Dark chocolate may ease the symptoms of
chronic fatigue syndrome.
Chronic fatigue is characterised by extreme, persistent fatigue for six months or more with other problems as muscle pain,
headaches and poor memory.
Dark chocolate is rich in chemicals known to increase signals carried around the brain but its impact on chronic fatigue syndrome has not been studied previously. To study this, researchers from Britain tested a group of ten patients with a severe form of the disease. They ate dark chocolate for eight weeks, followed by a break and then another variety with little cocoa but which tasted the same. The participants were then asked to eat 15 grams chocolate thrice a day and not make any other changes to their diet.
After eight weeks of follow-up, the participants reported significant improvement in their wellbeing. Their scores improved significantly on the Chalder Fatigue Scale after eating high cocoa liquor / polyphenol rich chocolate.
The study suggests that dark chocolate may help improve symptoms in those with chronic fatigue syndrome.