Feeling Fatigued? Eat More RAW Chocolate
Wednesday, January 21st, 2009I don’t really experience fatigue, perhaps because I eat loads of chocolate (and eat a healthy diet and do regular exercise and have detoxed my body.)
If you experience fatigue, there could be loads of reasons why. One thing that may help is indulging in raw chocolate.
According to a study at Hull York Medical School, people who suffered with chronic fatigue found that they had more energy when they consumed high cocoa content.
Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) is an illness that has a vast array of diverse symptoms; the common one being exhaustion. Most chronic fatigue specialists advise their clients to avoid chocolate because of the caffeine and sugar it contains.
Professor Steve Atkin, who led the study, said he had clients who reported feeling much better after swapping normal milk chocolate for dark chocolate with a high cocoa solid content. This sparked him to investigate further.
The trial consisted of 10 patients who received 45g of dark chocolate or white chocolate dyed to look like dark chocolate everyday for two months. After the month was over, they avoided chocolate for one month and then began taking the other type of chocolate for two months.
When the patients were taking a daily does of dark chocolate, they reported significantly less fatigue, but felt the fatigue return when they stopped eating it.
Atkin was surprised at what good results were achieved. “Although it was a small study, two patients went back to work after being off for six months.”
He explained: “Dark chocolate is high in polyphenols, which have been associated with health benefits such as a reduction in blood pressure. Also high polyphenols appear to improve levels of serotonin in the brain, which has been linked with chronic fatigue syndrome and that may be a mechanism.”
Although more research was needed to confirm the findings, Atkin said that patients would not do themselves any harm by eating small amounts of dark chocolate. He added that no-one in the study put on any weight.
Chronic fatigue is obviously a very complex illness with many different causes including food intolerances, Candida, heavy metals and parasites. There is no single cure that works for everyone, and most people require quite a few lifestyle changes along with herbs and extra nutrition.
Because of this, chronic fatigue specialists warn against believing that eating daily chocolate is not going to completely solve the problem.
Most importantly, consuming chocolate with sugar in it should be generally avoided by everyone, especially those with a disabling illness.
Raw Chocolate
While dark chocolate is high in antioxidants and other nutrients, raw chocolate is even more potent since none of the nutrients have been destroyed through heating and processing. Further, raw chocolate is sugar free. Most people make raw chocolate with agave nectar, stevia or xylitol. All of these are fine in moderation for those with chronic fatigue syndrome because they don’t create blood sugar imbalances and they don’t feed an imbalanced gut like sugar does.
I personally believe that raw chocolate is the future of chocolate. Chocolate is a healthy super food that prevents disease and keeps us alert and energized. It is naturally caffeinated without the nasty side effects.
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