A chocolate a day keeps heart diseases at bay

Milk and dark chocolates are beneficial for the heart

LONDON: Worried about the health of your heart? Here's a sweet solution. Researchers have found that eating up to 100 grams of chocolate every day is linked to lower heart disease and stroke risk.

There does not seem to be any evidence for cutting out chocolate to lower the risk of cardiovascular disease, the researchers found in the study published online in the journal Heart.

PHOTO: URBANHOUSECALLMAGAZINE

"Cumulative evidence suggests that higher chocolate intake is associated with a lower risk of future cardiovascular events," said the authors of the study.

They pointed out that milk chocolates may be just as beneficial for the heart as dark chocolates.

The study by author Chun Shing Kwok from University of Aberdeen in Scotland and colleagues monitored the health of 21,000 adults for almost 12 years. Their average daily consumption was seven gram of chocolate, ranging from none to 100g.

PHOTO: BHMPICS.COM

The results showed that compared with those who ate no chocolate higher intake was linked to an 11 per cent lower risk of cardiovascular disease and a 25 per cent lower risk of associated death.

It was also associated with a nine per cent lower risk of hospital admission or death as a result of coronary heart disease, after taking account of dietary factors.

The highest chocolate intake was similarly associated with a 23 per cent lower risk of stroke, even after taking account of other potential risk factors.

The researchers also carried out a systematic review of the available international published evidence on the links between chocolate and cardiovascular disease, involving almost 158,000 people.PHOTO: AFROCONCEPTNEWS

Of nine relevant studies included in the systematic review, five studies each assessed coronary heart disease and stroke outcome and they found a significantly lower risk of both conditions associated with regular chocolate consumption.

It was linked to a 25 per cent lower risk of any episode of cardiovascular disease and a 45 per cent lower risk of associated death.

According to the researchers it is an observational study so no definitive conclusions about cause and effect can be drawn.