You now have a science-backed excuse to raid your kid’s Easter basket.
Dark chocolate has been the darling of health headlines for years and deservedly so. It’s not only decadently delicious, but also brimming with good-for-you antioxidants and other compounds that help lower blood pressure and improve heart health. Anecdotal and animal studies have hinted that it could also be a weight-loss aid, but the connection hasn’t been clearly established in humans…until now.
This week German researchers published a first-of-its-kind study in International Archives of Medicine that shines new light on dark chocolate’s potential as a potent complement to a low-carb diet. To test the affects of cocoa on metabolism, the researchers divided a group of dieters into three groups. One was told to eat mostly low-carb foods and increase their protein and fat consumption, including 42 grams (about 1½ ounces) of dark (81% cocoa content) chocolate a day for three weeks. The second group was given the same diet instructions, sans chocolate. The third, or control, group was told to continue eating their normal diet.
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In the end, the chocolate eaters not only lost 10% more weight than the low-carb and typical diet eaters (who gained weight), but were also healthier. The chocolate eaters saw their triglyceride and LDL (bad) cholesterol levels improve significantly compared to the low-carb group. They also had lower levels of albumin—an indicator of protein breakdown, common in low-carb dieters.
Maybe most importantly for long-term maintenance, the chocolate eaters on average just felt better—they were less likely to suffer from unpleasant dieting symptoms like fatigue and heavy legs. What’s more, by the end of the study, the plain low-carb eaters were already plateauing with their weight loss, while the chocolate eaters were still going strong.
The study authors concluded that high cocoa content chocolate is an “ideal weight-loss turbo” when combined with a low-carb diet. And hey, who are we to disagree with science, especially when there are so many chocolate rabbits to be had?
Keep in mind that only dark chocolate—not the sugary milk, or even-worse “white” kind—counts. And keep it to 1-½ ounces (about 230 calories’ worth) per day.
Some examples of that amount:
½ a Ghirardelli chocolate bar (4 squares/250 calories)
3 Tablespoons chocolate chips (240 calories)
1 dark Dove dark chocolate bar (220 calories)
Head and ears off a Godiva Foil-Wrapped Dark Chocolate Easter Bunny
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