Susie Norris

Cookbook Author & Pastry Chef

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1 OZ. OF DARK CHOCOLATE EVERY DAY IS GOOD FOR YOU.  IT'S TRUE.

"Dark Chocolate a Health Food"
"Cocoa's Antioxidants Good for Your Heart"
"Chocolate Better than Red Wine"

The headlines of the last five years seem too good to be true.  How could this sinful star of the forbidden dessert table turn out to be a health food?  And how many cupcakes a day do we get to eat?

Alas, common sense must prevail.  If you eat a bunch of candy bars or rich chocolate truffles (usually 1/2 cream & 1/2 chocolate), the dangers of high fat and sugar intake will outweigh (so to speak) the health benefits.  You may turn into something of a plump little truffle yourself.  But if you stick with very dark chocolate (72% cacao content or higher) in small amounts (1 oz. a day), you will give yourself the best antioxidant boost available from any food.  An ounce of chocolate is not a lot - only about 1/3 of a dark bar like "Newman's Own" or "Lindt", or the single serving size offered by Scharffen Berger.  Think of it as the most delicious vitamin tablet you'll have all day.

The most convincing testimony to exactly how chocolate helps the body is from the Chair of Nutrition at University of California, Davis whose video presentation (CLICK HERE) will explain antioxidants, flavanols, free-radicals and specifically how chocolate helps the heart and the blood. 

Here's a link to a summary of recent articles citing the health benefits of chocolate (MEDIA PAGES), and how consumer awareness of these health benefits has boosted sales for dark chocolate.  Sources include:

Forbes
New York Times
London Observer
Harvard Medical School Newsletter
CNN
Newsweek
Time

So think about dark chocolate as part of a balanced, colorful diet (full of vegetables, fruits, lean protein items, fresh dairy, MORE vegetables)....Truffles and chocolate cakes should remain on the dessert table where they are and have always been a little bit forbidden.