We’ve all heard, anecdotally, about the health value of chocolate. But before you dive into the leftover Christmas candy, be sure to check out what these health benefits are – and how to get the most out of the craveworthy cacao bean.
To start, the health benefits are much stronger when you choose chocolate with a higher cacao content. The FDA requires only 10 percent cacao mass to recognize a product as milk chocolate. This requirement is much lower than the standards of Canada and Europe, which require 25 and 35 percent, respectively.
“If you just Google ‘health benefits of dark chocolate,’ you’re going to find the antioxidant benefits, the cardiovascular benefits, the bone and health benefits,” says Denise Steele, founder of Lohcally Artisan Chocolates in Powell. “I think the chocolate industry cannot technically promote the health benefits of chocolate because we add sugar, so it’s kind of a secret, in a way, that chocolate is good for you.”
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Building Blocks
Cacao is the raw bean that makes cacao powder, cocoa butter, cocoa powder – which is made of fermented, roasted and pulverized cacao beans – and all other chocolate products.
To make chocolate bars, cacao beans are harvested from a pulp-and-bean-filled pod, then the beans are crushed and turned into a liquid called chocolate liquor. Chocolate liquor is then pressed to extract the fat, separating cocoa powder (or cocoa fiber) from cocoa butter. Different manufacturers use different ratios of these three extractions to shape the flavor profile and texture of chocolate.
“Chocolate is made up of two things: cocoa butter and cocoa fiber,” Steele says. “Cocoa butter is the fat product in chocolate, and cocoa fiber is the actual flavor. Flavors are carried in fat, so the cocoa butter is the medium to experience the cocoa fiber flavor.”
Perfecting this balance is the key to making high-percent cocoa chocolates taste good. Maybe you’ve had an 80 percent dark chocolate bar and didn’t enjoy it, but that doesn’t mean you should write off all dark chocolates.
The origin of the chocolate makes a big difference in how the final product turns out. Steele says it is best to buy chocolate from a chocolate maker who processes the cacao in the same region where the beans were picked. That is to say, if you want a Peruvian chocolate bar, buy it from a Peruvian chocolate maker.
The flavor of chocolate – much like wine – is impacted by its terroir, or the natural environment in which it is grown.
“When you slow down and actually are trying to think of ‘what am I tasting here?’ you’re getting more of that flavor, of that terroir,” Steele says. “You might notice there are coffee notes to it, or banana or coconut. Wherever it was grown, there will be other notes.”
Mental and Physical
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According to Johns Hopkins University, associating chocolate with guilt, rather than pleasure, can lead to feelings of helplessness and a lack of control, as well as unhealthy eating behaviors, body image dissatisfaction and less success with weight maintenance.
Altering your mentality about a daily piece of chocolate may help steadily control your cravings. Johns Hopkins recommends a square of dark chocolate a day, but you can hold off on a week’s allotment if you are going to have a piece of dark chocolate cake or some similar dessert.
Chocolate has a litany of nutritional benefits thanks to different components naturally found in cocoa beans. It can be good for your heart – again, if it is at least 70 percent cacao content, not your average candy bar – as antioxidants may lower blood pressure, increase circulation to the heart and reduce the risk of blood clots.
Epicatechin in dark chocolate is also good for blood flow, as it increases nitric oxide, which helps with circulation and reduces the amount of oxygen you use when exercising. This means a little dark chocolate before a workout can help you maintain intensity for longer.
Chocolate has also been associated with improvement of certain cognitive functions in young adults, according to the peer-reviewed journal Nutrients, due to polyphenols in cacao beans. Berries, apples, almonds, olives and spinach are other common polyphenol-rich foods.
Chocolate with low fat and sugar content can help fight diabetes with epicatechin, which makes cells stronger. It can also support the processes that help the body use insulin better and prevent or combat diseases.
The chocolate eaters aren’t the only ones benefitting from the sweet confections. Steele gets the same joy out of making her chocolates as her customers do when they eat them.
“Having people try something that I made, it still blows me away that they like it,” Steele says. “That people love it, and they enjoy it and they are captivated by what it looks like and the artistry in it.”
Tyler Kirkendall is an editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at tkirkendall@cityscenemediagroup.com.
