ATLANTA — ATLANTA – That box of chocolates you get for Valentine’s Day might not offend your New Year’s Resolution after all, and in fact might even help you fight cancer.
It depends on the kind of chocolate.
Check the box you got from your Valentine. If it’s dark chocolate, it can be good for your health.
Why?
Any chocolate with at least 70% cocoa can be good for you. Cocoa beans are chocked with flavanols, the same stuff you find in some fruits and vegetables.
“Consuming dark chocolate can improve several important risk factors for heart disease,” says food and health expert Nancy Waldeck. “Higher percentage dark chocolate contains a higher concentration of antioxidants and nutrients.’
Antioxidants reduce damage to blood cells and help fight cancer.
Generally, there is less sugar and saturated fat in the dark version of chocolate.
A lot of chocolates are processed in a way that changes the color and reduces the bitterness, but that process removes the stuff that’s good for you.
“You want to avoid alkalized or Dutch processed chocolate,” says Waldeck. “We know what happens when you process food; you lose more of its ‘good for you’ ingredients.”
Of course, the health benefits of dark chocolate should not be seen as permission to eat a box a day. A little dark chocolate is good for you. Overeating is not.