’t exercise regularly.
And it’s also filling, says another study from the University of Copenhagen in Denmark, so it reduces those cravings for fatty foods.
Good for your skin
In a German study, researchers found the flavonoids in dark chocolate protect and increase blood flow to the skin, improving the complexion.
Improves your memory
Scientists at Oxford University found flavonoids induce the creation of new neurons in the brain, improving their ability to form new memories.
The brain releases the chemical dopamine after just
a couple of squares of dark chocolate. This helps you recall people and events.
Soothes coughs
The theobromine found in chocolate is more effective at stopping coughs than codeine, according to a study from Imperial College London.
Theobromine works by suppressing the activity of the nerve that causes you to cough.
Reduces stroke risk
Eating a bar of chocolate a week could help to prevent a stroke, say scientists at the University of Toronto.
A study revealed that the antioxidants in chocolate cut the risk of a stroke by more than a fifth, while stroke patients who ate chocolate regularly were almost 50 per cent less likely to die.