The chocolate it is one of the most popular food products, starting from children up to the elderly. It is well known that there are various types of chocolate, there are those who prefer it to milk, those white and those who prefer dark chocolate. Among these, dark chocolate would be the one to be preferred, since it is the one that has the greatest amount of benefits for our body, even if not everyone prefers its more bitter taste, preferring, instead, the milk chocolate, as in the case of children.
The basic ingredient of chocolate is obviously the cacao, so the benefits of this product come from the cocoa itself. In order for dark chocolate to have a greater quantity of beneficial effects for our health, it would be preferable to choose a chocolate with a cocoa percentage of at least 70%.
Nutritional values and composition of chocolate
Chocolate is a food rich in both saturated and monounsaturated fats. Among the monounsaturated ones, the most abundant is oleic acid. Among the saturated fatty acids, however, the most represented are stearic acid and palmitic acid.
In addition to fatty acids in the dark chocolate it contains many mineral salts, among these we mention magnesium, potassium, copper and iron. Still, other abundantly present compounds are polyphenols, with innumerable beneficial properties. Among these polyphenols, catechins, anthocyanins and proanthocyanidins are the most abundant.
Dark chocolate is a panacea for health, it is a powerful antioxidant and natural anti-inflammatory.
Benefits of dark chocolate
Dark chocolate seems to extend life. People who regularly take a small amount of dark chocolate have lower blood pressure values, which leads to greater prevention of cardiovascular diseases. There is a reduction in bad cholesterol, in favor of good cholesterol.
Chocolate is an excellent natural antidepressant. This action is due to the production of serotonin, it is a good mood hormone that has an exciting and antidepressant action on the nervous system. Chocolate protects against neurodegenerative diseases, such as senile dementia and Alzheimer’s.
It does not make you fat if consumed in the right doses. Despite being a caloric food, it is not necessary to completely eliminate it from your diet, it does not make you fat, indeed, it would seem to stimulate weight loss. This property is also due to the presence of fibers, which increase the sense of satiety. Furthermore, it appears that consuming chocolate helps reduce the absorption of fats and carbohydrates.
Even people with diabetes can consume it, obviously always in small doses, and going to prefer a chocolate with a higher percentage of cocoa. The higher the percentage of cocoa, the less sugar will be present, the greater the benefits will be.
All these benefits are certainly also provided by milk chocolate, with the difference, however, that milk chocolate, containing a greater quantity of sugar, will make you fat a little more and will cause a higher blood sugar increase, precisely due to the presence of sugars, therefore it is not recommended to consume it regularly for those suffering from diabetes.
Differences between dark chocolate and milk chocolate
Regarding the amount of calories, there is not a high difference between the two types of chocolate. In fact, 100 grams of milk chocolate provide an average of 560 Kcal, while 100 grams of dark chocolate brings about 540, so the difference is negligible. It must be said, however, that in milk chocolate the quantity of fats is greater than in dark chocolate, moreover, dark chocolate does not bring cholesterol and contains more fiber.
Compared to milk chocolate, dark chocolate contains more minerals and vitamins, such as copper, manganese, iron and phosphorus. In milk chocolate, then, there are greater quantities of sugar.
–
