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Go on, eat some chocolate
20/07/2005 10:09 - (SA)
Washington - At last, there may be a good reason to indulge in a daily chocolate bar binge - it might be good for your blood pressure.
New research published by the American Heart Association on Tuesday said a daily bar-sized helping of dark chocolate could lower blood pressure and improve insulin resistance.
"Previous studies suggest flavonoid-rich foods, including fruits, vegetables, tea, red wine and chocolate, might offer cardiovascular benefits," said the study's author Dr Jeffrey Blumberg.
"But this is one of the first clinical trials to look specifically at dark chocolate's effect on lowering blood pressure among people with hypertension," the report in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association said.
Flavonoids are natural antioxidants found in many foods and are found in plants.
Blumberg cautioned however the study did not just amount to a green light to chow down on chocolate - but simply showed that certain kinds of dark chocolate could benefit vascular function and glucose sensitivity.
Research was conducted on 10 men and 10 women all of whom had hypertension, under controlled blood pressure conditions, at the University of L'Aquila in Italy.
"It is important to note that the dark chocolate we used had a high level of flavonoids," Blumberg said.
"Most Americans eat milk chocolate, which has a low amount of these compounds."
- AFP
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