Dark Chocolate For Your Sweet Tooth
I’m sure many of you have heard that refined sugar is not a good health choice. I would like to recommend dark chocolate, an alternative that works for me and is also a good health choice.
What is Dark Chocolate?
All chocolate comes from the cacao tree which is native to the Amazon rain forest. The tree is about 30 feet tall, bears white flowers, and loves shade. For this reason, it is often grown under other taller trees such as banana or rubber trees. Interestingly, the flowers are pollinated by flies, not bees. The botanical name translates to “food of the Gods.”
Cacao beans grow in pods much like peas, but with many more pods on a plant or in this case tree. After the pods are picked and the beans removed, the cacao beans are fermented, which takes about five days. After this, they may or may not be roasted. We frequently hear the term “raw cacao”. However, what we buy as raw cacao may or may not be roasted, but it is always fermented. This is where we must be careful. The fermentation process encourages the growth of bacteria and if that bacteria is not killed through roasting, it is possible that we could become ill. Fortunately, the dark chocolate bars that we buy have been roasted.
It is after the roasting process that milk chocolate and dark chocolate go their separate ways. To get milk chocolate both milk solids and extra sugar are added to the beans. This does not happen to beans that become dark chocolate. Milk solids can be added in varying amounts. A bar that says 30% cacao has 70% milk solids and 30% cacao and so we have milk chocolate. On the other end of the spectrum a bar that says 80% cacao still has 20% milk solids, but is obviously dark chocolate. The more cacao that is in a chocolate bar, the more bitter it is, but also the more healthy it is.
Benefits of Dark Chocolate
To be considered dark chocolate a bar must be 70% or more cacao. When this happens the chocolate bar is filled with nutrients such as fiber, iron, magnesium, copper, manganese, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, and selenium. There is also a small amount of protein. On the downside, there is a good amount of calories. A three and one half oz piece equals 600 calories. This means that dark chocolate, like anything else high in calories, should be eaten in moderation.
Dark chocolate is also a great source of antioxidants. It is antioxidants that overcome the free radicals that are always invading our bodies. I hope to explore free radicals and antioxidants at a later date, but the subject is too immense to go into at this time. It has also been suggested that dark chocolate may reduce the risk of heart disease, protect your skin from the sun, and may improve brain function.
Problems With Dark Chocolate
With all of these benefits, it seems that 1-2 oz of dark chocolate once or twice a week is desirable. One problem that might occur is, if you like me, don’t like a bitter taste. The solution that worked for me was to start with a chocolate bar that didn’t have quite so much cacao. I started with a bar that was 60% cacao, actually not considered dark chocolate and built up to a 75%-80% bar. You could say that I now have an acquired taste.
One other problem that might occur is that dark chocolate contains caffeine. So if you have a problem with caffeine you must listen to what your body is telling you. I talked about listening to your body in my first post. This link will take you there if you want to review or missed it the first time around. I hope you enjoy the good sugar and health benefits of dark chocolate.
Further Information
For anyone interested in learning more about where our chocolate comes from, go to fair trade for more details.
A Reminder
Again I must remind everyone that the content of this blog is strictly for information purposes. If you want to make a change in your diet or exercise routine, it is very important that you contact a health care professional.