Delicious chocolate comes from the cacao fruit. Cacao bean have been around for thousands of years. Original use for cacao was for medicinal purposes. Fresh cacao are packed full of antioxidant, containing 10,000mg of flavanol antioxidants for 100g of cacao. Compared to other foods, dark chocolate is among the best source of antioxidant.
What are Free Radicals?
Pollution, smoke, radiation and harmful chemicals create unstable molecules called free radicals. These free radicals are unstable, therefore, robbing from stable molecules which they turn into unstable molecules, creating a chain reaction. Why is free radicals bad? Free radicals may cause loss of elasticity, skin damage, wrinkles and some cases cancer.
Benefits of antioxidants
Antioxidants neutralize unhealthy chain reaction of free radicals.
Dark chocolate and its skin benefits
The antioxidants in dark chocolate fight free radicals, therefore, they maybe able to fight off or delay fine lines, wrinkles, hyper-pigmentations and cancer. According to a study of The Journal Of Nutrition, people that drank chocolate daily for 12 weeks showed a “25{d0e9dd2b7f7f77c6b9439fde6e913c4a7d9a2a38e49608c4a07ac89b301b8ed5} reduction of redness in skin from UV exposure with improvement in skin texture and hydration,” by Rory Evans in Allure magazine.
Beware: Added ingredients such as: dairy products, sugar, flavoring and other additives reduces antioxidant in dark chocolate. How do you know what to look for in cacao? Aim for at least 50{d0e9dd2b7f7f77c6b9439fde6e913c4a7d9a2a38e49608c4a07ac89b301b8ed5} of cacao and consume daily throughout the day 3-5ozs.
Enjoy your dark chocolate!