Happy Valentine’s Day!!
Over the years, chocolates have been considered as the traditional ‘love foods’ and I have good news for you chocolate lovers!
The good news is some chocolate can have significant beauty benefits. The not so good news is the only chocolate that can deliver these benefits is dark chocolate with at least 70 percent cocoa content.
On the heart front, cocoa contains naturally occurring plant substances called flavonoids that help keep platelets less sticky, decreasing your risk for heart attack or stroke from a clot.
Flavonols (the type of flavonoid found in chocolate) help your skin look its best. They are antioxidants that help your skin protect itself from UV damage, fight free radicals and increase blood flow.
Dark chocolate relaxes blood vessels, which in turn reduces blood pressure. Several studies suggest that it may also be a feel-good treat that increases production of mood-enhancing neurotransmitters.
Dark chocolate also helps combat beauty’s public enemy number one- Stress. Cocoa helps reduce stress hormones, which means less collagen breakdown in the skin, and fewer wrinkles.
So, go ahead, indulge yourself in a box of guilty pleasures. Even if you don’t get it as a gift, go get one for yourself, after all its valentine’s day… love yourself some dark chocolates!