Chocolate is everyone’s favourite flavour and to just pop a chocolate in your mouth gives happiness, with this the stress that we go through in our day-to-day life also calms down automatically. While we celebrate World Chocolate Day on July 7, we tried to find out the health benefits of having chocolate. You might find it crazy to learn about the health benefits of chocolate, but it’s true that most of us do not accept that chocolate could help you both mentally and physically. We speak to experts who help us understand the health benefits of chocolate.
Sujatha Stephen RD, Chief Nutritionist, Yashoda Hospitals, Malakpet, helps us understand the health benefits of chocolate. “Chocolate is made of cocoa and it contains flavonoids and antioxidant properties that help in inflammation and also elevate your mood. People have some kind of emotional bond with food and one of the most preferred foods that people love to eat even though they are not hungry and just crave good food is chocolate. It is beneficial for your mind and also your body, but you need to have it in a controlled portion. It is good for heart health as it helps in reducing blood pressure and also heart strokes as it contains a lot of antioxidants. Dark chocolate which contains more cocoa and flavonoids is good for immunity. For diabetes, you have to have dark chocolate which does not contain sugar.
The brain function also gives a huge impact, it elevates your mood and improves your hormones like dopamine which makes you feel better. It is also a boost-up, as it gives you energy when you are down. Even for good sleep, you can have chocolate. Chocolates which contain at least 70 per cent of cocoa would help you and not sugar or butter-based chocolate. Always have portion control and do not eat a complete chocolate bar, a small piece is good and it’s better than having a burger or pizza. Do not have chocolate on a daily basis but twice a week. There is no recommendation, but it is an alternative to the junk food that you have. Always opt for dark chocolate as it contains a lot of minerals so you could choose it over any other chocolate.”
According to experts, chocolates are a big game-changer for skin as well. “The big game-changer for skin is the antioxidant content of chocolate. It is rich in antioxidants like flavonols, and polyphenols amongst others and these have a multitude of benefits for the skin. A Lesser known fact is that flavonols in chocolate can provide protection against the sun. Antioxidants help curb free radicals produced in the body and help with promoting cellular regeneration and anti-ageing.
The caffeine content makes the cocoa grinds good for exfoliation on the body and the antioxidant and fatty acid content make it great as a moisturiser providing hydration and nourishment,” shares Dr Syed Shazia Fatima, Consultant for Cosmetic Dermatology and Aesthetic Medicine about the benefits of chocolate on your skin.