According to health experts, you must think twice before indulging into dark chocolate the next time, because claims that the sweet is good for your health might have been misleading all this.
Many studies have shown that small portions of dark chocolate can benefit the heart as it is rich in plant chemicals called flavanols.
However, a new report in The Lancet medical journal says that many manufacturers remove flavanols from chocolate because of the bitter taste.
As a result, some dark chocolate may contain no flavanols at all.
However, they will still have the abundant fat and sugar that may counter the beneficiary effects of flavanols.
“Dark chocolate can be deceptive so, with the holiday season upon us, it might be worth getting familiar with the calories in a bar of dark chocolate versus a mince pie and having a calculator at hand,†the report said.
Last month, a study said that chocolate with high flavanol levels improved coronary vascular function in 11 heart-transplant recipients compared with patients taking a cocoa-free control chocolate.
Another study demonstrated that eating small amounts of dark chocolate can lower excessively high blood pressure.