Nutritional Properties of Chocolate and Your Health

CLEVELAND – July 7 is World Chocolate Day and there’s some good news for all the chocolate lovers out there.

While it’s not considered a ‘health food’ per se, chocolate with a high cocoa content has been shown to have nutritional properties that may benefit your health.

“There’s been a lot of studies that show the specific antioxidants in chocolate, specifically flavonoids, have been very helpful with lowering LDL, lowering blood pressure, increasing HDL,” said Julia Zumpano, RD, a registered dietician with Cleveland Clinic.

Zumpano said research suggests flavonoids found in chocolate may increase dopamine and endorphins too, creating a mood boosting effect.

However, she warns that calories can add up quickly with chocolate.

So, she suggests no more than one ounce per day, which is about thirty grams and two-hundred calories.

And the darker the chocolate, the better. She recommends 70% cocoa or higher.

“The higher cocoa content, the more you’re going to get those properties and the bonus to that is the higher the cocoa, generally the lower in sugar,” she explained. “So, if you find a chocolate bar that’s about 90% cocoa, the sugars can be as low as 4 grams, which is extremely low, it’s about a teaspoon of sugar.”

Zumpano advised steering clear of white chocolate and milk chocolate which are high in sugar and fat, and provide no health benefits.