A Sweet Heart Is A Healthy Heart

Chocolate lovers rejoice — chocolate can and does love you back. Indeed, the matter goes straight to the heart. In recent years, studies have shown that chocolate can promote cardiovascular health — that is, with indulgence held in check, which is not always an easy task for the chocoholic. Let’s face it, true lovers rarely care to quit the object of their desire. Let’s assume for the moment, however, that we’ve achieved a level of control, and are ready to explore the health benefits. What then, you ask, can chocolate possibly do for your heart?

For starters, it can prevent a heart attack, according to Diane Becker, MPH, ScD, a professor at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health. She says that "the chemical in cocoa beans has a biochemical effect similar to aspirin in reducing platelet clumping, which can be fatal if a clot forms and blocks a blood vessel, causing a heart attack."

The catalyst behind the biochemical effect is flavonoids, known as flavonols in chocolate, especially dark chocolate. While flavonoids are not unique to the diet — most fruits and vegetables have them — they are found in large quantities in chocolate, matching quantities in red wine, tea, cranberries, peanuts, apples, and strawberries. Flavonoids coax the body into making more nitric oxide, which relaxes the blood vessels.

Consider the example of the Kuna Indians on the San Blas Islands in Panama who drink three or four cups of cocoa a day. They seldom have cases of high blood pressure and heart disease. Compare that with their relatives who leave the island to join mainlanders. They wind up drinking less than four cups a week and often develop high blood pressure. According to Norman K. Hollenberg, MD, PhD, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, stress and other dietary practices do not explain the difference. "You take all the known environmental factors and put them together, and they don’t bring blood pressure that low. So we think it really is something special about eating these flavonoids." While blood pressure tends to rise with age, the Kuna Islanders maintain an average blood pressure of 110/70 after the age of 60, well within the normal range.

These findings led Hollenberg to conduct a study in 2002 to explore the effect of chocolate on chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) patients. He gave cocoa with high amounts of flavonols to Boston volunteers and compared results with a control group. Those who drank the cocoa showed more nitric oxide activity in the blood. Says Hollenberg, "Nitric oxide plays such an important role in the maintenance of healthy blood pressure and, in turn, cardiovascular health."

This is wonderful news for the guilt-ridden chocoholic. However, those who are now tempted to sample that third truffle need to take note: a truffle is not a cocoa drink. While flavonols are present in truffles, so is cocoa butter and sugar, both of which add unneeded calories. In order to reap the health benefits, it pays to remember when to stop.

Still, there is cause to celebrate. When ingested in moderation, chocolate can aid in heart health. San Diego is rife with chocolatiers. Notable among them is Chuao Chocolatier with locations in Encinitas, Del Mar, Irvine, UTC/La Jolla, and Carlsbad (and featured on our cover). Their Web site boasts the melding of "traditional European techniques with world-class Venezuelan chocolate and fresh, natural ingredients to produce the finest handmade chocolates." Owner and creator Michael Antonorsi states, "Many diseases are originated by emotional distress, which lowers one’s energy and affects the immune system. If chocolate makes you feel good, satisfied, rewarded, intimate, and happy, and even a little bit naughty, it will increase your energy levels and build an emotional barrier against disease." On the menu: the finest handmade bonbons and truffles. (858/546-1463, www.chuaochocolatier.com)

Chi Chocolat, in the Little Italy district downtown, features the popular Spice Flight, which, according to chef Jeff Joe, contains "five different chocolates, making this an exotic and risqué treat. You won’t find it anywhere else. It’s handmade and personally flavored." (619/501-9215, www.chichocolat.com)

For special events, The Chocolate Guy of San Diego rents chocolate fountains using "one of the world’s finest Belgian fondue chocolates." (858/270-3458, www.sandiegochocolateguy.com)

In Kensington, Just Fabulous Pastries features the following tortes: Chocolate Mousse, Chocolate Caramel Toffee, and Decadence, a flourless chocolate torte. (619/584-2929, www.justfab.com)

The Ghirardelli Soda Fountain & Chocolate Shop, located downtown on Fifth Avenue, serves "a wide array of chocolate items and gifts as well as an entire menu of ice cream fountain products," according to their Web site. They have a new line of Intense Dark chocolate bars. (619/234-2449, www.ghirardelli.com)
— Kathe Gogolewski