The Benefits of Cocoa for Health

The cocoa drink became known in Europe in the 16th century,after Spanish General Hernan Cortes visited America and brought back cocoa beans and a recipe for a drink from them, which the Indians themselves called "chocolatl". Until the 19th century hot chocolate from cocoa powder used for medical purposes - this contributed to the beneficial properties of cocoa.

The use of cocoa for our body is due toa unique composition of the fruit of the chocolate tree (cocoa tree). The cocoa beans contain about three hundred different substances, some of them are very valuable. So, in the fruits of cocoa contains antioxidants that neutralize the negative impact of free radicals on the cells of the body. 50 g of dark chocolate by quantityantioxidants can compete with 15 glasses of orange juice or 6 ripe apples. Antioxidant-related polyphenol, for example, helps lower blood pressure.

In addition, cocoa consists of neurotransmitters(dopamine, serotonin). These substances have a wide spectrum of action, but for most people they are known primarily as natural antidepressants. So a cup of hot cocoa helps to cheer up and fight stress - this is also the undeniable benefit of cocoa.

Cocoa also helps to lower the level oflow-density lipoprotein (LDL) and increase the level of high-density lipoproteins (HDL). And we already wrote in our article "How to lower the level of cholesterol in the blood?" That LDL is a "bad" cholesterol, harmful for our body, and HDL is a "good" cholesterol, useful. So the benefit of cocoa is also that it normalizes the cholesterol balance in the body, which means it helps prevent atherosclerosis.

A cup of hot cocoa can become effective andTasty medicine if your child suddenly has a cold. The thing is that theobromine is contained in cocoa. He is able to suppress the cough reflex, so that the cocoa powder in the drink will help fight the cough, and hot milk will calm the sore throat. Besides, theobromine reduces spasms of the heart vessels and brain and exerts a tonic effect. True, in large doses the theobromine is toxic, but believe me: in order to poison with theobromine, you need to drink a huge amount of cocoa, you will not so much.

Cocoa is a fairly high-calorie product, in cocoa beans can contain up to 54% of fats. But getting better with a cocoa drink is quite difficult, because he sufficiently quickly causes a feeling of saturation, and you will not drink much of it. In addition, in a cocoa drink from dry cocoa powder contains less fat than in tiled chocolate (unless you are preparing a drink with a lot of sugar and fatty milk).

But all the benefits of cocoa will manifest themselves in full forceOnly if you do not abuse this drink. The effect of large doses of cocoa on the body has not yet been thoroughly studied, and you in fact know perfectly well that any medicine in large doses can become a poison. Therefore, do not drink more than two cups of cocoa per day. It is best to drink cocoa in the morning: this drink has a toning effect, so in the evening it may not let you fall asleep. But in the daytime cocoa will give you cheerfulness and energy for mental and physical activity.

As you can see, the benefits of cocoa are obvious. So do not be afraid to indulge your child - and yourself too - with a cup of a fragrant and tasty drink. And bitter chocolate in moderate quantities will do you good, because it is also made from cocoa beans.