Either
this is too good to be true or I’ve just died and gone to heaven.
According
to an article in the prestigious Scientific
American magazine, “It's news chocolate lovers have been craving: raw cocoa
may be packed with brain-boosting compounds. Researchers at the University of
L'Aquila in Italy, with scientists from Mars, Inc., and their colleagues
published findings last September that suggest cognitive function in the
elderly is improved by ingesting high levels of natural compounds found in
cocoa called flavanols.”
Now
I’m a little concerned about this study as Mars, a huge chocolatier, was
involved in the study. On the other hand, as a boss of my once told me, never
let the truth get in the way of a good story.
Daisy
Yuhas, author of the article, notes that “Subjects who drank a cocoa beverage
containing either moderate or high levels of flavanols daily for eight weeks
demonstrated greater cognitive function than those who consumed low levels of
flavanols on three separate tests that measured factors that included verbal
fluency, visual searching and attention.”
Wait
a minute! I need to improve my verbal fluency, visual searching and attention.
I need chocolate.
So,
can I go on a mega-chocolate binge? And what about my dark chocolate with its
wonderfully adult, seductive taste?
Here’
Yuhas just destroys my hopes and dreams as she says “Nope, sorry. A food's
origin, processing, storage and preparation can each alter its chemical
composition. As a result, it is nearly impossible to predict which
flavanols—and how many—remain in your bonbon or cup of tea. Tragically for
chocoholics, most methods of processing cocoa remove many of the flavanols
found in the raw plant. Even dark chocolate, touted as the “healthy” option,
can be treated such that the cocoa darkens while flavanols are stripped.”
It’s
a fun article. Here’s the link:
Image
credit: <a href='http://www.123rf.com/photo_11551845_splash-of-chocolate-isolated-on-white-background.html'>kubais
/ 123RF Stock Photo</a>
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