New Australian research has shown that consumption of cocoa, rich in flavonoids, may prevent blood from becoming sticky which is good news for heart health.
According to Professor Andrew Sinclair, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), the flavonoid-rich cocoa acts to help stop blood from clotting, similar to the effect of aspirin which is recommended by doctors for some heart conditions.
Professor Sinclair presented the research examining the benefits of cocoa rich in flavonoids, powerful antioxidants, at the Nutrition Society of Australia’s 25th Annual Scientific Meeting being held this week in Canberra.
According to Professor Sinclair, the benefits from eating this flavonoid-rich cocoa over a four week period were significant.
“The reactivity of platelets was significantly reduced after four weeks in 16 healthy subjects consuming the flavonoid-rich cocoa as a supplement,” said Professor Sinclair
“These are interesting results since platelets are involved in the formation of blood clots and the prevention of blood flow.”
Further investigations will examine the effect of different levels of cocoa flavonoids.
Flavonoids are compounds found in plant-based foods such as grapes, apples, onions, tea, cocoa and certain chocolates.
Flavonoid-rich cocoa can be found in Mars products with the Cocoapro™ logo. Cocoapro™ refers to the Mars, Incorporated promise that these chocolate products are made from cocoa beans that are carefully handled to retain their natural goodness.
These results confirm previous research that showed potential improvements to markers of heart health immediately after consumption of a flavonoid-rich cocoa beverage.
Flavanols and their oligomers are flavonoids found in common foods and beverages
Reference for graph
Hammerstone JF, Lazarus SA, Schmitz HH Procyanidin content and variation in some commonly consumed foods. Journal Of Nutrition 2000;130(8S):2086S-2093S
