Eating Chocolate Reduces Chance Of Heart Disease, If You're At Risk

Have a Snickers, you're not you when you're hungry - by Allen Pike

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Have another Kit-kat! At least that's what science is suggesting if you're packing on a bit of extra winter weight.

According to research published by the American Heart Association, eating chocolate on five occasions a week can reduce an overweight person's risk of heart disease.

Research also found that overweight people who didn't sneak in a treat all week were most at risk of coronary related illness.

Analysing 148 465 US veterans, researchers from the VA Boston Healthcare System, uncovered the effects of chocolate in a long-term diet. The average age was 64 per cent and 90 per cent were men. None of the participants had previously experienced heart disease.

Over the course of two and half years, scientists tracked how often the test subjects consumed 28 grams of chocolate. Over the length of the study, 2.7 per cent experienced some sort of coronary artery disease (CAD).

Surprisingly, veterans who included 5 or more servings of chocolate each week were less likely to be included in the 4 065 that experienced heart-related illnesses. Overweight vets with no chocolate in their diet were most at risk.

So...have a snickers, you're not you when you're hungry. But if you're looking to stay in shape, check out the best diet for men.