Re: On chocolate - a bit more info

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In 1519 Spanish Conquistadore Hernando Cortes led an expedition into the depths of Mexico to capture gold and silver treasures from the Aztec people. The Emperor Montezuma, along with his subjects, welcomed these strange looking visitors as ‘white Gods, risen from the sea.’ The Spaniards were feasted and served a cold, bitter drink that was very popular among the Aztecs. The drink was called cacahuati.

From the Aztecs the Spaniards learned that the drink has mystical connections, it being the product of the juice of the seeds of the cacao tree. Montezuma himself held that the drink not only gave him strength and energy, but also gave an impetus to his sexual prowess. To the Spaniards, however, the drink was too bitter. By adding sugar, however, it was made more pleasant to the European palatte. In fact, Cortes decided to introduce this new find into the Spanish Court. He called it chocolatl and in Spain it became an immediate success. Among the elite it became a delicacy, served piping hot. Soon Spanish ships were bringing regular supplies of cacao beans to satisfy this demand. Before long the drink spread across Europe. In England, they changed the name to the easier to pronounce chocolate. Methods of manufacture were refined over the years and before long the chocolate drink was just the first in a long line of cacao seed based products – chocolate bars, milk chocolate,

chocolate with nuts in it, chocolate with cherries, chocolate with caramel.

Today chocolate is all around us. We all love it. Many of us, however, feel a little guilty about eating it. So, what’s the truth. Is chocolate really bad for you?

Does chocolate cause acne? In a recent study out of the University of Pennsylvania, 65 acne sufferers began to consume large amounts of chocolate. 46 showed no change in their condition, 10 got better and 9 got worse. This would sem to indicate that chocolate does not affect acne.

Does chocolate cause migraines? Unfortunately, the research does show that large amounts of chocolate can cause migraines as well as upset stomachs and hives. These types of reactions are, however, relatively minor.

Chocolate does not cause high levels of cholesterol in the blood. Since it is a product of plants, chocolate contains no cholesterol. A chocolate bar does however contain a lot of calories – a bar of one and a half ounces has a whopping 220 calories. Chocolate is, however, a powerful fighter of fatigue and it does give the consumer strength and energy.

Chocolate, then, has both positive and negative aspects to it. You’ll have to weigh the balances for yourself as you decide whether or not to indulge.

Suzanne <suziesgoats@...> wrote:

Is Chocolate a food of the gods because of its divine taste and Health Benefits,or is it because heavenly bodies don't have to worry about its Health Hazards?Stories on the health benefits of consuming cocoa products have increasingly made the news followingthe discovery that they are an excellent source of catechins, which are polyphenols of the flavanol group,and which are believed to protect against heart disease, cancer, and various other medical conditions.Chocolate manufacturers and retailers have been taking advantage of these findings by not only tryingto make chocolate lovers feel less guilty about their addiction, but also by trying to target the morehealth-conscious consumer with regular doses of "research studies" praising the supposed benefits ofconsuming chocolate, among them that:• eating chocolate releases endorphins in the brain, which act as pain-relievers,• eating chocolate boosts one's appetite, but

does not cause weight gain,• the sugar in chocolate may reduce stress and have a calming and pain relieving effect,• eating chocolate does not give someone acne or other skin eruptions,• eating chocolate does not trigger migraine headaches,• eating moderate amounts of chocolate makes one live almost a year longer,• eating chocolate reduces the risk of heart disease and cancer.How reliable are all these "Studies?"Taking a closer look, one discovers that once the studies funded by chocolate interest groups werediscarded, the ones left offered conflicting results. As expected however, some isolated compoundsin cocoa did show certain health benefits. Because it is a common practice in nutritional research to dostudies on food fractions, outcomes may sometimes appear negative because they are done withoutany co-factors or

complexed nutrients, however in the case of cocoa, some of the research was positivebecause the "co-factors" (all the other detrimental ingredients in chocolate) were not part of the study.If people were to consume pure cocoa, then they might indeed be able to enjoy a few health benefits,however the majority of people eat processed chocolate with all the other less desirable ingredients(i.e. added sugar, corn syrup, milk fats / dairy cream, hydrogenated oils, etc...), and where the actualcocoa content may be less than 20%, so all the bets regarding chocolate being a healthy food are off.With claims made of chocolate and sugar having a "pain-relieving" effect, it is doubtful that we will seechocolate bars replacing conventional analgesics any time soon, nor are these same "researchers"making these extraordinary claims

likely going to reach for a chocolate bar next time they suffer from athrobbing toothache, a pounding headache, or kidney stone attack.While cocoa and sugar do not "cause" acne, the sugar present in chocolate will most certainly makeacne, or any other acne-like skin eruptions worse, as anyone suffering from these skin conditions canattest to.Placebo-controlled trials showed that some of the chemicals in chocolate (caffeine, phenylethylamine,or theobromine) can indeed trigger migraine headaches by altering cerebral blood flow and releasingnorepinephrine in some of those prone to suffer from migraines. Of all the foods isolated that triggeredthe most attacks, chocolate was an offender about 30% of the time.Claiming that "eating moderate amounts of chocolate increases one's life span" is a most interestingexample of how some "researchers" will manipulate statistics

to prove anything!"Chocolate-Is-Good-For-You" campaigns through the media or the prominent placement of leafletsat confectionery counters keep feeding the consumer "made-to-order" research results whose outcomeis predetermined to satisfy an agenda (i.e. selling chocolate), with little relevance to science or facts.Considering that nicotine has also shown some health benefits, particularly with ulcerative colitis andParkinson's disease --- would this be a reason to urge people to start smoking tobacco?From a nutritional perspective - chocolate is no less a junk food than ice cream or donuts, and it isequally unhealthy and fattening when larger amounts are consumed on a regular basis. While no one istrying to discourage people from enjoying an occasional chocolate treat - urging consumers to increasetheir chocolate intake for "Health Reasons" leaves nutritional

research less than credible, particularlywhen diabetes and obesity have become an out-of-control global problem.Premium grade dark chocolate contains only cocoa butter, a fat that naturally occurs in cocoa beansand is made up of stearic acid (34%), oleic acid (34%), palmitic acid (25%), and the rest of other fattyacids, whereby the combined effect of all the fats found in cocoa butter is fairly neutral in regard to anindividual's lipid profile. However, when milk chocolate or lower grade chocolate is consumed, part ofthe total fat content of chocolate comes from milk fat or various other types of fat, which do adverselyaffect cholesterol levels.Despite all the good news on cocoa not raising LDL cholesterol, even dark chocolate is a very calorie-dense food, so while the fat content may not invite cardiovascular disease from an atherogenic (arterialclogging)

perspective, its regular consumption will add a lot of extra calories to someone's daily total,and as a result still affect those who have to watch their caloric intake. Nevertheless, being listed as theNo.1 ingredient in many chocolate products, sugar is unquestionably a worse culprit compared to thefat content when addressing the effects of chocolate on someone's overall health.Sugar is a well-known cause, contributing, or aggravating factor with a host of medical conditions thatincludes heart disease, insulin and blood sugar disorders, mood disorders, immune system disorders,impaired phagocytosis, leukemia, inflammatory conditions, dental caries, yeast infections, depletion ofessential nutrients, osteoporosis, obesity, and others. (see also Acu-Cell "Sugar & Glycemic Index").Cocoa products also contain stimulants such as

phenylethylamine, which have an anti-depressant andamphetamine-like effect; they contain pharmacological substances such as n-acetylethanolamines thatare related to cannabis (marijuana), and they have compounds that stimulate the brain to release anopiate-like substance called anandamide. When drugs are used to block the brain's opiate receptors,the desire for chocolate (and other sweet and fatty foods) disappears - confirming the addictive natureof these types of foods.But despite cocoa being such an opiate and endorphin-releasing pharmacological powerhouse, whowould have guessed that when chocoholics were given cocoa in capsules - without the added fat andsugar, and without the feel of chocolate melting in their mouths - it had no satisfying effect at all!However, while eating the actual chocolate bar satisfied the cravings for it, studies showed that therewas no improvement with mood, relaxation, feeling content, depression, or guilt, after

eating chocolate.What about the cancer and heart-protective attributes of catechins,which chocolate products have become increasingly associated with?Again - in isolation, polyphenols work well in a test-tube environment, but cocoa also happens to bevery high in Copper, which unfortunately inhibits the action of some flavonoids, particularly hesperidin,which is an essential flavanone (see also Acu-Cell Nutrition "Bioflavonoids"). This in turn can lead to agreater incidence of vascular degeneration such as varicose veins, hemorrhoids, aneurysms, bruising,heart disease, and stroke.While low copper can be implicated with weak and fragile blood vessel as well, high copper

levelsare much more common in many parts of the world, with nearly 90% of patients tested exhibiting achemical profile that - in addition to their own unique chemistry - contained an underlying pattern thatreflects the impact of copper overload on various opposing nutrients, which include sulfur, chromium,molybdenum, nickel, Vitamin C, hesperidin, and others.The additional consumption of high copper sources such as chocolate and cocoa products, coffee,cola drinks (also shellfish, liver, soybeans, and many nuts and seeds...), not only aggravates many highcopper-related medical conditions, but it is responsible for contributing to, or creating new ones.At the same time, copper is an important co-factor for angiogenesis (new blood vessel formation) withcancer, so with the exception of colon cancer, for which copper and calcium are somewhat protectivefor, most other types of benign or malignant tumors, hemangiomas, fibroids, etc., are associated withhigh copper levels. Dark, bitter chocolate has the highest catechin content, but at the same time hasalso the highest copper level. Light or milk chocolate has the lowest copper level, but also the lowestcatechin content.The high sugar content in chocolate increases Chromium requirements (chromium is an associatedtrace mineral to copper). The resulting high copper / low chromium ratio creates an increased risk fortrabecular bone loss, and it can trigger or worsen blood sugar-related, and/or inflammatory conditionsthat may include chronic tonsil infections, rheumatoid-types of arthritis, or other problems of the immunesystem in prone individuals.By lowering Sulfur, excess copper levels are a common cause or aggravating factor of osteoarthritis,for which some people take glucosamine sulfate or MSM supplements. If successful, they partly workby counteracting high copper levels and thus help to reverse or slow cartilage or joint degeneration.Other than the effect of chocolate on an individual's mood, elevated copper levels - by inhibiting sulfur -can adversely affect a person's memory and concentration, so progressive copper storage as a resultof long-term high copper intake combined with increasingly diminishing sulfur levels can lead to mentalimpairment or dementia. (see also Acu-Cell Nutrition "Copper & Chromium" and "Selenium & Sulfur").Chocolate contains theobromine and a small amount of caffeine, both being

stimulants and membersof the methylxanthine family. Although it increases alertness, theobromine doesn't have the same jitteryeffect on the heart like caffeine. However, theobromine can be toxic or even lethal to domestic animalssuch as dogs, cats, parrots, horses and other animals as a result of affecting their kidneys, heart, andcentral nervous system.From a clinical perspective, and putting aside the commercial hype that has been created of late toboost the image of chocolate - people with the highest intake of chocolate either end up with elevatedVLDL triglycerides (from all that sugar), or with excessive copper levels. On average, most chocoholicpatients test high in both, and they sooner or later start to exhibit any number of health problems that areassociated with those aspects.As is the case with any other junk food - anything beyond a casual consumption of chocolate will resultin reduced - not improved health, without even

going into some more immediate health concerns thatsome individuals experience from consuming chocolate, such as allergic reactions, kidney stones,heartburn or esophageal reflux, migraine headaches, fibrocystic breast disease, or aggravated PMS.Nevertheless, in moderation, chocolate can certainly be the sinful delight it was meant to be!

Suzi

What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered.

http://suziesgoats.wholefoodfarmacy.com/

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Haven't heard that in an age! My auntie says that a lot. "Nobody loves me, everybody hates me, guess I'll go in the garden and eat worms". She sings it!

S

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Sent: Friday, June 10, 2005 5:21 AM

Subject: Re: On chocolate - a bit more info

*sniff*Guess I'll just go eat some worms :(Guido--- Shari Viger <shavig@...> wrote:> Hush Guido - go to your room! And keep your hands> where I can see them!!!!> > S __________________________________ Stay connected, organized, and protected. Take the tour: http://tour.mail./mailtour.html