Percentage of Cocoa/Link to Cancer

by V.Prakash
(Dubai/UAE)

V. Prakash from Dubai asks:

What percentage of cocoa in dark chocolate should be chosen to get good health benefits?

Answer: Good question. 70% is the minimum percentage of cocoa most often recommended.

Why such a high percentage?

• A candy bar or chocolates with such a high percentage of cocoa is suggested because roasting cocoa beans destroys some of the beneficial antioxidants.



• Chocolates with less than 70% cacao content will contain more sugar and probably fewer disease-fighting antioxidants.
  
  
• Determining the antioxidant content of chocolate requires expensive testing. Most manufacturers don't test.

Some makers of chocolate such as, Xocai and CocoaVia do list their antioxidant content.

But most don't.

So eating chocolate with a cacao content of at least 70% is a good rule of thumb to follow. That percentage should/might provide a beneficial dose of antioxidants.

Or eat raw chocolate. It's the best choice for health benefits. But it doesn't taste the same!


V. Prakash also asks:

Is it true the other normal chocolates might be conducive for some sort of cancer in our body?

Answer: There's no evidence(that I could find) to suggest that chocolate might cause cancer. Actually, chocolate contains things like antioxidants and caffeine that have been shown to fight cancer.

That doesn't mean eating it will prevent cancer. But it is showing promise against the disease.

Dark chocolate and red wine kill cancer cells is just one of many articles about chocolate's potential.

Unfortunately, cadmium, a heavy metal linked to cancer, can be found in chocolate. It comes from the soil the beans are grown in.

Naturally that is a health concern, especially since the levels tend to be higher in dark chocolate. But fortunately the levels of cadmium usually found in chocolate are low enough to considered safe.

Some countries are debating the need to reduce the levels allowed in chocolate. So it's an on-going debate.

Perhaps chocolate's natural cancer fighting ingredients counter the potential harm cadmium may inflict.

The best advice is, as always, moderation.

Thanks for taking the time to ask your question! Hope my answer helped.

Feel free to drop by again, if you have any more questions.