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Chocolate for heart health
There is some good news for people who prefer to indulge in extra dark chocolate. Researchers said it has big benefits for your heart.
AUSTIN, Texas - There is some good news for people who prefer to indulge in extra dark chocolate. Researchers said it has big benefits for your heart.
Researchers in Brazil recently found that consuming cocoa extract or very dark chocolate reduced several cardiovascular risks by lowering blood pressure, bad cholesterol and blood sugar.
The meta study, published on MDPI Nutrients, analyzed 31 randomized, controlled trials involving nearly 2,000 participants. 1,110 participants consumed either cocoa extract or dark chocolate with a 70 percent or higher cocoa content for at least four weeks.
The control group involved 876 participants who consumed a placebo or white or milk chocolate containing less than 70 percent cocoa.
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Dr. Vivek Goswami, a preventive cardiologist with Heart Hospital of Austin and Austin Heart, noted dark chocolate, with higher levels of cocoa, has healthy properties and less sugar.
"The thought is that the flavinoids in cocoa have antioxidant properties and antioxidant properties really dimish something called free radicals. And, these free radicals can be very toxic to cells and can promote vascular disease. So, flavinoids in cocoa can help counteract that. And, we know that flavinoids also have anti-inflammatory properties. And, we know that inflammation is a major stakeholder and a major player when it comes to the development of heart attack and stroke," said Dr. Vivek Goswami.
"The reality is, not all of us can eat healthy all the time. So, if we are going to have a cheat meal, this may allow us to add some dark chocolate onto say, berries, etc. So, this is a way to potentially splurge without necessarily taking a few steps back," Dr. Vivek Goswami added.
Researchers also found dark chocolate consumption did not show any effect on body weight, body mass index, triglycerides, "good" or HDL cholesterol, or HBA1C, which is an important biomarker of diabetes.