Chocolate has some pretty amazing properties that have positive impacts on your health. Cacao consumption decreases LDL and total cholesterol levels without affecting HDL cholesterol. It makes the LDL more
resistant to oxidation, thereby reducing inflammation. It’s rich in nutrients,particularly fiber and all essential minerals. Plus, cacao has many phytochemicals that make it a potent antioxidant. Cacao flavonoids have been shown to improve cardiovascular health.
So you should eat it, but a lot of chocolate has very little cacao in it! At one extreme would be white chocolate, which has no cacao in it at all. The more cacao, the darker and healthier the chocolate. I’m a fan of the Lindt Excellence dark chocolate bar, and I usually get the 85% Dark because I figured I’m getting plenty of the healthy stuff, with a little of the tasty stuff mixed in. Best of both worlds. When the 85% isn’t available, I go up, never down. 90% is a regular substitute for me. A little more bitter which is actually good since it tends to limit me to one little square of deliciousness at a time. In my last trip to hunt and gather in the modern world at Walmart, I had to climb the cacao ladder and go to 95%.
My experience with it has been eye opening. It is delicious of course, with a rich flavor and substantive texture so I feel like I’m actually chewing something vs. it melting in my mouth. The surprise was that it wasn’t particularly bitter. It goes amazingly well with a sip of coffee and maybe a teaspoon of peanut butter if you really want to be decadent.
So going forward, I will remain at the 95% level of cacao scrumptiousness to maximize the goodness to my body while simultaneously satisfying the hedonist that lurks deep in my brain.
Joe's Blog 