Chocolate might help cut cholesterol
Eating moderate amounts of chocolate could be a good dietary approach for preventing high cholesterol in certain groups of people.
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Eating chocolate could bring down cholesterol levels in some people.
Several studies have suggested that chocolate may be good for you; some suggest that it does well to the heart, while others say that it helps treating depression. In a new analysis, researchers searched the medical literature to find studies that looked at how cocoa affected blood fats, or lipids, and found eight trials that included 215 people.
When all studies were analysed together, it was found that eating cocoa significantly cut levels of LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, by about 6 mg/dL and marginally reduced total cholesterol by the same amount. But this effect of cocoa on cholesterol was not observed in the three highest-quality studies. Further analysis showed that only people who ate small amounts of cocoa, an amount containing 260 milligrams of polyphenols or less, experienced cholesterol lowering effects; people who consumed more showed no effect. Polyphenols are antioxidant compounds found in fruits, vegetables, chocolate and red wine. A 1.25-ounce bar of milk chocolate contains about 300 milligrams of polyphenols.
It was also found that healthy people didn't get any cholesterol-lowering benefits from cocoa, but people with risk factors for heart disease, such as diabetes, saw their LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol drop by around 8 mg/dL each.
Eating moderate amounts of cocoa could be a good dietary approach for preventing high cholesterol in certain groups of people, recommend the researchers as the changes are dependent on the dose of cocoa consumed and the health status of individuals.
Several studies have suggested that chocolate may be good for you; some suggest that it does well to the heart, while others say that it helps treating depression. In a new analysis, researchers searched the medical literature to find studies that looked at how cocoa affected blood fats, or lipids, and found eight trials that included 215 people.
When all studies were analysed together, it was found that eating cocoa significantly cut levels of LDL, or "bad" cholesterol, by about 6 mg/dL and marginally reduced total cholesterol by the same amount. But this effect of cocoa on cholesterol was not observed in the three highest-quality studies. Further analysis showed that only people who ate small amounts of cocoa, an amount containing 260 milligrams of polyphenols or less, experienced cholesterol lowering effects; people who consumed more showed no effect. Polyphenols are antioxidant compounds found in fruits, vegetables, chocolate and red wine. A 1.25-ounce bar of milk chocolate contains about 300 milligrams of polyphenols.
It was also found that healthy people didn't get any cholesterol-lowering benefits from cocoa, but people with risk factors for heart disease, such as diabetes, saw their LDL cholesterol and total cholesterol drop by around 8 mg/dL each.
Eating moderate amounts of cocoa could be a good dietary approach for preventing high cholesterol in certain groups of people, recommend the researchers as the changes are dependent on the dose of cocoa consumed and the health status of individuals.
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