Dark Chocolate and Heart Health, is it a Treat , a Treatment or both?Search here to quickly find the information you're looking for.  Custom Search What's all the excitement concerning dark chocolate and heart health? It's antioxidants, powerful disease fighting compounds. Chocolate is loaded with them. Combine those with its essential minerals and you've got powerful support for your cardiovascular system. Finally, something that tastes good and is good for you. It's no dream. The evidence is growing. Flavonoid-rich dark chocolate provides benefits critical to maintaining a healthy heart and arteries. Finding it hard to swallow? Get the details below.
Effects of Dark Chocolate on Heart HealthDark chocolate is one of the most antioxidant-rich foods known thanks to the polyphenols or flavonoids found in cocoa. These substances protect plants from disease and insects. Lucky for us, they survive food processing and pass on their protection.They just might be chocolate's greatest gift to the heart. Studies have shown that these antioxidants reduce risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease such as...
All of this contributes to better blood flow which decreases your chance of developing heart disease! So eat dark chocolate (70% cocoa or more) and get all this potential heart help.
Heart Attack PreventionWant to reduce your risk of having a heart attack? Then you might want to give cocoa a try.It slows down the clotting of the blood. This reduces the risk of a clot forming and causing a heart attack. Studies have shown that it does so nearly as well as low-dose aspirin. Sure tastes a lot better!
Post Heart AttackAlready had a heart attack? Eating dark chocolate a minimum of twice a week may help you live longer according to a study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine in 2009.The study found that non-diabetic survivors of a first heart attack who ate chocolate at least twice a week had a 66 percent reduction in cardiac mortality. Those that ate it up to once a week had a 44 percent reduction. Even those that ate it less than once a month had a 27 percent reduction. Apparently you don't have to be a chocoholic to see improvement. Looks like another health benefit of dark chocolate to enjoy. But, as usual, more studies are needed to confirm these positive dark chocolate and heart health findings.
Dark Chocolate and Blood PressureNeed to shave a few points off your blood pressure? Dark chocolate may be an option. Eating cocoa-rich dark chocolate can lower blood pressure about as well as being treated with a single common blood pressure medication.That's an average reduction of...
Every little bit helps!
Dark Chocolate and Heart Health: Older WomenAttention ladies at least 70 years young. Dr. Lewis conducted a study and found that dark chocolate may help your heart.Women who ate bittersweet at least once a week reduced their incidence of heart disease. They were 35% less likely to have to be hospitalized or die from heart disease. And a whopping 60% less likely to be hospitalized or die from heart failure. Why? Unknown. More information is needed to determine cause and effect.
Dark Chocolate to Lower Cholesterol?Problems with cholesterol are something we all try to avoid. Now it looks like dark chocolate and cocoa may be able to help.Drinking cocoa beverages slowed the oxidation of LDL (bad) cholesterol. Oxidized LDL can lead to hardening of the arteries. Consumed together, they've been shown to improve levels of HDL (good) cholesterol and oxidized LDL (bad) cholesterol in the blood. Also their use has improved the ratio of good cholesterol to bad cholesterol.
Reduced Inflammatory ResponseThe flavonoids in cocoa decrease the body's response to inflammation. This is very important because things like infection, free radicals, and smoking can cause persistent damage to the lining of your arteries.The damage causes inflammation which the body tries to heal by drawing specialized cells and molecules to the site. This encourages the development of artery clogging plaque (fatty deposits). Unfortunately, the arteries are prone to hardening in the area of the deposits. This makes blood clots more likely. It looks like cocoa can help reduce the danger.
Keep Those Arteries HealthyAn essential dark chocolate and heart health connection is flexible arteries. The antioxidants in cocoa help arteries to maintain their elasticity or to regain it. This allows them to expand and increases blood flow.It seems that older people arteries show the most improvement in function after consuming cocoa.
Dark Chocolate and Heart Health Essential MineralsAre you getting enough magnesium, potassium, and calcium in your diet? Chances are you're falling short. These three minerals play an important role in proper muscle function. And what is the heart? A muscle, not to mention all that muscle lining your blood vessels. Fortunately, dark chocolate is an excellent source of magnesium which signals muscles to relax and contract. The potassium and calcium help muscles to contract.
Just remember not to overdo it, dark chocolate is calorie dense. Shoot for a cocoa content of 70% or more.
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