TheChocolateLifeLIVE | There’s Vitamins In My Chocolate!

Or: Chocolate as a Functional Food

This episode of TheChocolateLifeLIVE will examine the question of why food scientists and others view chocolate as a good – if not the ultimate – vitamin delivery vehicle.

For decades now (and as recently as this past month in the r/chocolate subreddit) we have been regaled by breathless posts about chocolate as a healthy food. I am sure you know what I mean. (I am not going to go into the equivocations (e.g., can, or may) that accompany these claims.) And I often wonder at the credentials and motivations of the people who are making these proclamations.

Promoted benefits include:

• Chocolate is good for the heart and blood circulation
• Chocolate reduces the risk of stroke
• Chocolate is rich in minerals
• Chocolate reduces cholesterol
• Chocolate helps to lose weight
• Chocolate is good for moms and babies
• Chocolate helps prevent diabetes
• Chocolate makes you feel better
• (Not on the list but) Chocolate improves your chances of winning a Nobel Prize!

But, apparently, these benefits are not enough for chocolate companies of all sizes so something must be done to make chocolate even healthier!

In this episode, we will look into some of the ways that chocolate, and other foods, are being “improved” through the addition of other ingredients to make it even better for you. I will also ask – and propose some answers to – the questions: “Is this even a good idea?” and “Are there other (and perhaps better) ways to communicate about consuming chocolate as healthy food?” Finally, Is it possible to produce healthier chocolate using existing processes?

Resources

Chocolate: Food or Drug? (at Science Direct – abstract)

My LinkedIn profile
TheChocolateLife page on Facebook (live event)

Hashtags

#functionalchocolate #enhancedchocolate #healthychocolate
#chocolate #craftchocolate #cacao #cocoa #cacau
#TheChocolateLife #LaVidaCocoa