As reported by MH yesterday, Munich is currently playing host to the European Society of Cardiology Conference, and scientific knowledge-bombs are dropping left, right and centre, with none more important than the latest claim; eating 3 chocolate bars every month can hold significant benefits for heart health.
Chocolate has already been proven to be a strong ally in the quest for health, reducing both wrinkles and stress, however the new study proposes that in moderation, sugary, store bought, chocolate bars can reduce your risk of heart failure.
Based on data collected from more than 500,000 adults, scientists concluded that up to 3 chocolate bars per month can result in a 23 per cent reduced risk of heart disease.
“I believe that chocolate is an important dietary source of flavonoids which are associated with reducing inflammation and increasing good cholesterol,” said lead researcher of the study, Dr. Chayakrit Krittanawong of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, according to The Telegraph.
Flavonoids promote blood flow and circulation through and increase in nitric oxide levels, however hold off from booking your Cadbury factory tour just yet…
As with all news that sounds too good to be true, there is a devastating flip-side to this new research; eating more than 3 bars a month can actually increase your risk of heart complications by 17 per cent. Ugh.
“Chocolate may have high levels of saturated fats,” added Dr. Krittanawong. “I would say moderate dark chocolate consumption is good for health.”
Hey, dark chocolate is better than no chocolate at all. Bring it on we say.
