The more chocolate is processed then the less healthy it is for you. Whilst all chocolate contains some of the health benefits described in this article, dark chocolate is the best for you. It is additives such as fructose corn syrup that will cause you damage. So think of your chocolate intake as a luxury. And buy the best quality chocolate you can afford, then you can enjoy this guilty pleasure without the guilt.
Chocolate literally makes you happy. It is well recognised that nowadays people appear to be more depressed than ever. The population of the developed world are over medicated and they still seem to be unhappy. Perhaps everyone would be a little better off if they just ate more chocolate. Chocolate contains serotonin which literally makes the eater happier.
Not only this but when we eat chocolate endorphins are released into the body. Again the result is increased happiness. Finally chocolate melts at a slightly lower temperature than the body temperature. Chocolate really does melt in the mouth. And many describe the feeling as being akin to a passionate kiss. No wonder then that eating chocolate makes us happy!
Chocolate does more than make us happy however. It also decreases our blood pressure. One of the most common killers of the modern age is cardiovascular disease. And chocolate is directly responsible for lowering your blood pressure. Not only this but eating chocolate lowers your low-density lipoprotein levels. These are the transporters which carry potentially harmful cholesterol within the blood stream.
Again chocolate is helping to prevent heart disease. Believe it or not but eating chocolate really could save your life.
Chocolate is not only a fighter of heart disease. It is also useful in the prevention of that other scourge of modern times which is cancer. Chocolate helps to reduce cell division and inflammation. Whilst all the ways in which chocolate is able to fight cancer are not yet known, it seems a safe bet that adding a little chocolate to your diet will do no harm. But do not go too far and eat too much.
Chocolate also contains flavonoids. These help to counter the free radicals in the body. Free Radicals are any molecule that has an unpaired electron in it's outer shell. These free radicals damage proteins and DNA and actually speed up the ageing process. Chocolate helps to counter and in effect slow the ageing process. A Dutch study showed that men who consume chocolate tend to live longer than those who don't.
The health benefits of chocolate are wide ranging and significant. Chocolate not only makes you happier, it may extend your life. Not only does it fight off the two most common killers of people in the developed world, cancer and heart disease, but it tastes really delicious.
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