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Reaping Health Benefits from Chocolate

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Q. I was excited about a recent column describing health benefits from chocolate. Would high-quality chocolate include Snickers bars? What would be considered a moderate amount, to get the health benefits?

A. High-quality chocolate is dark chocolate (at least 70 percent cocoa solids, and not alkali processed). A good “dose” is 5 to 15 grams daily, which should be just under 100 calories. This is not a large piece of chocolate, but it can be both delicious and heart healthy.

A traditional Snickers bar contains milk chocolate, weighs 58.7 grams and has 280 calories. Milk chocolate does not have the same benefits as dark chocolate.

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I have read that one piece of Dove dark chocolate will do the trick. It is 40 calories. Surprisingly, I find it quite
satisfying after my evening meal.

I LOVE chocolate and know eating dark chocolate is beneficial but then most dark chocolate I've tried is very bitter, without a lot of sugar as in milk chocolate. I've never seen anything written about how the sugar content in chocolate should be a factor. Not ALL chocolate is that beneficial to one's health if sugar is a factor.

As long as you are consuming a small dose of dark chocolate each day, you won't need to worry about the sugar unless you are diabetic.

Moderation is the key. Choose a dark chocolate that is 60-70% cocoa.

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