Penn State researches looked at the effect of cocoa powder on controlling inflammation related to obesity.
Mice were fed a high fat diet with10 tablespoons of cocoa powder, over the course of 10 weeks. The control group were mice fed a high fat diet with no cocoa powder. There results were a decrease in inflammation markers, as well as fatty liver disease. One result was a 27% lower levels of plasma insulin levels in cocoa fed mice than the control group. Liver triglycerides were also decreased by about 32%. High levels of insulin is an indicator of diabetes, while high liver triglycerides is an indicator of fatty liver diseases. There was not much effect on the weight loss of the mice, however cocoa fed mice did have a lower rate of weight gain.
The researches have two reasons to explain the effects. The cocoa disrupts precursors that activate the inflammatory effects of the immune system. Or the cocoa aids in the gut-barrier function to prevent unwanted endotoxins from entering the blood stream. However, how is not known.
Cocoa has a much lower fat and sugar content, and higher fiber level than chocolate. It also contains polyphenolic compounds (antioxidants). Some possible effects of consuming polyphenols is reduction in inflammation, and down-regulation of oxidative LDL’s (“bad” cholesterol).
Penn State (2013, June 12). Cocoa may help fight obesity-related inflammation. Penn State News. Retrieved September 20, 2013, from http://news.psu.edu/story/279134/2013/06/12/research/cocoa-may-help-fight-obesity-related-inflammation
This is an extremely interesting find! I think a very important question to be asked is what type of cocoa mix did they use? They point out that "cocoa, although commonly consumed in chocolate, actually has low-calorie content, low-fat content and high-fiber content." They do not, however, expand on this thought; what is the best balance of chocolate, sugar, and cocoa? The lead sentence leads me to believe that any ole cocoa found at any grocer will do just fine... But come on, think about just how much sugar and chocolate are crammed into the popular brands like Hershey's or Nestle. Add marshmallows, cream, and sprinkles (and preservatives) to the equation and I think we're getting closer to the sugar and caloric intake associated with caffeine-free soda. Although this has me wanting "more ovaltine, please," it will be even more interesting to see where the researchers begin to evolve on these initial findings.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't find the study anywhere other than the same article posted elsewhere, which makes me think it isn't published yet. So I do not know what cocoa they used or the percentages.
ReplyDeleteI agree! It's like going to the grocery store and buying milk, many buy what their parents always got, and may only know based on the color of the cap instead of the percentage. They may not know what the difference is with the kinds of milk.
Same with chocolates. I use cocoa in baking, and look at the percentage on the container. The higher the percentage of cocoa the more pure it is, and less sugar and fat it has. Of course I find this in the baking isle and not with the rest of the hot chocolate packages and chocolate. Chocolate is much more processed, for example milk chocolate, is cocoa with added milk and sugar.
So it all comes down to the responsibility of the consumer to look at the ingredients. To verify if you are getting what the label says, cocoa or powdered chocolate. If they want to play a blind eye, and get swiss miss with marshmallows and make it with milk instead of water, they probably won't see many results. Of course without all the sugar and fat it doesn't quite add up to the same comforting taste of a cup of hot cocoa in the winter.
I think i have read something like this before in the past, where cocoa is good for you which was why people recommended dark chocolate over other types of chocolate out there, but too much of it can make you fat so even though it is good for you, too much consumption of dark chocolate can ramp up the calorie intake. There needs to be more studies on this subject to prove that it actually works. I don't think its too much if we have human testings for intakes of cocoa since they are sold to people on the market for consumption anyways.
ReplyDeleteI would love if there was a positive coorelation between cocoa powder and lessening obesity! In fact I so happen to eat some chocolate fiber one cereal earlier - and this post justified my consumption. ha. But you have a good point Jason with your dark chocolate comment - since we often hear about how good dark chocolate it but it ramps up the caloric intake when people go and try to eat 85 dark chocolate snickers or kit-kats. Its counter intuitive.
ReplyDeleteThis study definitely leaves a lot of room for questions and more research especially on “how” cocoa affects the body. I agree with Jason and his comment about dark chocolate. I’m a huge fan for dark chocolate but I really try not to have so much of it even thought it’s hard. Too much can obviously have negative effects like weight gain from the amount of sugar that Carl mentioned. I’m really interested in Carl’s question on what’s the best balance of sugar, chocolate, and cocoa. If consuming cocoa regularly results in slow weight loss than that would be a great method to use. Reducing inflammation and down regulating the oxidative LDL’s sounds very hopeful to aid with obesity. I guess we should all try drinking a cup of sugar-free cocoa this winter. :)
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