A chocolate bar a day keeps the doctor away!

Believe it or not real chocolate, not the junk on the shelves that cost $1, but the good stuff, that you splurge and maybe buy a chocolate bar for $9, is really good for you and can help you lose weight, get the vitamins and minerals you need and improve your mood.  Below are some facts about chocolate that I find really interesting.  

How to Recognize Real Chocolate:
1. Real chocolate must contain cocoa solids as primary ingredients.  Many mass market chocolates use less than 5%. 
2. Real chocolate must use cocoa butter as its only fat.  Mass market chocolate uses solid hydrogenated vegetable fats, nut oils and other trans fats that leave a greasy, waxy residue; many products actual include wax.
3. Real chocolate uses natural vanilla rather than vanillin, an artificial flavoring derived from pine trees. 
4. Real chocolate uses cane sugar as its only sweetener, which have been shown to make cells more resistant to insulin, increase triglyceride levels and reduce the body's ability to burn fat.

Real Chocolate is Nutritious and Helps Weight Management:
1. Vitamins: A, B1, C, D, E, more effective than the same vitamins taken in pill form
2. Minerals: Calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium, iron, zinc, copper, chromiumand phosphorous
3. Rich in complex alkaloids
4.  Oxalic acid bonds iron and calcium so that it is bioavailable; 93% usable by the body.
5. Contains only 6 milligrams of caffeine per ounce, less than the amount found in decaffeinated coffee
6. Helps the body feels fuller longer
7.  Chocolate has a very low glycemic index and recent studies shoe that replacing other desserts and snacks with chocolate can help weight loss and diabetes


Real Chocolate Promotes Good Health:
1. Real Chocolate is rich in flavinoids (as in red wine) that reduce the likelihood of deep-vein thrombosis and strokes, with the dangers of alcohol
2.  Rich in antioxidants that destroy free radicals and boost immune system, two important factors in cancer prevention
3. A recent study has shown that the flavinoids and antioxidants in cocoa can protect the skin from sun damage and even reverse some of the effects of sun damage
4. Polyphenols in chocolate make endothelial cells in the walls of blood vessels more flexible, which helps prevent the hardening of the arteries that leads to heart attacks
5.  Researchers have found that the theobromine found in cocoa was nearly a third more effective in stopping persistent coughs than codeine, currently considered the best cough medicine
6. Cocoa butter has been proven to lower overall blood cholesterol and LDL
7.  Cocoa possesses antibacterial properties that prevent tooth decay
8.  Real chocolate has been shown to lower blood pressure better than blood pressure better than blood pressure medicine. 



Real Chocolate Promotes Good Mental Health and Improves Mood and Outlooks:
1. Naturally occurring antidepressant phenylalanine, increases serotonin levels and boosts energy levels and mental alertness
2.  The aroma produces an immediate calming effect
3.  Theobromine and valeric acid stimulate brain, muscles and central nervous system and have been shown to lower blood pressure
4.  White chocolate is chemically the closest substance to human breast milk
5.  Recent studies have shown that pregnant women who eat chocolate have less stressful pregnancies.  What's more, they have happier, less anxious babies