Chocolate lovers, rejoice.
Research at Cambridge University supports the theory that dark chocolate is, in fact, beneficial for one’s health.
A systematic review of seven studies, compiled and published last month in the British Medical Journal, confirms that consumption of a moderate amount of chocolate reduced risk of heart disease by 37 percent and stroke by 29 percent, based on studies using data from 114,000 patients.
“Over the last several years, we have learned much more that we did not know about [chocolate] before,” said Dr. Ondrej Lisy, a staff cardiologist at Chattanooga Heart Institute at Memorial Hospital.
Not all chocolate, however, has the same cardiovascular benefits, he said, emphasizing that dark chocolate, the less processed and the higher the amount of cacao the better, is the most beneficial.