Healthy Dark Chocolate Candy Bars

Nutritionists, dieticians and health food advocates tout the benefits of dark chocolate as a cancer-fighting, antioxidative alternative to common milk chocolate. Due to dark chocolate's popularity, many companies release their own versions, but not all of the offerings can be labeled "healthy" relative to other chocolate bars in the same category.

Why Go Dark?

Dark chocolate is so named due to its higher concentration of cocoa, which darkens the color of the bar considerably compared to milk chocolate, which has milk in the recipe. The higher the percentage of cocoa, the more beneficial the chocolate is said to be. However, it also means there will be more bitterness to the taste. Typical percentages of cocoa in a dark chocolate bar are 60, 70, 80, 85 and 90 percent.

About Milk Chocolate

Free radicals in the body are blamed for premature aging and certain types of cancers; the darker the chocolate, the more antioxidants that are present that destroy free radicals. Milk chocolate also is derived from the cocoa plant, but because milk and sugar are added during processing, many of the antioxidants are destroyed. Most dark chocolate bars are healthy by comparison. They are lower in calories because there is considerably less sugar in the recipe. Another benefit of dark chocolate is the "full" feeling you get after eating a serving, which aids in appetite suppression.

Lindt Dark Chocolate Bars

Swedish confectioner Lindt has been in the chocolate-making business for decades and is one of the pioneers in mass producing dark chocolate bars. Lindt bars can be found on the shelves of many big-box retailers and specialty shops. Two of its healthiest offerings are the 99 percent dark bar, which is practically black in appearance, and the 90 percent bar. The 99 contains zero sugar and a negligible amount of sodium, but also 6 g of protein. As one can imagine, it is quite bitter. By comparison, the 90 percent bar contains 5 g of sugar to help sweeten the bitterness. Nutritionally it is the same as the 99 bar.

Dagoba Eclipse Bar

Dagoba's organic Eclipse dark chocolate bar has 290 calories, 230 of which are fat calories. The 27 g of fat -- 17 of which are saturated -- in the bar raises its caloric count. The bar also contains only 8 g of sugar. By contrast, Ritter Dark Chocolate Bars contain 190 calories per serving and 18 g of refined sugar. The Eclipse bar also contains almost 30 g of dietary fiber, nearly 32 percent of the daily recommendation. Other "healthy" dark chocolate bars include ones made by Kashi, Newman's Own, Green & Black and Nib Mor.