I'm going to make millions of you very happy now. Its official, chocoloate is good for you, its actually good for your brain. Yes, yes, I can hear you saying we already know that. We already know that chocolate stimulates the production of feel-good chemicals, thats why its so addictive. No, this news is even better. Now we know that dark chocolate boosts your brain whilst protecting you from heart disease and cancer.
Eating 20-150g per day can improve learning and memory, but this is only true of dark chocolate not its milky cousin (move over the milky bar kid, the secret of the black magic box is revealed). Dark chocolate has more antioxidants than green tea and increased blood flow to the crebral cortex has been shown to persist for up to 3 hours after eating it. Rates of heart disease, strokes and diabetes are lower in places like Panama where dark chocolate is drunk as part of the everyday diet. The secret is a flavanoid called epicatechin.
Dark chocolate also contains theobromine, more effective than caffeine for giving your brain a lift, phenylethylamine that stimulates attention, monoamine oxygenase inhibitors that do indeed lead to raised serotonin levels and increased levels of neurotransmitters that can lead to greater spontaneity and joy and anandaminde that has an effect like cannabis making you feel blissful without losing your grip.
Overall it sounds like a superfood so use it carefully and beware of the calories, one small bar weighs in at 40-50g and is more than enough for one day. Make a positive decision to do something for your brain today and treat your dark chocolate like the precious commodity it is. Eat it as if it were million dollar truffles rather than an everyday staple.
I'm going to make millions of you very happy now. Its official, chocoloate is good for you, its actually good for your brain. Yes, yes, I can hear you saying we already know that. We already know that chocolate stimulates the production of feel-good chemicals, thats why its so addictive. No, this news is even better. Now we know that dark chocolate boosts your brain whilst protecting you from heart disease and cancer.
Eating 20-150g per day can improve learning and memory, but this is only true of dark chocolate not its milky cousin (move over the milky bar kid, the secret of the black magic box is revealed). Dark chocolate has more antioxidants than green tea and increased blood flow to the crebral cortex has been shown to persist for up to 3 hours after eating it. Rates of heart disease, strokes and diabetes are lower in places like Panama where dark chocolate is drunk as part of the everyday diet. The secret is a flavanoid called epicatechin.
Dark chocolate also contains theobromine, more effective than caffeine for giving your brain a lift, phenylethylamine that stimulates attention, monoamine oxygenase inhibitors that do indeed lead to raised serotonin levels and increased levels of neurotransmitters that can lead to greater spontaneity and joy and anandaminde that has an effect like cannabis making you feel blissful without losing your grip.
Overall it sounds like a superfood so use it carefully and beware of the calories, one small bar weighs in at 40-50g and is more than enough for one day. Make a positive decision to do something for your brain today and treat your dark chocolate like the precious commodity it is. Eat it as if it were million dollar truffles rather than an everyday staple.