Which Dark Chocolate Should I Get?

We’re talking about something fun: chocolate!

Yes, chocolate!

Did you know chocolate can absolutely be a part of a healthy metabolism?  

Yes, there is totally a place in our diets and our hearts for chocolate.

Who loves chocolate? Yes!  Most humans do. Do you know why?  Because it stimulates a chemical called dopamine in our brains.  And dopamine is our reward chemical. So we like chocolate like we like other dopamine stimulators like being on Facebook, or french fries, or wine.

Yeah, chocolate makes us feel good.

Today I want to talk about how not all chocolate is created equal.

You have probably seen headlines and such, maybe even heard me talk about how chocolate is good for you, but the story goes a little deeper.  

Because not all chocolate is good for you.

Just a certain type.

We’re going to talk about all things chocolate and then at the end, I’m going to share my top three chocolate brands to buy if you really want all the good stuff that comes from chocolate but not any of the bad stuff.

I update this often as new testing comes out about heavy metal content and flavonoids concentration and so forth. And in July, we had an interesting study published about the power of chocolate and our blood pressure, so we’re going to touch on that today too.

Who’s ready to get started!?

Great, me too!

So, whether we are talking about cocoa or cocao, (those things are the same thing), we are talking about the cocoa bean. 

Cocoa beans come from a plant.  And because they are plants, they contain some pretty amazing molecules that are good for the human body.

So let’s start with what type of chocolate is actually good for you and what kind is just junk.

Only dark chocolate, specifically, chocolate with over 70% cocoa is healthy for you.

Ok, so now you know what you’re looking for.

Why is it so important for it to be 70% or higher?

Dark chocolate contains beneficial chemicals called flavanols which have been shown to have modest benefits regarding blood flow, blood pressure, cholesterol, enhancing exercise performance, memory and cognition, skin wrinkles (!), and blood sugar control.  To get the benefits of dark chocolate you need to eat about 200-600mg of flavanols per day.

In fact, in the research, you need about:

200-900 mg of flavanols for heart health

500-900 mg of flavanols for memory improvement 

200-600 mg of flavanols for improvement in blood sugar or insulin control

320 mg to help with skin elasticity to diminish wrinkles.

Now, a new interesting study published in Frontiers of Nutrition in July 2022, showed that high doses of flavonals, 860mg, didn’t lower the blood pressures of people with normal blood pressure to begin with.  This is interesting because it shows that its mechanism of action is a corrector of “off-things,” not just a blanket  lowering of blood pressure. This is good news!

Alright, back to flavonals and chocolate.

The tough part is, chocolate companies don’t list their flavonal contents on their packages.

So, that’s why I will tell you exactly which kind to buy and why we are kind of covering our bases by buying dark chocolate that is 70% or higher.  

When we buy 70% or higher we are hedging our bets that we are getting a good amount of  flavonals.

But still, even with the 70% mark not all dark chocolate is created equal. Different types of dark chocolate have different amounts of these beneficial flavanols. To add to the mystery, "% cocoa" claims on dark chocolate bars do not inform you on the product's flavanol concentration. 

So a 90% cacao bar doesn't automatically have more flavanols than the 70% cacao bar.The reason behind this is that the confectionary industry has defined the "% cacao" as the sum of cocoa liquor + cocoa powder + cocoa butter in the formulation.Flavanols are found in the pure cocoa powder, not the cocoa butter. So a product could shout out their "99% cocoa" on the front of the package, but contain little flavanols, because most of the bar is cocoa butter. See how that gets a little tricky?

What about cocoa nibs?

Cocoa nibs are bits of broken, roasted cocoa beans. They are traditionally very high in flavanols, but very bitter as there is no sugar, just beans. Think coffee beans broken up. I don’t recommend cocoa nibs because most are very high in cadmium. So, I recommend just sticking with chips or broken up bars.

There are also cocoa supplements such as powders that come in packets that you can add to smoothies and such.

Chocolate can also contain heavy metals that can be toxic for us.  Metals like lead, cadmium, and arsenic. In fact, an older Top Pick from 2019 was removed due to the new finding of high levels of cadmium.Would you like to know which dark chocolates are the best?

Ok! My top 2022 recommendations are:

For Chocolate Bars

1. Ghirardelli Intense Dark 86%--> You'll need 4 sections, 45 grams, of this bold and smoky chocolate bar to just barely get 300mg of flavanols.

2. Chocolove Extra Strong 77% Cocoa--> You'll need 1/3 of the bar, ~ 30g, to get 279.3mg of flavanols

For Chocolate Chips: 

Ghiradrdelli Chocolate Chips - 72% 

It’s hard to find a chocolate chip that is over 70%, so if you can only find 60%, that’s still a better choice than milk chocolate.

But what about the sugar in dark chocolate?

Only 100% cocoa baking chocolate contains zero sugar, but that is not a pleasure to eat.

I like to promote eating dark chocolate for a few reasons, even though it will contain sugar. 

First, It contains other healthful chemicals like the flavanols we’ve been talking about and healthy fats that are very good for us. Much like a strawberry has natural sugar, but also contains wonderful nutrients.

Second, It satisfies the after dinner treat-hunt. If you are working on eliminating sugar and you used to have dessert each night, dropping that sweet treat cold turkey is tough! And usually unsuccessful. Having 2 squares of dark chocolate after dinner is a reasonable and satisfying alternative to deprivation or overdoing it with a big piece of brownie and ice cream.

And third, if we are eliminating white processed carbs, diet drinks and other sweetened beverages, we are making great strides with our metabolisms. The sugar in dark chocolate is not the biggest cause of our metabolic damage. If we concentrate on the bigger sources, that leaves room for a bit of sugar here. Which goes a long way mentally in helping us reach our longer term goals of not overeating at night and not binging on candy or craving sweets. The long term pros outweigh the cons of the sugar I believe in helping you commit to a healthy eating pattern and not feeling completely deprived and controlled.

So, yes, I encourage dark chocolate as a metabolically healthy treat!

Remember, you have what it takes to lose weight, achieve glowing health and never stress about food again, you just need to repair your metabolism first!