A Chocolate A Day... Dark Chocolate As Good As Heart Meds for High Blood Pressure?"Overall, there is compelling evidence that a high dietary flavanol intake reduces the risk of coronary heart disease and the associated risk of premature death," according to Ian MacDonald, co-director of the Institute of Clinical Research at the University of Nottingham. Flavanols are found in other foods, such as red wine, grapes, apples and green tea, although cocoa beans are a particularly rich source. The ORAC value rating of the antioxidants in dark chocolate is 13,000 per 100 grams, whereas blueberries are rated at 2,400 and spinach at 1,200 per 100 grams. Science is just beginning to show how eating dark chocolate can help avoid going on heart meds for high blood pressure, high cholesterol and risk of a heart attack or stroke. Even though statins such as Lipitor have become the most prescribed drugs in the world, you may want to avoid the side effects associated with their use, such as muscle weakness and memory loss. These side effects are not easy to distinguish from just getting older, so they may go unnoticed. DARK CHOCOLATE -- NOT WHITE CHOCOLATE -- lowers high blood pressure, say Dirk Taubert, MD, PhD, and colleagues at the University of Cologne, Germany, in the The Journal of the American Medical Association. Taubert's team tested six men and seven women aged 55-64, all of whom had just been diagnosed with mild high blood pressure. Every day for two weeks, they ate a 100-gram candy bar and were asked to balance its 480 calories by not eating other foods similar in nutrients and calories. Half the patients got dark chocolate and half got white chocolate. Those who ate dark chocolate had a significant drop in blood pressure (by an average of 5 points for systolic and an average of 2 points for diastolic blood pressure). Those who ate white chocolate did not. Best Chocolate For A Guilt-Free Habit?If you have high blood pressure, a daily bar-sized serving of flavonol-rich dark chocolate might lower your blood pressure and improve insulin resistance, report researchers in Hypertension, the Journal of the American Heart Association.Although we are being cautioned that chocolate is fattening, there is very little risk when you buy high quality 70% to 85% cocoa dark, bittersweet chocolate. Regular but moderate consumption is best - one ounce per day. High quality dark chocolate is not laced with sugar like the sweeter less "bitter" chocolate candies of the typical box of chocolates. Confectioners have spent years trying to perfect ways to remove the pungent flavor, because flavanols make chocolate and cocoa taste bitter. Chocolates made in Europe are generally richer in cocoa phenols than those made in the U.S. So remember, darker is better. Organic chocolate is more likely to be of high quality and have been carefully prepared to preserve the flavenols and phenols. Organic is also better because cocoa crops tend to be heavily treated with pesticides. Organic cocoa and chocolate minimize your exposure to residue. Here are some best picks: Order Dark Chocolate Bars Rain Forest Chocolate Ghiardelli Chocolate Bars and Ghiradeli Gift Baskets Dagoba Organic Dark Chocolate Bars FAIR TRADE Coco Camino From the Caribbean and South America How A Chocolate A Day Keeps the Meds AwayThere is a growing body of research that shows this favorite food is packed with high-quality polyphenol antioxidants -- beneficial compounds similar to those found in fruits, vegetables and red wine that reduce the risk for developing heart disease, as well as offer some anti-aging health benefits.Rather than the risk of negative side effects of long-term use of drugs, you can instead be pro-active knowing the benefits of eating dark chocolate. While the body of science is still developing, here are some reports as to why to include daily dark chocolate as a habit to stave off heart problems: ANTI-CHOLESTEROL There are antioxidants in chocolate that help block chemical changes in bad LDL cholesterol that would otherwise lead to clogged arteries. Chemist, Dr. Joe A. Vinson, of the University of Scranton found chocolate's antioxidants to counteract LDLs better than did vitamin C or vitamin E. Research by Penny Kris-Etherton at Pennsylvania State University shows that diets rich in dark chocolate or cocoa powder are protective: "The results for subjects consuming the dark chocolate and cocoa powder showed that the increased antioxidant levels PROTECTED THE LDL CHOLESTEROL (BAD CHOLESTEROL) FROM BEING OXIDIZED. This is important because it is what starts the process of atherosclerosis. In addition, HDL cholesterol (GOOD CHOLESTEROL) LEVELS WERE INCREASED. Both of these findings are associated with a decreased risk of heart disease," explains Kris-Etherton. Current research on chocolate was spurred by earlier findings in Japan, where researchers fed cocoa extract to rabbits and found that it RETARDED CHOLESTEROL OXIDATION which leads to artery plaque build-up. In another experiment, a phenol compound in cocoa called epicatechin was shown to inhibit the formation of skin tumors in mice. CLOT BLOCKER Chocolate antioxidants act like aspirin to reduce blood platelet stickiness and thus the clotting that triggers heart attacks and strokes. In a recent study, 30 subjects drank water, a caffeine drink or a cocoa drink containing the antioxidants of one and a half normal hot cocoa drink. The cocoa significantly delayed blood-clotting time. CHOCOLATE FOR BLOOD PRESSURE Those who ate dark chocolate in Dr Tauberts study had a significant drop in blood pressure (by an average of 5 points for systolic and an average of 2 points for diastolic blood pressure). Chocolate was also found to be a blood vessel relaxant in research published in the Journal of Nutrition, by Kappagoda and Tissa. Cocoa and Chocolate Research Links How The 70% Organic Chocolate BAR Got To BeIt all started back in London in 1991 when Craig Sams, founder of Whole Earth - the pioneering organic food company - was sent a sample of dark 70% chocolate made from organic cocoa beans. His wife, environment columnist for The Times and confirmed chocoholic, Josephine Fairley, found the half eaten bar on Craig's desk and sampled some for herself.The intense flavor was unique and unlike anything she had tasted before. Jo was convinced other chocolate lovers would appreciate it in the same way she had and they set about making the world's first organic chocolate. The final product was a high-quality, bittersweet dark chocolate bar, packed with 70% cocoa solids - enough to make chocolate fans sit up and take notice. Their Green and Blacks Organic Hot Chocolate is made with Fairtrade fine flavored cocoa beans, the same as those used to make their chocolate. Their cocoa powder has a complex flavor and is alkalized or "Dutched" to emphasize the robust chocolately notes. Ideal for enjoying with hot milk as a soothing night time drink. ORDER The Most Heavenly Chocolate On Earth Make Hot Chocolate With Organic Bittersweet Chocolate Chocolate Growing: Empowering Cocoa CommunitiesChocolate is not only good for you, but it is the livelihood of many small farmers around the world.Find out more about buying dignity by supporting small family farmers and fostering sustainable, healthy and profitable farming practices so that it is a win - win for everyone. Getting Side Benefits Instead of Drug Side EffectsPROTECTION: Chocolate is rich in cell-protecting antioxidants. Antioxidants gobble up free radicals, destructive molecules that are implicated in heart disease and other ailments.A 1.4-ounce piece of milk chocolate typically has 400 milligrams of antioxidants, as much as in a glass of red wine. Dark chocolate has twice as much; white chocolate, none. Antioxidant activity jumped 31% in the blood of subjects at the University of California, Davis, two hours after eating 2.8 ounces of M&Ms semisweet baking bits. A diet that is heart-healthy does not only lower cholesterol, as do statins such as Lipitor, but they have other side benefits including improving blood pressure and being anti-clotting. Links for Best Heart Health What Nutrtion Helps Heart Health? Best Heart Surgery Nutrition Heart Rate Variability and Nutrition Nutrition Helps Heart Health Compared to Meds A Chocolate A Day... Dark Chocolate For Hypertension, High Blood Pressere and Avoiding Heart MedsGO to Health Discoveries HOME PAGE from Dark Chocolate
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