A cardiologist recommends dark chocolate for its antioxidants to support heart health.Pairing dark chocolate with berries boosts flavonoid benefits for heart and brain health.Eating dark chocolate may also reduce the risk of diabetes, per recent research.
We’re in the midst of Heart Health Month, so you may be inspired to try incorporating more heart-healthy foods into your routine. Your mind may instantly go to some nutritious staples, like leafy greens and beans. But there are some foods—sweets, even—that you may be missing out on that can help support your cardiovascular system.
I asked cardiologist Evelina Grayver, M.D., if there was a surprising food that she recommends for better heart health, and would you be shocked to learn that her answer is a dessert? Here’s what she revealed.
“Dark chocolate, you can never have enough dark chocolate,” the doctor shares. “Just simply from the phenomenal antioxidant effects to it.”
Chocolate sometimes gets a bad rap, but Grayver is absolutely correct that dark chocolate may improve your heart health, thanks to it being rich in flavonoids, an antioxidant that the American Heart Association touts as a heart- and brain-health booster. And research has shown that due to its nutritional content, eating dark chocolate regularly can help lower one’s risk of hypertension by 27%.
That’s not all: as mentioned above, dark chocolate could be the key to better cognitive health, since flavonoids help support blood flow to the brain, so studies directly link the chocolate to better memory and focus. Plus, it’s also rich in iron, containing 33% of the recommended daily value. And recent research shows that the dessert can help lower diabetes risk.
You can eat dark chocolate as-is for the healthy effects, but the cardiologist suggests pairing it with some nutrient-rich fruit for added benefits.
“If you mix [dark chocolate] with something like a berry, like strawberries or blueberries, you’re adding even more of the antioxidant effect to it,” Grayver notes. And we have a few fruity, chocolaty bites that would definitely be approved by the doctor—check them out below.