Who does not like chocolate? The different things one can do with chocolate, the endless candies and baked goods, ice cream toppings, or just a plain bar of the sweet cocoa stuff will do! Is it possible, just possible though that chocolate can actually have health benefits to one’s diet?
Sounds too good to be true.
Chocolate has an interesting history when it comes to be consumed as food. To start WAY back, Aztecs used to use chocolate as a medicine. The flavor was not a concern and chocolate took on more of a black, charcoal look. Chocolate was believed to help out with certain illnesses and diseases but was also used as a sort of “energy drink” when melted down to a liquid form (maybe the first pre-workout?)
As late as the 19th century chocolate still was nothing to rave about. Until someone had the awesome idea of adding milk and sugar to it. This is how we get the term “milk chocolate”. By adding milk and sugar, chocolate sort of just took off as a snack and treat. Long story short, chocolate has been more so of a hinderance for many when it comes to getting in shape and is still seen as a medicine, but not a medicine one takes to get rid of any physical ailments but more so a medicine to help deal with stress and sadness that involves sitting on the couch or hiding from the world for days on end (mostly everyone is familiar with chocolate being used for this).
So, why do some people suggest that chocolate is actually healthy?
You may have heard of “Dark chocolate”. This is kind of odd in reality because dark chocolate is simply chocolate in more of its natural form, so it makes more sense to differentiate “milk chocolate” from “normal” or dark chocolate.
Studies show that the darker the chocolate (more purity) the more health aides it does have, even when it comes to energy. The benefits seem to affect the cardiovascular system more than anywhere else. Therefore, you may have heard people say that dark chocolate is good for the heart. But as anything in health and fitness, moderation is key. Eating a boatload of Hersey’s dark chocolate kisses is not going to give you a super strong heart if anything it will give you adverse effects. Why? Because the chocolate that we can go buy in a grocery store, regardless of it being labeled dark, still has sugars in it that are not the healthiest for us. Dark chocolate is simply a better option than milk chocolate.
So, chocolate, only in super-dark form, is ok to eat only if you don't eat too much of it. All that sugar and milk fat are bad for you, so if you want to be healthy you should exercise more and just remember the importance of moderation, especially when it comes to your snacks and treats!
Sorry, chocolate is not a vitamin.
