For chocolate-lovers feeling guilty about their indulgence it is the best kind of news – eating more can help keep you thinner.Although chocolate contains more calories than many other foods, those who eat it regularly have less body fat than those who don’t, a study shows.
Researchers suspect the calories in chocolate are not like ‘normal’ calories.
The ingredients in chocolate appear to make your metabolism work harder, which means they offset the fat that might otherwise have stayed around.
As a result, the metabolic effects of certain ingredients make chocolate a good slimming food because it is calorie- neutral, says by research study.
Our findings appear to add to a body of information suggesting that the composition of calories, not just the number of them, matters for determining their ultimate impact on weight.
In the case of chocolate, this is good news, both for those who have a regular chocolate habit, and those who wish to start one.
The scientists investigated the chocolate-eating habits of 972 men and women with an average age of 57 for a study of statins – cholesterol-lowering drugs.
The participants did not have any known heart problems but were asked diet and lifestyle questions including: ‘How many times a week do you consume chocolate?’ Their Body Mass Index, which relates weight to height, was also recorded.
The surprising findings showed those who ate chocolate on more days of the week than average were statistically likely to have a lower BMI.
This was despite the fact that people who ate more chocolate did not consume fewer calories overall, or take more exercise. In fact they ate more. Chocolate consumption was associated with greater overall saturated fat intake from other sources.
Other studies have found that the benefits of chocolate can include a drop in the risk of heart disease and strokes, a reduction in blood pressure and a cut in the risk of diabetes.
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