- According to the USDA, dark chocolate is one of the most antioxidant rich foods available (more than five times the amount in blueberries). Antioxidant-rich diets have been linked to a lowered risk of heart attacks, stroke, cardiovascular disease, cancer, high blood pressure, cholesterol problems, arthritis, asthma, Alzheimer’s and more.
- One study has shown that the smell of chocolate may actually relax you by increasing theta waves in the brain.
- Cocoa butter in chocolate contains oleic acid, a mono-unsaturated fat. This is the same type of fat found in olive oil that may actually raise good cholesterol (HDL).
- Cacao contains antibacterial agents that actually fight tooth decay.
- A single bar of dark chocolate contains more than twice as many antioxidants as a bar of milk chocolate.
- One ounce of milk chocolate contains about the same amount of caffeine as one cup of decaffeinated coffee.
- A Harvard University study found that men who ate chocolate lived one year longer than those who didn’t.
- Dark chocolate has been proven in studies to lower blood pressure and is considered healthy chocolate.
The largest chocolate bar ever made weighed 9,702 pounds and was over 16 feet long. It was 10 inches thick and took 3 days to make. The average American eats 88 pounds of chocolate per year, so it would take 110 years for one person to eat this chocolate bar.