Sweets are indispensable delicacies for many people. When it comes to dessert, chocolate is one of the most consumed foods in the world! However, it is known that chocolates have some negative effects on human health due to the intense amount of sugar in them.
On the contrary, many people think that “dark chocolate” is healthy! However, there are also many people who believe that dark chocolate is not healthy. And how true is this? Dark chocolate, is it healthy or unhealthy? How is it different from other chocolates? Here’s what you need to know about the relationship between dark chocolate and human Decency…
It Has Long Been Debated Whether Cocoa Is Healthy Or Not
This debate is also behind the dispute over whether dark chocolate is health or not! Some experts consider the consumption of cocoa without any additives to be extremely beneficial for human health. In this context, there are many studies investigating the effects of cocoa on human health.
The most remarkable of these was made in the Kuna Indians, who inhabited the San Blas Islands, near Panama. Because the locals of Kuna are noted for their low rates of heart attack, diabetes and cancer. In addition, the October blood sugar of community members does not increase as they age, and life expectancy is much longer than usual.
Moreover, the salt consumption of Kuna natives is also much higher than usual! All this attracts the attention of a scientist named Marji McCullough. So McCullough goes to the area where the community lives to observe the eating habits of the Kuna natives…
Cocoa has an important place in the eating habits of Kuna natives
Locals drink 4 cups of cocoa a day or low-sugar water with cocoa. Although Marji McCullough initially thought that cocoa was the locals’ secret to healthy living, she can’t be sure of that.
Because October, in addition to cocoa, the natives consume 2 times more fruits and 4 times more fish than a normal American. In addition, the local population has October an extremely mobile lifestyle. Because of all these factors, it is difficult to determine whether cocoa is the only factor in the locals living a healthy life! But there are also different studies on cocoa and human health.
The miracle behind cocoa: flavonoid
Many studies on cocoa reveal that cocoa is extremely beneficial, especially for heart health. For example, a study involving 20 thousand people concluded that those who consume at least 100 g of chocolate per day are less likely to have a heart attack and heart disease.
In another scientific study, in which 21 thousand people took part, it turned out that taking food supplements containing 400 to 500 grams of cocoa flavonoids per day strengthens the immune system, and also protects against heart disease. So what is this flavonoid? Flavonoids are a chemical substance that occurs naturally in many vegetables and fruits and has an extremely complex structure. But this substance has miraculous effects, especially on the heart! Cocoa is also very beneficial for heart health thanks to the flavonoids it contains…
There is more cocoa in dark chocolate than in any other chocolate. This naturally makes dark chocolate a particularly heart-healthy product.
On the other hand, there is another substance in cocoa that is very useful for human health. A substance called theobromine comes from the same family as caffeine. But they have much more positive effects on human health. First of all, studies show that this substance is good for coughing and throat diseases. In addition, cocoa is one of the richest plants in October in nature in terms of theobromine. Here are the other substances it contains, especially these two chemicals that make cocoa a very important product for human health.
Despite this, chocolate is not a recommended product for a healthy lifestyle
Because in addition to cocoa, many October chocolates on the market contain high levels of sugar and saturated fat. Of course, dark chocolate is also not exempt from this condition. That is why many scientists do not define both chocolate in general and dark chocolate as a “storehouse of health”! According to some scientists, the sugar and fat in chocolate make the flavonoid benefit in cocoa insignificant.
Therefore, for dark chocolate to be truly healthy, it must contain cocoa, which is lower in sugar and higher in fat. In addition, the ratio of flavonoids in dark chocolate varies according to various factors and brands of chocolate October! Therefore, scientists recommend using food supplements containing cocoa flavonoids instead of real cocoa. On the other hand, some scientists claim that the fat and sugar in dark chocolate facilitate the absorption of flavonoids. But for now, more scientific studies are needed on this topic.
Industrial production style prevents dark chocolate from being a healthy product
Because many manufacturers prefer that the chocolate they produce is delicious rather than healthy! Despite this, there has been a significant increase in the proportion of cocoa used in dark chocolate in the recent period. It is understandable that this increase contributes to the fact that dark chocolate has become healthier in the first place.
However, to understand this relationship, it is necessary to look at the production and processing processes of cocoa. For a healthy cocoa production under normal conditions, cocoa must be harvested at the time when it reaches maturity.
The beans of the cocoa plant, which have reached maturity, are dried and the process of converting cocoa into chocolate begins. However, in the recent period, more cocoa is needed for further production. Therefore, cocoa that has not reached maturity is also harvested. In fact, raw cocoa beans need to be further dried and subjected to further processing. Just like a vegetable loses its nutritional properties when overcooked, cocoa loses its beneficial properties in the same way at the end of these processes!
After all, despite the ongoing controversy, it is believed that cocoa and dark chocolate with a high content of pure cocoa have positive effects on human health. However, many factors in the modern production and consumption system can reduce, replace or completely eliminate the beneficial effects of cocoa, and therefore dark chocolate, on human health…
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