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Enjoy Chocolate Antioxidants for Health

By: Steve Weber

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That's right, as if you needed another reason to indulge in the preferred sweet snack of so many across the globe, it has been proven that chocolate, specifically dark chocolate, carry antioxidants that can be very beneficial to the body.

Going way back to the roots of chocolate, in the cocoa plant, we discover the evidence of polyphenols. Polyphenols are a type of phytochemical present in the cocoa plant, and it's unique compound has been shown to have serious health benefits.

One of the many benefits that chocolate antioxidants have on the body is the regulatory effect they have on the immune system. Our immune systems have a difficult enough task of eliminating free radicals and abnormalities that may trigger disease on their own. Antioxidants found in chocolate can help to keep your system operating at its best and most balanced potential.

If the system gets off balance, it can trigger overproduction of oxygen radicals, which can lead to inflammations inside the immune system that may lead to auto-immune diseases. Antioxidants help to keep that system balanced and steady, lowering the chance of excessive oxygen radical production, and subsequently, immune issues.

Chocolate antioxidants combat free radicals in our body. They can assist the various systems of the body in their daily operations, including the cardiovascular and immune systems. This is good news for the millions of people every year who suffer from heart disease. Additionally, the antioxidant chemicals in cocoa plants have been shown to slow the effects of aging, which many an adult will be glad to hear.

But perhaps the most impressive function of these tasty warriors is their effect on cancer. Flavonoids, one of the antioxidant varieties of polyphenols, have an active effect on the process of carcinogenesis, the process by which cancer forms in the body. Given a regular amount of dark chocolate intake, one can keep their risk of cancer down.

Chocolate antioxidants are a gift of divine taste as it is, but add in the generous health benefits and you have a powerful food. In fact, there is even evidence that cocoa antioxidants have beneficial properties for your dental health, in that the polyphenol antioxidant can help prevent cavities. Take that into consideration and you'll see that chocolate and antioxidants are a winning team.

Chocolate is in the news more and more every day and increasingly, the news is positive and healthy. Chocolate not only tastes great but it is a food that is helpful for your heart, reduces insulin resistance, in some cases, reduces blood pressure. In some circles chocolate is now being touted as antioxidant chocolate!

Research has recently found that cocoa and chocolate are rich sources of antioxidants. The effects that come from cocoa and chocolate are a reduction in blood pressure, a high activity of antioxidants and decreased inflammation.

Another interesting fact about chocolate and antioxidants is that a cup of cocoa-that is, a cup of plain cocoa-- has more antioxidants in it than a glass of red wine and almost three times the amount of antioxidants found in a cup of green tea. A cup of cocoa has more antioxidants than a glass of red wine and almost three times the antioxidants in a cup of green tea

And what is even more interesting is that chocolate-dark chocolate-is loaded with flavonoids-511 mg of flavonoids It is the dark chocolate that has the most antioxidants.

It is important to note that even though chocolate aids in protecting the heart with its goodness of antioxidants, drinking milk with it cancels out the heart benefits of chocolate. So, it appears that when you eat chocolate, be sure to leave out the milk.

More good reasons why chocolate is so good for you are the following: dark chocolate has less sugar in it than white or milk chocolate and studies have shown that eating just a small portion of dark chocolate may actually reduce blood clots from forming-blood clots that can cause a stroke or heart attack and may also lower blood pressure.

And, what is even better is that dark chocolate antioxidants is also known to lift your mood and offer a boost of energy. On the down side, chocolate is high in calories and does contain saturated fat. So, perhaps the best advice on dark chocolate is to enjoy it in moderation.

Still another healthy point about dark chocolate antioxidants is that it may help lower the odds of you and me getting dementia and stroke. Research has shown that blood flow to the brain decreases during a person' lifetime and can cause harm. In a study that was conducted at Harvard several years ago with adults between the ages of 59-83 who were given a hot cocoa beverage on a daily basis for a week they found an 8% increase in blood flow with the brain and in two weeks a 10% increase.

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Steven Weber is an avid runner and "health nut" has more articles on his web site, CactusCanyon, about chocolate antioxidants.

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