Is It the Dark in Dark Chocolate?

When we first entered this scientific area about 10 years ago, we did not fully appreciate the emotional content of discussions involving chocolate. Contacts between medical scientists and the lay press tend to be sporadic. When chocolate is the issue, however, the lay press interest becomes intense and widespread. We have participated in many dozens, probably hundreds, of interviews about our research into the vascular effects of cocoa. Two questions inevitably emerge. The first is, “Is there some way of identifying which chocolate available for purchase is especially good for you?” The second is, “Does this mean that chocolate is a health food?” Reporters have been, almost without exception, rather disappointed by our response to each question.Article p 2376 The use of the word “dark” in dark chocolate, prominent in the title of this article, the article it accompanies,1 and on chocolate bar wrappers in high-end groceries around the world is symptomatic of this interest in identifying a simple, reliable, and inexpensive assay for what is good in chocolate. What makes it healthy? As is stated clearly in the report by Flammer et al in this issue of Circulation ,1 we have probably identified the major chemical mediators: the subclass of flavonoids called flavanols, including especially the monomers epicatechin and catechin, and possibly procyanidins and metabolites.2,3 All cocoa is created flavanol-rich. It is primarily the processing of natural cocoa solids into cocoa powder or into confectionary chocolate that determines whether a final product is flavanol-rich or -poor.2 Because flavanols are bitter, manufacturers have often treated natural cocoa with processing techniques that necessarily destroy the flavanols as they enrich flavor and improve consistency.The use of the term “dark chocolate” is misleading: There is nothing about the color of the chocolate that will tell you the …