OneClickDiet.com - Nutritional benefits of cocoa

Cocoa butter is composed approximately by 2/3 of saturated fat (1/3 palmitic acid and 1/3 stearic acid) and 1/3 of monounsaturated fat (oleic acid). Therefore, theoretically speaking only 2/3 of cocoa butter is unhealthy fat. Also cocoa butter contains less than 3% of linoleic acid (one of the omega-6 fats).

The content of saturated fat in chocolate greatly varies depending on the brand and type of chocolate, with milk chocolate and chocolate syrup being fattier than dark chocolate. White chocolate is among the highest in fat content and should not be considered chocolate in a first place since it does not contain cocoa.

In addition to the fat content, excessive cocoa consumption may have effects similar to caffeine. Excessive theobromine can cause addiction, sleeplessness, anxiety, as well as over-stimulation of the urinary system. So, based on this information, should chocolate be incorporated into an everyday diet? Can chocolate be used as substitute for oranges, carrots and other sources of antioxidants?

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Chocolate is considered one of the most concentrated sources of nutrients you can possibly find. This makes it particularly useful for athletes who need a fast release of high energy. A glass of warm low-fat milk with a spoon of pure dark cocoa sweetened with brown sugar is an excellent recovery drink after a jog or workout at the gym. Even better, chocolate contains twice as much nitrogenous matter and twenty-five times more fat matter than flour. Also, pure cocoa contains twice as many antioxidants than red wine and three times more than green tea.

Consuming cocoa is a preferable choice over chocolate bars. This way you would eliminate the fat that is artificially added to the product during manufacturing, and you would stick to the natural fat produced by the plant. Also, a lot of nutrients naturally present in cocoa are diluted during the preparation of chocolate when they are mixed with cocoa butter. Chocolate bars, for example, contain 10 times less theobromine and way less antioxidants than cocoa powder itself.

Other aspects of chemical processing of cocoa to chocolate regard its treatment with alkali. Alkali are said to be added to cocoa to improve its solubility through saponification (the chemical transformation of fatty acids into detergents) of the cocoa butter component; an aesthetic "improvement" that people willing to stick to "clean" diets can stay away from.

When you do choose a chocolate bar, it is recommended to stay away from high sugar, high fat products like milk chocolate or white chocolate. Try to pick dark chocolate with the highest cocoa content you can (75% and up). More cocoa means that the beneficial nutrients are not diluted away by the cocoa butter added during the manufacturing process. Having said so, for many people the bitter taste of dark chocolate is less appealing than the sweet taste of milk chocolate. Fortunately, there are plenty of products on the market which combine dry fruit and nuts with dark chocolate, offering a healthier sweet chocolate alternative. For those who need sweet taste at all costs for example, a good choice can be dark chocolate with dry cranberries, raisins, or candied orange peel.

That depends. If you are an active person and have control over the other sources of calories in your diet, there should not be any problem in incorporating moderate amounts of cocoa products in your diet routine. It is obviously a matter of avoiding excess consumption and, more than anything, making the right choice at the supermarket.

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