Dark chocolate can offer you flavor, satisfaction and even health benefits. The University of Michigan Health System includes dark chocolate as part of a well-balanced, plant-based diet. They include dark chocolate as one of the foods that can help give your body nourishment, energy and essential nutrients. The daily recommended intake for dark chocolate is 1 oz. per day, and up to 7 oz. per week.
Antioxidants
Dark chocolate is comprised of flavonoids called epicatechins and procyanidins. Flavonoids belong to a group of antioxidants that can also be found in tea, fruits, vegetables and red wine, according to the Linus Pauling Institute. Antioxidants act to protect you from free radical damage, harmful bacteria and viruses that invade your body and cause cellular damage, infection and illness. Therefore, consuming dark chocolate may help boost your intake of these disease-fighting compounds and make you less susceptible to disease.
Cholesterol
Dark chocolate has been shown to decrease the bad cholesterol --- also known as LDL --- in your blood, according to the University of Michigan Health System. This benefit of dark chocolate may be due to its primary composition of stearic and oleic acids. Stearic acid is a saturated fat that is typically linked to negative effects. However, according to the University of Michigan, stearic acid does not act like other saturated fats and does not raise your blood cholesterol levels. In addition, oleic acid, a monounsaturated fat, also does not raise your cholesterol levels and, instead, may play a role in reducing it.
Health Concerns
It is important to be aware that various health concerns do exist about dark chocolate. Dark chocolate contains oxalates that can cause increased urinary oxalate excretion in your blood. This can raise your body's potential to make kidney stones. The University of Michigan advises that you decrease your intake of dietary oxalates if you are susceptible to the formation of kidney stones. This can help reduce your urinary oxalate levels. In addition, dark chocolate contains a chemical called tyramine that may lead to migraines in some people. Evidence is inconclusive, however, so you may need to monitor your intake of tyramine-containing foods to see if dark chocolate is a trigger food for you.
Considerations
The University of Michigan advises that you choose dark chocolate that contains greater than or equal to 60 percent cocoa. This is because the amount of flavonoids, or antioxidants, in the chocolate correlate to the pigment of the chocolate. Therefore, the darker the chocolate, the more flavonoids that will be present within to produce body with immune-support and disease-fighting benefits. In addition, you should choose dark chocolate that does not contain hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils, since they are linked to increasing bad cholesterol in your body.
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