Chocolate

by Wendy Gordon

Americans seem intent on believing that whatever tastes good must be bad for you. So, it's a pleasure to see chocolate getting a reputation as a healthy food.

To understand the potential health benefits, we need to stop thinking of chocolate as candy and trace chocolate back to its origins, as cacao beans. Cacao, which grows in a pod similar to coffee, probably originated in the Amazon and spread throughout Central America. Spanish explorers discovered hot chocolate (then a savory beverage prepared with chiles) and brought cacao back to Europe. There it was mixed with sugar, cinnamon, milk and vanilla, and by the 1800's became the chocolate confection we know today. Cacao grows in such places as West Africa, Venezuela and Indonesia, but it remains an exclusively tropical plant that grows in moist regions no further than twenty degrees from the Equator. To survive in such a competitive rainforest environment, the cacao plant requires a lot of chemical defenses - no doubt the root of the some 300 active compounds found in each little bean.

Many of the compounds in cacao beans appear to exert beneficial effects. Antioxidants known as flavonoids protect the body against free radical damage. One compound helps the body process nitric oxide, critical for healthy blood flow and blood pressure. Other flavonoids prevent fatty substances in the bloodstream from oxidizing and clogging arteries, and make platelets less likely to form clots. Theobromine, caffeine, tyramine and phenylethamine, all stimulants, increase alertness, lessen pain and promote a general feeling of wellbeing. The compound ardamide acts like a cannabinoid to promote relaxation. Another compound appears to trigger brain production of endorphins, the body's natural opiates.

The tricky part is that these compounds are found in miniscule quantities. For example, despite the presence of the cannabinoid ardamide, you'd have to eat twenty-five pounds of chocolate, according to Christian Felder of NIMH, to obtain a marijuana-like high. Groups of compounds acting in concert with one another may indeed exert many of these beneficial effects, but so far very few studies have demonstrated definitive links between specific chemicals and specific physiological reactions. One interesting study involved the Kuna Indians in Panama. This tribe traditionally drinks three to four cups of cocoa per day and has very low rates of hypertension and cardiovascular disease. When the Kuna leave their home villages and decrease their cocoa consumption, both their blood pressure and rates of heart disease increase. Tests show that Kuna living a traditional lifestyle have high blood levels of nitric oxide and epicatechin, a flavonoid linked to increased blood flow. Another study showed that 25g of semisweet chocolate and 81g of aspirin caused comparable bloodthinning reactions. However, the aspirin produced a longer-lasting result.

Cocoa butter, the edible fatty part of the cacao bean, is more healthful than once assumed. Cocoa butter is comprised of equal amounts of oleic acid (monounsaturated), and stearic and palmitic acids (saturated). Stearic acid, despite being saturated, has a neutral effect on cholesterol. Palmitic acid raises cholesterol slightly, but it comprises only one-third of cocoa butter. The carbohydrates in chocolate raise blood serotonin levels, contributing to a sense of well-being. The smell of chocolate alone may trigger relaxing theta brain waves. Cacao is a decent source of potassium, magnesium, thiamin, riboflavin and vitamins D and E.

Chocolate is innocent of some other sins its been frequently accused of also. Stripped of fattening additions like caramel and nuts, chocolate is not unduly high in calories. It does not cause acne (in reality, diet is pretty irrelevant to acne) or cause cavities. Cocoa butter actually coats the teeth, protecting against plaque formation. Researchers at Eastman Dental Center in Rochester, New York concluded that chocolate is one of the candies least likely to cause tooth decay. Chocolate is enthralling, but not physically addictive. However, some people are allergic to chocolate and some chronic fatigue syndrome sufferers find chocolate aggravates their symptoms. It can also trigger migraine headaches in sensitive individuals. Further, because of the presence of the stimulant theobromine, chocolate can be dangerous for pets, especially dogs.

The type of chocolate you eat affects the health benefits you get. Not only does milk dilute the concentration of cacao in a sweet or beverage, it may actually interfere with the absorption of antioxidants from the cacao, according to Mauro Seralini, PhD, of Italy's National Institute for Food and Nutrition Research. Dark chocolate, ideally at least 70% cacao, is the best choice. All forms of processing (fermentation, roasting, alkalizing) destroy flavonoids, so the less processed the chocolate the better. In the United States, we are used to highly processed chocolate, but more "primitive" versions - processed cold, on a stone wheel, with a grainy texture and discernible cacao nibs - are slowly coming on the market and are amazingly tasty.

I wouldn't issue a blank check to gobble tons of chocolate. Chocolate candies usually carry with them lots of extra sugar, fat and calories. There's no great nutritional value to some gooey caramel-marshmallow-milk chocolate confection. Nor would I rush out and dutifully nibble bags of cacao nibs, like you were taking your daily vitamins. Instead, if you, like the majority of people, like chocolate, I would give yourself license to enjoy this simple pleasure without guilt. A few squares of chocolate, especially the bittersweet, minimally-processed kind, are an elegant and satisfying way to end a meal.