Why you SHOULD eat Chocolate!

Why the Best Chocolate is Actually Good for You (and the Planet)

I adore chocolate! You too?

There’s good news in this article. I’ll show you why you should indeed eat chocolate, and even how you can make it into a superfood (hooray!) – but (there’s always a but…. But this one is a good one) it has to be the right type of chocolate. The best chocolate. (Yum).

The Best Chocolate for your Health

Chocolate is made from cocoa or cacao, and most cacao is grown commercially and in full sun – even though cacao naturally prefers shaded conditions, under the rainforest canopy.

That means that the plant grows under stress and is more susceptible to disease, making the use of pesticides ‘necessary’.

According to The Pesticide Action Network, cocoa is second only to cotton in the amount of pesticides used during production.

What that means for you and me is that when we’re eating regular chocolate, we’re exposed to traces of the pesticides lindane, methyl bromide, naled, glyphosate, hydrogen cyanide and pyrethrins.

Somehow, that chocolate doesn’t seem quite as delicious now, does it?

So regular chocolate is not the best chocolate for our health.

But – hang on – this article is about why you SHOULD eat chocolate!

That’s because the best chocolate for you to eat is dark  organic chocolate – shade grown without chemical pesticides, fertilizers or herbicides. Companies such as Green & Black offer organic and fair trade chocolate – a win-win!

And the best chocolate for your health is 70 or even 80% dark chocolate – it has less fat, and contains high levels of antioxidants called bioflavonoids. These help to combat free radicals, which can cause damage to the cells in your body. Antioxidants help your body to reduce toxins and limit the cell damage that can cause premature ageing and diseases such as cancer.

Free radicals accumulate with age, so it is important, as you mature, to up your intake of antioxidant foods such as blueberries and green tea – with a little red wine and dark chocolate to follow!

(Dark chocolate actually contains more antioxidants than either green tea or blueberries – but of course it also contains fats and sugar, so don’t get too carried away!) 🙂

Is the Best Chocolate a Superfood?

Yes! (well, it is if it’s made from this ingredient!)

Raw, unsprayed cacao powder is the un-treated version of cocoa powder. Laboratory analysis shows that it has more antioxidants than any other food surveyed including famous antioxidants such as green tea.

So try adding a spoonful to smoothies, brownie mix or milk to make a delicious food that does you good as well as tastes good!

The Best Chocolate is Good for You – and the Planet!

Fair trade, organic chocolate is grown with earth-friendly methods, local farmers earn a living wage, it tastes great, and the dark chocolate and raw cacao powder are good for you.

What’s not to love?

“All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt”

Charles M. Schultz, US cartoonist and creator of Peanuts

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