Did you know that, in addition to having a pleasant taste, hot chocolate can be very beneficial for your health and, therefore, you can consume it daily? A famous dietician and endocrinologist explained to Revyuh what benefits and properties this magical drink has.
Cocoa beans contain an average of 165 kilocalories. Fats make up the majority of its nutritional composition (53 grams), while the amount of protein amounts to 12 grams and carbohydrates only nine.
Foods based on cocoa beans are more caloric. Thus, the caloric value of cocoa butter is normally 900 calories. The nutrition of this drink made with conventional milk with 2.5% fat is approximately 300 kilocalories (for a large cup of 300 milliliters).
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You can drink chocolate every day, but it is recommended to prepare it with water and not consume more than one cup. One more thing: don’t add sugar. And here are five reasons to do so.
1. Prevents depressive state: Cocoa beans are rich in B vitamins: thiamine, nicotinic acid, folic acid. They also contain phenylethylamine, the substance that influences mood, emotions, and the ability to concentrate. It can be said that a cup of chocolate a day helps the nervous system and prevents depression.
2. Lower the pressure: Drinking chocolate is recommended for those with high blood pressure. “The drink favors the increase of nitrous oxide that relaxes the blood vessels in the body. That, in turn, lowers blood pressure”, explains the expert.
3. Help with pregnancy: The cocoa contains zinc, which is beneficial for men’s health, specifically for the proper functioning of sperm. In addition, it has copper and selenium, which in turn are important for the female reproductive system. Therefore, couples planning a pregnancy are recommended to drink chocolate, emphasizes the dietician.
4. Decreases appetite: You can consume chocolate as an additional drink in your diet. Chromium participates in the metabolism of carbohydrates and reduces the desire to eat.
“Therefore, drinking unsweetened chocolate is recommended for those who want to control their weight,” the doctor emphasizes.
If you want to prepare this drink based on milk, it is better that you choose a skimmed one, adds the expert.
5. Strengthens the bones: Chocolate can replace coffee for people suffering from diseases of the skeletal system, such as osteopenia (low bone density, but not yet causing fractures) and osteoporosis. “In the case of these diagnoses, it is forbidden to drink coffee, since it causes a loss of calcium. Chocolate is more beneficial: it tones and, in addition, contains calcium and phosphorus”, emphasizes the dietitian.
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For whom is drinking chocolate not recommended?
It is not advisable to drink chocolate for those who suffer from gastritis with high acidity, peptic ulcer, duodenal ulcer. This drink is a stimulator for gastric juice and therefore can aggravate all these diseases. Also, cocoa is rich in purines and is not recommended for those who suffer from gout.
Nutritional composition of cocoa
Cocoa has iron, cobalt, manganese, and magnesium in its nutritional composition. However, it is necessary to remember that the usefulness of cocoa powder, as in the case of coffee, is much less compared to natural. Soluble cocoa, which is obtained after treating cocoa powder with alkali, has a higher acidity. In general, it is safe for health, if you do not have the aforementioned diagnoses, says the expert.
In November 2020, a group of British and American scientists discovered that the flavanols contained in cocoa improve brain function in adults, including blood flow and cognitive ability.