In terms of chocolate origins, The “Maya Indians” discovered Cocoa beans from Cocoa Trees in the Amazon basin in America, many years ago. The Maya Indians used the beans for their chocolate syrup and as a currency, several years ago. Christopher Columbus was the 1st to get these beans to Europe. The Maya Indians discovered and developed the delights of cocoa. The growing cocoa trees resulted in the widespread use of chocolates.
Revamp your approach towards chocolate, the healthy snack, or stress-buster.
Considering the growing number of consumers worldwide, the health benefits of chocolate need attention. Here are a few benefits -
Low-Cholesterol: Eating dark chocolates, not in excess but moderately gives the assurance of reducing low-density lipoprotein or bad cholesterol. The “Journal of Nutrition” focuses on the fact that chocolate bars with plant sterols (PS) and cocoa flavanols eaten with a low-fat diet will positively contribute towards your health by lowering cholesterol.
Accelerates Cognitive and Mental Function: Healthcare analysis from Harvard University indicates that intake of hot chocolate or chocolate syrup leads to better blood circulation to brain parts. Health experts also stated that 2 cups of liquid hot chocolate will benefit the senior citizens in terms of keeping the brain healthy.
Heart or Cardiovascular Disease: Chocolate in any form like dark chocolate helps the body to reduce the likelihood of any heart-related disease. As per the British Medical Journal (BMJ), chocolate intake is beneficial and reduces the risk of heart stroke.
Chocolate eating has its own pros and cons. Excess intake of baked chocolates leads to tooth decay. The high content of fats and sugar in chocolate results in obesity leading to a high Body mass index. Eating more chocolate chip cookies leads to weaker bones and osteoporosis with older people.
Quality is of significance. Dark chocolates are the healthiest of all compared to white and milk chocolate. Dark chocolates contain high amounts of cocoa, which proves to be healthy. White chocolates and milk chocolates with more content of sugar or milk are not preferred by health-conscious people. Semi-sweet and baked chocolates rank least in terms of health benefits.
