Yes, Hot Chocolate Is Good For You, and Here's Why (Merry Christmas!)
Frequent visitors to this site know that I love sharing good news about chocolate: dishing about my favorite treat’s possible benefits for energy, heart health, longevity, and beauty really boosts my happiness. I usually reach for a dark chocolate bar when I have a craving for what I think of as a healthy indulgence, so I was pretty dismayed to read the subhead, “Sorry. That chocolate bar isn’t the next superfood.” on an article titled “How Bittersweet It Is” in the December issue ofNutrition Action Health Letter.
First, some good news: The article confirms that the “cocoa bean is one of the richest food sources of a group of phytochemicals (“phyto” means plant) called flavanols,” and adds, “If chocolate is good for you, it’s probably because of the flavanols.” So far, so good. But a couple of things can get in the way of those benefits. One is that the way in which cocoa beans are turned into tasty treats (roasting, pulverizing, fermenting, and so forth) can destroy a portion of the flavanols, according to experts quoted in the article. And because there is no standard method for analyzing flavanol content, it’s difficult to get an idea of how much, or little, your chocolate bar may have.
Another issue is that most studies on the benefits of flavanols have been done with such large amounts of these phytonutrients that it would be unhealthy to try to equal the “dose” with chocolate bars, since the added calories and sugar would negate the benefits. For example, the article cites conclusions from the European Food Safety Authority that it “takes at least 200 milligrams of flavanols to improve blood flow,” which you could probably get from about two ounces of dark chocolate (based on a recent analysis of three brands). “But it will cost you 300+ calories,” the article warns. And to get the same amount from milk chocolate, you’d need to eat more than 1,500 calories worth!
What’s a chocolate lover to do? To avoid weight gain and still get the potential health benefits of chocolate, the Health Letter recommends getting your flavanols from unsweetened cocoa powder. You can get those 200 milligrams of flavanols in about 1 3/4 tablespoons for a mere 20 calories. Just be sure to read the label and choose cocoa that is not processed with alkali (a.k.a. “Dutch process”), since alkalinizing destroys most of the flavanols. But even cocoa without or with reduced flavanols may have some benefits, according to Drinking Cocoa Boosts Cognition and Blood Flow in the Brain, from the November 2013 issue of the Tufts Health & Nutrition Letter.
My personal plan is to leave some room in my caloric budget for a few squares of dark chocolate every week (I gotta have it!), as well as to work some healthy recipes with cocoa powder into my repertoire. First up, Simple Hot Cocoa for One (made with low-fat milk and just a bit of sweetener, and maybe minus that marshmallow).
