Originally published November 10 2005
Knoxville newspaper explores cacao's healthy benefits
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Knoxville-based Metro Pulse looks at the history of chocolate and reviews recent studies about cacao's healthy qualities, such as its antioxidant powers and magnesium content.
He said, "She likes milk chocolate, I like dark.
Chocolate, or rather the cacao bean from which chocolate is made, is a very interesting food.
The bean or tree in these stories either fed the gods or the beans grew into people or other things on the earth when planted by the gods.
The Mayans were the first to use cacao beans as currency.
When Cortez and his men were plundering the Aztec Empire, they heard many stories about a drink made of cacao that promoted strength and allowed men to walk all day without food.
By adding refined sugar and later milk products to roasted ground cacao (a.k.a. cocoa), the Europeans created a taste sensation that people loved, although in its sugared and altered state the medicinal value and healing properties of the cacao were lowered.
Cacao itself has over four pages of chemical constituents; among them are acetic acid, arginine, ascorbic acid, calcium, citric acid, dopamine, glucose, iron, magnesium, niacin, serotonin and tryptophan to name just a few.
Based on the lengthy list of cacao's makeup, many health benefits are associated with cacao and thus chocolate, like heart health and brain power.
Magnesium, a mineral deficient in many people's diet, is important for a multitude of the chemical reactions the body must perform.
One of the minerals that most supports the heart and may help to reduce blood pressure, magnesium is also key to proper brain function as it helps create ATP (adenosine triphosphate) which is the fuel for the brain.
Cacao is known to be quite rich in antioxidants.
In fact, Cornell University discovered that cocoa powder has twice the amount of antioxidants as red wine and three times that of green tea.
When PEA levels are high or normal, a person feels good.
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