Hilary's Brownie Blog

As I sit here at my desk this Thursday trying to diligently ignore the fact that my mouth is watering with the smell of freshly baking brownies wafting through the air, I am finding it extremely hard to concentrate! As I try to avoid the little voice in my head telling me to go get come deliciously fudgy warm brownies straight out of the oven, another little voice in my head is saying "Why not, it can't hurt, dark chocolate is good for you!" Oh the inner battle going on in my head!!!

Believe it or not, dark chocolate (Fairytale Brownies bakes with 100% pure Callebaut Belgian dark chocolate) has many health benefits...yes, I said benefits! Dark chocolate is made from plants, which means it contains many of the benefits of dark vegetables. These benefits are from flavanoids (Definition: Flavonoids are pigments found in plants that act as antioxidants to help reduce damage to your body. Flavonoids are found in many vegetables and fruits, especially ones with dark colors), which act as antioxidants (Definition: Antioxidants are substances found in plants that help protect them. Plants are exposed to a lot of sunlight, which can cause damage to cells (and your skin cells). The antioxidants in plants repair that damage. When we eat plants that have large amounts of antioxidants, our bodies can use those same substances to repair damage to our own cells. This is a good thing. Basically, antioxidants are nature's anti-aging medicine -- they help prevent cancer, heart disease and countless other illnesses).

Dark chocolate contains a large number of antioxidants and is good for your heart. A small amount of dark chocolate everyday can help keep your heart and cardiovascular system running well. Two heart benefits of dark chocolate are:

• Lower Blood Pressure: Studies have shown that consuming a small bar of dark chocolate everyday can reduce blood pressure in individuals with high blood pressure.
• Lower Cholesterol: Dark chocolate has also been shown to reduce LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol) by up to 10 percent. 

Other benefits of dark chocolate:

• it tastes good
• it stimulates endorphin production, which gives a feeling of pleasure
• it contains serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant 

So I ask myself the question, "What am I waiting for!!" Excuse me, but I'm on my way down to the bakery to grab myself a gourmet dark chocolate brownie! So, we know which voice won that battle =) Source: http://longevity.about.com/od/lifelongnutrition/p/chocolate.htm