Cocoa Extract protects our Arteries
Very often it's said that we are as old as our arteries are. It must be true, since clean arteries allow a good oxygenation of all the tissues of our body, fundamental for every vital function. More than anything else, having clean arteries defends us from stroke, heart attack, senile dementia, arteriosclerosis, etc. We heard many times how a good and healthy diet plays a crucial role in keeping our arteries clean. On the other hand, we are often said to steer away from Chocolate, for its high fat and calories content.
Unexpectedly though, right the Cocoa fruit grown in the Tropical regions, the main ingredient of Chocolate, could provide a power-house of miracles-working compounds for our cardiovascular health. Recently, studies of Professor Naomi Fisher in Prof. Norman Hollenberg's lab from Harvard University, suggest, quite surprisingly, that Cocoa Extracts may play a role in protecting our arteries more important than any other factor we may think of.
The discovery was occasionally made while studying a population consuming in large quantity Cocoa Extract, the Kuna Indians, immune to the type of pathologies and conditions deriving from unclean and clogged arteries. As reported in an interview to Prof. Fisher, almost 90% of the elders in USA suffer of Hypertension, while this condition is virtually absent among the Kuna Indians elders. Values of blood pressure of 110/70 are in the normal range for Kuna Indians at age 60 and older.
Initially, the Scientists thought that a salt-poor-diet could be responsible of the healthy arteries of the Kuna Indians. Instead, they found out that the Kuna eat foods plenty of salts. However, the Researchers observed that the Kuna consumed three to four cups per day of a drink prepared using Cocoa extracts. The Scientists focused their attention on the ingredients present in the drink and found that Flavonols isolated from the Cocoa extract and not other substances, could be responsible of the beneficial effects on arteries. Participants to a study who got those Flavonols showed more relaxed blood vessels than those receiving simply pure water. The production of Nitric Oxide induced by the Flavonols seems to be ultimately responsible of the relaxation of blood vessels
Lab Tests performed on Rats backed those findings. A specific Falavonol called, Epicatechin, seems to stand out among others.
The Research of Prof Fisher in Prof Hollenberg lab, are now focused on understanding if the Flavonols present in the Cocoa extract can also have a preventive effect on cognitive decline and senile dementia. An improvement in blood flow, in the brain of subjects participating to the study, has already been shown. Hopefully soon, more exciting news will come from this front.
Before closing, it must be said that, unfortunately the chocolate bars we can find at Food&Drug and Grocery stores do not seem to contain the healthy Flavonols, since the industrial processing may destroy them. Chocolate man-manufactured in an old fashioned way may preserve better the healthy Flavonols. Even better, learning to process Cocoa seeds as the Indian Kuna do, may really make the difference for getting a very healthy remedy for our cardiovascular system. Let's hope we get it really soon.
Stay Tuned!
Sources:
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Jan. 24, 2006; vol 103: pp 1024-1029
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/01/18/health/webmd/main1218304_page2.shtml?tag=contentMain;contentBody
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