Chocolate is one of the world's most beloved foods, and for good reason! It's sweet, creamy, rich, and can be consumed in various different ways. Unfortunately, most of those chocolate food products like cakes, cookies, candy bars, and other goods are ridden with harmful fats, lots of sugar, chemicals, and preservatives that do us more harm than good.
But did you have any idea that you can actually consume chocolate DAILY as a completely health part of your diet? Here's how!
Choose dark chocolate.
It's cocoa that provides you with all those health benefits, not all that added stuff like sugar. You can find dark bars with 60 - 70% cocoa content at your local supermarket. This is the best option because you get the full anti-oxidant benefit from that full cocoa content.
Remember portion control.
There's no true amount that you should be consuming, but if you consume about 100 - 150 calories in chocolate per day, you should be doing yourself some good. As long as you keep your portions small, you should be able to enjoy this delicious treat on a daily basis.
Skip the fillers.
So, maybe plain dark chocolate can seem a little boring at time and it can be tempting to go for those treats that have nougat, caramel, and other nasty fillers baked in them, which basically render the health benefits almost useless. Instead, trying adding some orange peel, mint, or nuts to your chocolate. This can add some extra taste to your chocolate without suffering from the bad additives.
Avoid drinking milk.
According to some research, it has been discovered that eating dark chocolate and then washing it down with a big glass of milk can counteract the health benefits and anti-oxidants found in chocolate. So, instead of milk, try pairing it up with a glass of water instead if you really need to quench your thirst afterward.
Try it in liquid form.
Originally, chocolate was first invented by the Aztecs as a drink. You can still get the full health benefits from dark chocolate when drank in liquid form, such as in hot chocolate. Instead of using milk, use hot water and a natural sweetener like Truvia or Stevia along with pure cocoa. Add a small amount of cocoa at first if you think you need it, but try to ween yourself off the milk. Hot chocolate is a great, yummy drink for those cold winter nights!
Hope you enjoyed these tips and really implement them in your daily diet. Good luck!
Elise is a chocolate lover of all types, looking to educate people on dark chocolate health benefits [http://www.darkchocolatedreamers.com]. If you want to find out more about dark chocolate health benefits [http://www.darkchocolatedreamers.com], please visit her website and be sure to pick up her free dark chocolate health guide!
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