Lifestyle July 25, 2019
The darker the chocolate, the sweeter in health.
Dark chocolate is a delectable treat that dates all the way back to 2000 BC. It contains 50-90% cocoa solids, cocoa butter, and sugar. And lucky for us chocolate lovers, there are many health benefits of dark chocolate.
When consumed in moderation dark chocolate has some pretty powerful benefits.
If you’re looking for a reason to indulge in the delicious snack full of helath benefits, we’re here to give you five of them that won’t leave you regretting the calories later.
Here’s the deal….
Dark chocolate is nutritious. It’s a healthy snack full of healthy compounds such as antioxidants.
What are those you ask?
Antioxidants help defend your cells from free radicals, protecting you from the negative affects those radicals cause.
Dark chocolate actually ranks number one on Healthlines list of healthy foods high in antioxidants.
and it doesn’t stop there…
The sweet treat is rich in iron, copper, magnesium, zinc, and phosphorus. All of which offer great health benefits.
The flavanols in dark chocolate are good for skin!
Flavanols are plant-based nutrients found in cocoa. Not only are they the good guys of chemicals, they help your skin protect itself from UV sun rays.
The increase in blood flow caused by flavaonols improves skin hydration which can prevent wrinkles.
A study demonstrated regular consumption of dark chocolate confers significant sun protection. Milk chocolate has no such effect.
Not only do the flavaonols in dark chocolate help your skin, they also decrease the risk for heart attack and strokes.
Dark chocolate can boost your energy levels. This doesn’t mean you should throw your healthy diet out the door and skip the gym. After eating dark chocolate you won’t even want to.
The delicious snack will actually encourage you to go to the gym by increasing your metabolism. The anti-inflammatory and magnesium in dark chocolate could leave your body feeling great after a workout.
I mean, who doesn’t like feeling great after working out?
Another one of the many health benefits of dark chocolate is help with cravings, which can aid in weight loss. A study performed in the Netherlands suggest dark chocolate decreases insulin and lowers the level of ghrelin.
Ghrelin and insulin control the appetite. Along with leptin. The study found women who ate and smelled dark chocolate had a reduction in ghrelin and satisfied appetites.
Another study found that eating chocolate 20 minutes before and five minutes after meals cut your appetite by up to 50 percent.
This goodie can also help the brain. A study showed eating dark chocolate for five days improved blood flow to the brain .
It doesn’t stop there!
The production of feel-good chemicals called endorphins increase when eating dark chocolate. As you may know, endorphins are those receptors in the brain that make you happy.
The endorphins also reduce pain and can relieve you of the negative effects caused by stress.
Bottom line…
Dark chocolate is a healthy sweet treat with many benefits. Think of it this way: you’re not just indulging in a delicious sweet treat. You’ll be indulging in nutrient packed snack.
