New benefits are added based on scientific research. Find out why you should add chocolate to your daily routine.
If we could drop everything and eat and drink chocolate for the rest of our life—we WOULD. From its discovery by Spaniards in c XVI Mexico, chocolate has spread ALL over the World. People from what are today Mexico and other Central and South American countries drunk chocolate, an energetic, bitter beverage regarded as a gift of the gods. Being now as popular as ever, chocolate might add some weigh if taken in large amounts, but consciously consumed has wonderful properties.
New benefits are added from time to time based on rigorous scientific research. More than food, bliss:
- Chocolate is a good source of minerals like zinc, selenium and iron.
- The flavanols present in chocolate have an anti-aging effect due to its antioxidant properties.
- Chocolate is also good for the brain. According to a recent study, cocoa flavanols, in particular, epicatechin, reduced memory loss as we aged. This effect was correlated with higher blood flow to the dental gyrus, an area in the brain’s hippocampus where memories are stored.
- The major psychoactive components of chocolate are flavanols and caffeine and theobromine or methylxantines. These components of chocolate improve alertness, psychomotor functions, and mood. The feeling-good effect is appealing. We know that the effect is partly mediated by activation of the reward-related brain regions. Chocolate contain chemicals related to the endogenous cannabinoid anandamide. Anandamide activates cannabinoid receptors in the brain, mimicking the psychoactive effects of cannabinoid drugs, provoking heightened sensitivity and euphoria. And anandamide comes from Sanskit word ananda that means bliss: the internal bliss!