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Lifestyle and Environment
Published in Wilmer W Nichols, Michael F O'Rourke, Elazer R Edelman, Charalambos Vlachopoulos, McDonald's Blood Flow in Arteries, 2022
Cocoa (Theobroma) was named the food (“broma” in ancient Greek) of Gods (“theos” in ancient Greek) by Carl Linnaeus because it had long been considered as a nutritional element with multiple benefits for human health. Research revealed that cocoa does indeed exert beneficial cardiovascular effects (Corti et al., 2009), mainly mediated by its polyphenols, a heterogeneous group of molecules found primarily in fruits and vegetables. The beneficial effects of cocoa are most likely due to increased bioavail-ability of nitric oxide. This may explain the improvement in endothelial function, the reduction in platelet function and the potentially beneficial effects on blood pressure, insulin resistance and blood lipids (Corti et al., 2009).
The Treatment of Hypertension with Nutrition, Nutritional Supplements, Lifestyle and Pharmacologic Therapies
Published in Stephen T. Sinatra, Mark C. Houston, Nutritional and Integrative Strategies in Cardiovascular Medicine, 2022
A meta-analysis in 2012 included 20 DBRPC clinical trials involving 856 healthy participants found a statistically significant BP-reducing effect of flavanol-rich cocoa products, compared with control, in short-term trials of 2–18 weeks’ duration (mean difference in SBP – 2.8 mmHg; p= 0.005; mean difference in DBP – 2.2 mmHg, p = 0.006) [300]. The participants were given 30–1,080 mg of flavanols (mean 545.5 mg) in 3.6–105.0 g of cocoa products per day in the active intervention group [300]. Cocoa improves insulin resistance, nitric oxide production and endothelial function in patients with or without hyperglycemia [290,296–299].
Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease
Published in Nicole M. Farmer, Andres Victor Ardisson Korat, Cooking for Health and Disease Prevention, 2022
Cocoa, the bean used to produce chocolate, contains antioxidant chemicals which include a variety of flavonoids and polyphenols (Emamat, Foroughi, Eini-Zinab, and Hekmatdoost 2018). Research investigating the therapeutic use of cocoa has concluded that it is beneficial for the treatment of cardiovascular conditions, reduces inflammation, and bolsters immune function (Lotito et al. 2000). As related to NAFLD, cocoa supplementation and the consumption of dark chocolate have led to the reduction of oxidative stress and inflammatory blood markers associated with the progression of NAFLD (Engler and Engler 2006; Rezazadeh, Mahmoodi, Mard, and Karimi Moghaddam 2015). Using nonalkalized sugar-free dark chocolate powder in smoothies or cooking may be a suitable way of incorporating this food into your diet.
The impact of different dark chocolate dietary patterns on synaptic potency and plasticity in the hippocampal CA1 area of the rats under chronic isolation stress
Published in Nutritional Neuroscience, 2023
Elham Kalantarzadeh, Maryam Radahmadi, Parham Reisi
Cocoa and its by-products have antioxidants and phytochemicals, like flavonoids, that contribute to the improvement of brain functions, cognition, mood states, and behavioural patterns [8–10]. During the past decades, the consumption of chocolate (derived from cocoa beans) as a functional food has become worldwide [11]. Accordingly, various types of commercially available chocolate products, including white, milk, and dark chocolate (DC), have been among the most palatable food items. These DC varieties contain different amounts of cocoa [10,12]. However, among various kinds of chocolate, dark chocolate is the most effective type in brain function improvement [9,13]. Also, consumption of DC in life, and especially under stress conditions [14], may optimise cognitive functions [10]. Since the changes in dietary patterns are determining lifestyle factors in different chronic disorders [15], adding chocolate as a dietary regimen might be helpful for cellular brain mechanisms. However, despite extensive studies on different aspects of dark chocolate, there is no published literature regarding the cellular memory-related mechanisms. Therefore, this study has aimed to investigate the impact of three DC dietary patterns on neural synaptic potency and long-term plasticity in the hippocampal CA1 area, as well as the food intake and body weight in rats under chronic isolation stress.
Copper and zinc deficiency in an alcoholic patient: a case report of a therapeutic dilemma
Published in Journal of Addictive Diseases, 2022
Hiroshi Ito, Yasuhiro Ogawa, Nobutake Shimojo, Satoru Kawano
Treatment for copper deficiency includes management of the underlying causes and copper supplementation.2,9 The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery Clinical Practice guidelines recommend routine oral copper supplementation of 2 mg daily.10 Although physicians should note that these guidelines are for patients who have undergone bariatric surgery, not for the general population, they advise 2 to 4 mg daily of intravenous copper for 6 days for severe anemia, followed by 3 to 8 mg daily of oral copper until levels normalize. However, a copper formulation has not been approved in Japan,11 and cocoa is used frequently to treat copper deficiency.12 Fifty grams of cocoa powder (3 cups of cocoa) can contain 2 to 3 mg of copper, and this is more than the daily recommended dietary allowance for adults. In other words, this is practically the maximum dose of copper supplementation in Japan.
Effects of cocoa-rich chocolate on cognitive performance in postmenopausal women. A randomised clinical trial
Published in Nutritional Neuroscience, 2022
Irene A. Garcia-Yu, Luis Garcia-Ortiz, Manuel A. Gomez-Marcos, Emiliano Rodriguez-Sanchez, Sara Mora-Simon, Jose A. Maderuelo-Fernandez, Jose I. Recio-Rodriguez
The CG participants did not receive any intervention. The IG participants were given chocolate with a cocoa concentration of 99% and the instructions for the consumption of 10 g of this compound as an addition to their habitual food intake every day for 6 months. After the baseline intervention, the IG participants received instructions about the consumption and storage of the chocolate supplement, recommending them to take the daily dose at the same time of the day. They were also given a calendar to record the time and intake of each day, which was handed back to the researchers in each resupply visit. The daily nutritional value of 10 g of this cocoa-rich supplement is 59 Kcal, 0.8 g carbohydrates, 1.5 g of protein and 5.1 g of fat, of which 3.1 g are saturated. The polyphenol contribution per 10 g of this product is 65.4 mg. The polyphenol profile of this supplement is shown in the previously published study protocol [26]. All participants were requested to maintain their eating and diet habits during the study period.