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Hooray for Chocolate
There is great news for chocolate lovers...Chocolate
is good for your health! Now, we are not talking here
about a candy bar but about real chocolate, the kind
that contains at least 71% of real cocoa. Something
to remember when selecting chocolate is that the darker
it is, the less sugar it contains and the better it
is for you.
We are all aware of the emotional benefits
of chocolate. By liberating endorphins in the body,
chocolate provides us with feelings of comfort and wellbeing,
energy and pleasure. Some surveyed women go as far a
saying that they would prefer chocolate to sex! No wonder
with such a texture, rich color and taste, chocolate
is not only an aphrodisiac but also a pleasure for the
senses. In addition, chocolate also contains serotonin
and caffeine which both provide energy and promote good
humor.
Pleasure aside, chocolate also holds
beneficial health properties. Chocolate's complex chemical
composition offers a variety of substances that the
body needs to function properly and to prevent disease.
Chocolate enhances cardiovascular health.
Like red wine, the phenols contained in dark chocolate
help prevent coronary diseases. The British Medical
Journal reports that a daily portion of 100 grams of
dark chocolate reduces blood pressure and the occurrence
of cardiovascular incidents by 21%. These phenols are
also rich in antioxidants and they help neutralize free
radicals produced by the body or absorbed thought cigarette
smoke and other sources of pollution. Cocoa butter is
already used in creams to heal scars and burns. No wonder
pharmaceutical companies are now exploring the possibility
of researching with chocolate to develop new medication
to counter cancers and osteoporosis.
Chocolate does contain fats but these
are unsaturated and contribute to reducing bad cholesterol
and to increasing good cholesterol. Chocolate is also
an excellent source of magnesium. Should it contain
nuts, chocolate can become a great source phosphor and
vegetable iron.
One of the many benefits of living in
our time is that there is a plethora of organic and
fair trade chocolates that are readily available to
us in natural health food and grocery stores. The benefits
of purchasing these types of chocolates abound but the
most obvious are that they do not contain organochlorine
pesticides that are usually used to treat traditional
cocoa crops and that are harmful not only to the consumer
but also to the field worker. Furthermore, purchasing
fair trade chocolate ensures that the (healthier) worker
can benefit from improved working and living conditions
by receiving a fair salary for their work.
Like with everything however, chocolate
must be consumed in good measure. Chocolate increases
caloric intake and energy level. This can be good, provided
these calories are burned. We might even change the
saying to "Some chocolate everyday keeps the doctor
away!"
1howto.com
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