Chocolate Can Keep Cardiovascular System in Shape
(HealthDayNews, 6/1/04)

Mary Engler of the University of California, San Francisco, School of Nursing, and team, collaborated with the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, to test the effect of high-flavonoid chocolate on the cardiovascular system. The investigators assigned 11 volunteers to eat 1.6 ounces of flavonoid-rich chocolate daily for two weeks; while 10 subjects ate an equal amount of low-flavonoid chocolate. When the researchers performed ultrasound tests, they found a 10% improvement in blood flow for those consuming the flavonoids and a small decrease in the other group. The flavonoid group also had an eightfold increase in blood levels of the flavonoid, epicatechin; whereas, the other group showed no change. Scientists note that dark chocolate is a better source of flavonoids than milk chocolate, but they caution against overindulgence because this food is typically laced with unhealthy amounts of sweeteners and fat.