This Is Why You Should Consume Cocoa Every Day

Flckr/eliduke

It turns out that our ever-demanding chocolate cravings are our bodies’ way of telling us something. After reviewing available studies on the topic, Italian researchers consistently found that the flavanols in cocoa help improve our cognitive function when we consume them on a daily basis.

Flavanols are important antioxidants that occur naturally in food plants like apples, grapes, teas, cherries and — that’s right — cocoa. They are known in the scientific realm to have neuroprotective effects.

The team of Italian researchers focused on two questions in their review of cocoa flavonols research: first, what happens to the brain within a few hours of consuming cocoa, and second, what happens when you maintain a cocoa-enriched diet over a longer period of time. While the amount of data available on acute and chronic chocolate consumption varied, the findings provide good news for chocolate lovers.

The research team consistently found that within a few hours of consuming cocoa flavonols, study participants experienced enhanced working memory as well as improved visual information processing. And women specifically were able to counteract the cognitive consequences of total sleep deprivation by eating cocoa the morning after sleeping terribly.

Pexels

When it came to assessing the value of consuming cocoa flavanols on a daily basis for an extended period of time (the research covers from five days to three months), cognitive function improved consistently yet again. Things like attention span, processing speed, working memory and verbal fluency benefited significantly. Results were most noticeable in older adults studied since they were in the beginning stages of natural cognitive decline, but they were still present across the board.

Cocoa flavanols can provide other benefits to the human body as well, such as improved cardiovascular health. So it’s no wonder that the number of cocoa dietary supplement products in the marketplace has increased in recent years. Some experts even suggest that we should all be taking 200 milligrams of cocoa flavanols daily to reap these big health rewards. Just be wary of how you get them since a lot of chocolate options are high in calories and loaded with sugar. And if you’re caffeine sensitive, it’s worth being extra careful. Professionals recommend opting for quality dark chocolate or a balanced supplement of your choosing.

So go ahead and indulge a little bit. Your body will thank you for the daily boost in a multitude of ways.