Cacao – Beyond Sinful Pleasure
by Sumi Chen
Chocolate is one of my favorite soul-food that is often savored to give the wicked pleasure. When the chocolate melts so creamy and soft in the mouth, it gives the euphoric feeling.
From a psychological perspective, chocolate is proven scientifically to ignite your senses and help to release endorphins (i.e. the happy hormones). In this sense, chocolate is indeed a soul-food that can help to uplift your mood and feelings.
Of course, one cannot consume too much chocolate. The chocolate that we have been consuming is full of sugar and additives that are not too friendly for our general health. This is not the ‘true’ chocolate and the ‘true’ chocolate is true chocolate is rather bitter.
Nevertheless, chocolate in its raw cacao form is a natural superfood. This is not a fact that our researchers have recently discover. This fact have been around since the Mayan and Aztec civilization! The raw cacao is sacred to the Mayans thousands of years ago.
All real chocolate is made from cacao and eaten in its pure raw form is extremely rich with anti-oxidants and magnesium. Cacao is a natural source of antioxidants – polyphenols, catechin, epicatechin and gallic acid. These antioxidants are essential to deneutralize free radicals and help to provide significant protection to cardiovascular health. Studies have also indicated that cacao can provide more than 21 times the free radical protection of green tea.
Of course, the bitter true chocolate is rather hard to swallow but when combined with other superfoods like blueberries, strawberries, acai berries, coffee berry and such in Berry Radical Superfood, the true chocolate is much more palatable.
About the Author
Sumi is a natural and organic beauty and wellness practitioner. She is passionate about health and nutrition. Learn more about antioxidants from her website http://www.simplypure.berryradical.com or shop at her certified organic skin care and wellness shop at http://simplypure.mionegroup.com/en/category/5
Evita said,
August 9, 2008 @ 4:37 pm
Great post! I think we need a lot of awareness brought forth today about what chocolate really is, as since the media started telling people chocolate has health benefits people think they are doing good to their body by eating chocolate bars.
Unfortunately, I am not a big fan of dark pure chocolate and hence don’t eat much chocolate at all – even though it is really, really good. But I was surprised when I picked up some commercial chocolate recently to examine their labels how many chemicals are added today to chocolates and chocolate like candy – such a shame – and again most people in society will eat this and think it is somehow good for them.