The World’s Largest Coalition of Nontheists and Nontheist Communities!

Raw cocoa benefits brain

... raw cocoa may be packed with brain-boosting compounds. Researchers at the University of L'Aquila in Italy, with scientists from Mars, Inc., and their colleagues published findings last September that suggest cognitive function in the elderly is improved by ingesting high levels of natural compounds found in cocoa called flavanols. The study included 90 individuals with mild cognitive impairment, a precursor to Alzheimer's disease. Subjects who drank a cocoa beverage containing either moderate or high levels of flavanols daily for eight weeks demonstrated greater cognitive function than those who consumed low levels of flavanols on three separate tests that measured factors that included verbal fluency, visual searching and attention. Exactly how cocoa causes these changes is still unknown, but emerging research points to one flavanol in particular: (-)-epicatechin, pronounced “minus epicatechin.”

Tragically for chocoholics, most methods of processing cocoa remove many of the flavanols found in the raw plant. Even dark chocolate, touted as the “healthy” option, can be treated such that the cocoa darkens while flavanols are stripped. Researchers are only beginning to establish standards for measuring flavanol content in chocolate. A typical one and a half ounce chocolate bar might contain about 50 milligrams of flavanols, which means you would need to consume 10 to 20 bars daily to approach the flavanol levels used in the University of L'Aquila study.

Tags: flavanols

1 member likes this

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Grinning Cat on March 1, 2013 at 10:42pm

How about (undutched) cocoa powder?

Permalink Reply by Ruth Anthony-Gardner on March 1, 2013 at 11:54pm

As far as I know it's still processed, not raw.

Permalink Reply by Chris Breman on March 2, 2013 at 1:20am

I cannot find what undutched it - tell me more, Grinning Cat!

Permalink Reply by Grinning Cat on March 4, 2013 at 8:41pm

I meant cocoa powder that hasn't been "dutch processed" with alkali for a mellower taste. (Don't think there's any way to reverse that.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_process_chocolate

http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2010/02/cocoa-powder-faq-dutch-process-v/

Permalink Reply by Chris Breman on March 5, 2013 at 7:10am

Thanks Grinning Cat, that was all new to me.

Permalink Reply by Luara on March 2, 2013 at 6:44am

This was a double-blind controlled study, I found the abstract. However some of the authors are associated with Mars Bars, so results might be biased.

Permalink Reply by Nerdlass on March 4, 2013 at 2:49am