Eating Dark Chocolate Boosts HDL Levels (the 'Good' Cholesterol)

Dark Chocolate Almond Bark, high in polyphenols
which raise HDL levels (good cholesterol) in your body.
Click photo to purchase online or to peruse our selection
of Dark Chocolate items at Illinois Nut & Candy. 

Living the ‘Life of the Candy Man‘ is sweet, but sometimes it’s sweeter than others. For years I have been saying that chocolate is good for you because it makes you happy and it makes you smile. But now there is research to that supports the idea that chocolate is good for you; just not for the reasons that I have been saying. Last week some very interesting research shows that eating chocolate may boost the body’s production of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) — the “good” form of cholesterol that protects against heart disease.

Findings reveal that “Chocolate contains polyphenols which can rev up the activity of certain proteins, including proteins that attach to the genetic material DNA in ways that boost HDL levels” according to the new study released by the American Chemical Society (ACS) in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

Credit for those heart-healthy effects goes to a cadre of antioxidant compounds in cocoa called polyphenols, which are particularly abundant in dark chocolate.

Don’t stop taking your cholesterol medicine and start eating twice the amount of chocolate, but don’t feel guilty for that occasional indulgence.

Have a sweet day!