By Colin E. Champ, MD, CSCS – Radiation Oncologist
Is chocolate healthy? It sure can be! To take advantage of its health benefits, however, you first need to understand its science.
Chocolate comes from the cacao tree. Seeds are extracted from the pods and fermented, dried, and roasted into what we know as cocoa beans. Once shelled, resulting cacoa solids or “meat” and cacoa butter are separated and then ground and melted to produce a raw chocolate liquid or liquor. Sounds heavenly, huh? Here’s the catch: Once in the hands of commercial manufacturers (think Hersey, Nestle, Cadbury), cacoa liquor is then often processed with other, not-so-healthy ingredients, like sugar, milk powder, and emulsifying chemicals, to name just a couple.
Cacoa liquor can be hardened and served raw, combined with cacoa butter to make it creamy, or processed with sugar or milk products to sweeten its flavor. Chocolatiers have their signature blends based on the below formulas with varying proportions of ingredients:
• Unsweetened chocolate: 100% cacoa, no added
ingredients
• Dark chocolate: 50-70% cocoa, cacoa butter, and
some sugar added
• Milk chocolate: 35-50% cocoa, cacoa butter, and
sweetened with sugar and milk products
• White chocolate: less that 35% cacoa from only
cacoa butter (no cacoa meat) and sweetened and
with sugar and milk
Chocolate has long been sensationalized, based on research that cacoa provides a plethora of health benefits. However, keep in mind that not all chocolate is created equally, and some mass-produced chocolate contains very little cacoa (as low as 7 percent in many cases) and a lot of additives, like fats, oils, flavors and colors.
Dark chocolate is your healthiest choice of chocolate, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s MyPlate guidelines even allows for it, in moderation, as a healthy treat. Here’s how to choose your best bar to reap those health benefits:
Flavanols.
Cacoa naturally has a very strong, pungent taste, which comes from a nutrient called, “flavanol”. Flavanols are a type of flavonoid found in plants that protects against environmental toxins and repairs damage. They can be found in a variety of foods, such as fruits and vegetables, and when we eat foods rich in flavonoids, it appears that we also benefit from this “antioxidant” power. However, when cocoa is processed – whether in milk chocolate concoctions or with additives like sweeteners or colors – flavanols are lost.
To benefit the best from chocolate’s flavanol properties, choose dark chocolate that contains unprocessed cacao beans or raw cacao powder.
Maximize the cacoa percentage.
The benefits of chocolate come from the cocoa – not the additives. So, the greater the percentage of cocoa, the greater the benefits. Quality dark chocolate advertises the percentage of cacao, and it’s suggested to aim for above 75 percent.
Low fat, high fiber.
Dark chocolate can be surprisingly high in nutrients. The fat in dark chocolate mostly comes from cocoa butter and is made up of the heart-healthy monounsaturated fat. A bar of dark chocolate also contains fiber, which aids in digestion health. The fiber in dark chocolate is soluble fiber, which is broken down and fermented by our bowel bacteria into the healthy anticancer fat. Read your chocolate nutrition label, and look for high fat and fiber bars.
Low sugar.
Sugar is added to cacoa to reduce its bitter taste. Milk and white chocolates not only has less cacao and fewer flavanols, but also contains about twice as much sugar as dark. And, while dark chocolate may contain sugar, look for the lowest possible content to keep those calories low.
Avoid additives.
Dark chocolate is absolutely science – especially if it both tastes good and is good for you. The more ingredients on your chocolate bar’s nutrition label, the more additives it contains. To smooth and stabilize chocolate, many manufacturers use an emulsifier, like soy lecithin. Lecithin is a thick GMO substance, often derived from soybeans and sometimes eggs. Vegetable oils are often used in cheaper chocolate to mask poorly fermented and/or roasted cacao beans. And artificial flavors, like vanilla, are incorporated to disguise low-quality beans.
Caffeine kick.
Cacoa naturally contains coffee, though varies widely according to where it is grown (South American and Caribbean cacoa is known for its high caffeine content). The higher the cacao percentage, the higher the caffeine. 100% unsweetened chocolate can have as much caffeine as an espresso shot. Most dark chocolates, however, contain less caffeine and can be healthier if you need an energy kick. Dark chocolate can give the boost of energy and focus, but you probably won’t experience any jitters or midday crash, and you’ll most likely sleep better at night.
Dark chocolate can indeed be good for you! If chosen wisely, dark chocolate is a food to love that will love you back.
INSPIRE EXERCISE MEDICINE
239.429.0800
www.Inspireem.com
3555 Kraft Road, Suite 130, Naples, FL 34105
Dr. Colin Champ, MD, CSCS
Dr. Colin Champ, MD, CSCS, is a radiation oncologist with board certifications in radiation oncology and integrative and holistic medicine. Dr. Champ is a certified strength and conditioning specialist, and his research interests include the prevention and treatment of cancer with lifestyle modification, including exercise and dietary modification.