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Chocolate: Food as Medicine/Medicine as Food

Departments of Nutrition and Internal Medicine, University of California at Davis, Davis, California

Address reprint requests to: Carl L Keen, PhD, Department of Nutrition, University of California at Davis, 714 Harrier Place, Davis, CA 95616. E-mail: clkeen{at}ucdavis.edu

Cocoa and chocolate products have been delicacies for hundreds of years. Only recently have they been recognized as significant sources of phytochemicals with healthful effects. These foods are among the most concentrated sources of the procyanidin flavonoids, catechin and epicatechin. Recent studies have shown that these polyphenols are absorbed from the intestine of animals and humans with epicatechin absorbed much more than catechin. These flavonoids have potent antioxidant and antiplatelet activities following consumption of cocoa or chocolate.

Key words: chocolate, flavonoids, antioxidants, procyanidins, epicatechin, cardiovascular disease

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