Chocolates & your heart

Studies have proved that chocolates and cocoa are good for heart, though they caution about caffeine.

Here's good news for all the chocolate and cocoa lovers. Some recent studies have proved that chocolates and cocoa are good for heart, though they caution about caffeine.

HT Image

A study conducted by Charalambos Vlachopoulos, MD, of the Athens Medical School, Athens, Greece has revealed that dark chocolates rich in flavonoids which are chemical compounds found naturally in some fruits, vegetables etc, decrease stiffness in arteries and improved the endothelial functions.

Beyond its pleasant taste, dark chocolate, by improving endothelial function and arterial stiffness, emerges as a promising food, high in nutritional value.

" At this time, we do not know whether the regular intake of dark chocolate or other cocoa beverages could result in a reduction of total cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Until that time, people should regard the chocolate they enjoy not as a magic beverage like the Aztecs did, but rather as a food which perhaps promotes their cardiovascular health," Vlachopoulos said.

However a study conducted by Chris Papamichael, MD, Alexandra University has shown that caffeine could adversely effect the endothelial function of healthy people.

"Coffee and caffeine, its main ingredient, are consumed by at least eight of ten adults in western countries, with a mean per capita consumption of approximately 200 mg a day. However, the medical community has long viewed caffeine with suspicion," Papamichael said.

"After drinking regular coffee, FMD decreased. There was no such effect when the test subjects drank decaffeinated coffee. Our results indicate that this effect was directly attributed to caffeine since the quantity of caffeine was the unique difference between the two beverages," he added.