When it comes to fixing those sweet tooth cravings without feeling super guilty about it, a square or two of dark chocolate usually does the job. Turns out? There's a really good reason to turn to this chocolate variety too.
New research published in the March 2014 issue of The FASEB Journal explored the positive impact of dark chocolate on the heart.
Scientists carried out the study on a group of 44-year-old men over four weeks. They were given 70g of chocolate a day, either a "specially produced dark chocolate with high flavanol content or chocolate that was regularly produced."
They found dark chocolate improved flexibility in the arteries and prevented white blood cells from sticking to the artery walls.
While previous claims implied dark chocolate isn't good for us because of the lack of flavanol in it, this study also revealed flavanol has got nothing to do with a healthy heart.
This can only be a positive thing, says Gerald Weissmann, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of The FASEB Journal.
"The effect that dark chocolate has on our bodies is encouraging not only because it allows us to indulge with less guilt, but also because it could lead the way to therapies that do the same thing as dark chocolate but with better and more consistent results," he said.
Eating chocolate that's good for you? We're all for it.