100% cocoa chocolate is the latest trend on the high street and sales are definitely on the rise. It’s a strong, bitter taste and has some describing it as tasting of tobacco, but is pure chocolate really better for our health?
Authentic dark chocolate, has no milk added to it and should be above 35% cocoa solids and is a rich and acquired taste.
100% dark chocolate doesn’t contain any sugar to sweeten, any vanilla to hide any deficiencies in the bean or any soya, or other type of lecithin, to aid viscosity in the production process. It’s a type of chocolate that shouldn’t be eaten like any other chocolate bar. Savour it one square at a time
So is dark chocolate more natural and healthier for us?
Dark chocolate is full of polyphenols including epicatechin, a flavanol which are key antioxidants. It is also said to help lower blood pressure, in a 15 days study of a number of people consuming dark chocolate daily it was seen that their blood sugar levels returned to normal compared to the control group.
So if your prone to a chocolate bar, make it dark and make it above 50% cocoa solids and enjoy that tasty square of decadence – it’s all about balance.
Sue Davies – Editor of Thrive Magazine
