It was long believed that in order to fully embrace a healthy lifestyle, you had to eschew rich and delicious chocolate. But times have changed -- now more and more research is indicating that chocolate has measurable health benefits when you consume it in moderation. Far from increasing your blood pressure, a moderate amount of chocolate has instead been shown to decrease blood pressure in some people.
How Chocolate Impacts Blood Pressure
Hypertension, or high blood pressure, is considered a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Obviously, if your blood pressure is on the high side, you will want to work to keep it in check. For that, physicians recommend dietary changes, medication, and lifestyle changes. More recently, they are also suggesting a little bit of chocolate. A meta-analysis published in the June 2010 issue of "BMC Medicine" found consistently across a number of studies conducted in recent years that dark chocolate and cocoa were demonstrably better than the placebo or control group at reducing blood pressure. In fact, researchers compared the results of chocolate consumption in some people to the effect of adding 30 minutes a day of exercise and stated that the chocolate effect could potentially reduce the risk of a heart attack or stroke by about 20 percent over a period of five years. Don't go hanging up your running shoes, however. Physical activity provides numerous health benefits. Talk with your physician before making any major lifestyle changes or undertaking a new supplement regimen.
The Good Stuff in Chocolate
Chocolate is being studied as a potential benefit for those who suffer from high blood pressure primarily because of the flavonoids it contains. Flavonoids or flavonols are powerful antioxidants that can help bring about positive changes in your body. Because they have anti-inflammatory and anti-clotting properties, flavonoids decrease the risk of heart disease. They are believed to impact hypertension by causing the blood vessels to relax, thereby reducing blood pressure.
So, should you just stock up on candy bars? Not so fast -- Colorado State University states that a whopping 90 percent of those valuable antioxidants can be lost during candy processing. For the maximum chocolate effect, choose darker chocolate. Cocoa should be the first ingredient on the list, not sugar. Choose chocolate that contains 60 percent or more of pure cocoa for the most health benefits.
Amount of Chocolate Needed
If chocolate is beneficial, is more chocolate more beneficial? Sometimes. According to a study published in the "European Heart Journal," researchers who followed a group of nearly 20,000 people for a decade found a correlation between chocolate consumption and heart attack or stroke risk. In fact, the group that consumed the largest amount of chocolate -- 7.5 grams a day on average -- had both lower average blood pressure and a 39 percent lower chance of having suffered a cardiac event than the group that consumed the smallest amount of chocolate, or an average of 1.7 grams per day.
Researchers emphasize that if you decide to introduce chocolate to your daily food or supplement regimen, you should not add additional calories or reduce your fruit and vegetable intake.
Other Benefits of Chocolate
Chocolate may provide additional health benefits along with its demonstrated ability to help lower overall blood pressure. A study published in the March 2005 issue of the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition" found that, in addition to its effect on blood pressure, chocolate helped impact insulin sensitivity as well. The antioxidant properties of polyphenols in dark chocolate were thought to be responsible for improving overall insulin sensitivity in otherwise healthy people. Insulin sensitivity is important in our metabolism of sugar and carbohydrates: insulin resistance is considered a precursor to conditions like type-2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
References
- "BMC Medicine"; Does Chocolate Reduce Blood Pressure? A Meta-analysis; Karin Ried, et. al.; June 2010
- Colorado State University; "Chocolate - Is it a Heart-Healthy Indulgence?"; Shirley Perryman, MS, RD; February 2009
- "European Heart Journal"; Chocolate Consumption in Relation to Blood Pressure and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in German Adults; Brian Buijsse, MD, et. al.; March 2010
- "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition": Short-term Administration of Dark Chocolate is Followed By a Significant Increase in Insulin Sensitivity and a Decrease in Blood Pressure in Healthy Persons; Davide Grasse, et. al.; March 2005
