The good news about chocolate continues. Now we know that its benefits are greatly mediated through its salutary effect on the microbiome. It should be a surprise to those who have understood the wide impact of nutrition on our gut bacteria. But before rushing to the grocery store, make sure you get dark chocolate, at least 70% cocoa and organic. See below.
Hugo Rodier, MD
Dark chocolate packed with benefits for a healthy gut
Healio Minute, December 02, 2022
“Good news for chocolate lovers: In moderation, dark chocolate boasts numerous health benefits from flavanols, antioxidants and fiber, all of which aid in promoting gut wellness. “It has some unique properties to it,” Sunny Jain, MS, CEO and founder of Floré by Sun Genomics, said. “We always thought that chocolate was a simple treat, but dark chocolate and its fiber content can be a great prebiotic source for bacteria that feed on those types of fiber.” Dark chocolate has strong benefits from flavanols, antioxidants and fiber and it has polyphenols that provide heart health benefits. Source: Adobe Stock In an interview with Healio, Jain spoke about the benefits of dark chocolate and its impact on gut health.
Healio: What are some of the health benefits of dark chocolate?
Jain: Dark chocolate has a lot of strong benefits from flavanols, antioxidants and fiber. You can get antioxidant benefit from supplements or you can get it from your foods — and this is one way to get it through your foods. Antioxidants are the molecules that help quench reactive oxygen species, and things that are causing damage to your cells or proliferating your cells are causing these inflammatory cascades and cytokine storms. Antioxidants can be a helpful way to balance those things out. Dark chocolate also has polyphenols from cocoa beans, which can provide heart health benefits. Polyphenols also increase the concentration of Roseburia — a group of organisms in the gut — that provide that antioxidant benefit. You’re actually feeding the organisms of the gut that are going to provide you an antioxidant benefit. One way to think about keeping your gut healthy is going for the healthier option. People now recognize dark chocolate as a healthier option than some of the ways we used to consume chocolate, which were probably higher in sugar content. And separating it from milk chocolate, which might have more saturated fat from milk.
Healio: How much dark chocolate is recommended?
Jain: We definitely don’t want to take ourselves to the tummy-ache limit. Everything in moderation can be good, and when you have these polyphenols and flavanol benefits then a reasonable serving or a couple servings in a day is going to be OK. There are specific organisms of the gut that we believe things like dark chocolate can trigger, especially when you’re consuming foods that have polyphenols, like berries. When you’re looking for a sweet treat, instead of reaching for cake, perhaps reach for a dark chocolate-covered fruit. A dark chocolate-covered berry would be a much better option in the better-for-you category, because it has that polyphenol benefit. As long as it matches the rest of your nutritional distribution: You have to make sure you’re eating other healthy things, like diverse prebiotic fibers from vegetables and low-saturated and good unsaturated fat foods and nuts and legumes. Mix it in, and dark chocolate is a reasonable way to get a treat for the day.”
Comment: consumption of chocolate full of sugar with not enough cocoa leads to insulin resistance. See below
Insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia primary drivers of atherosclerotic CVD
Healio Minute, December 01, 2022
“Underlying insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia work together as “bad actors” to drive atherosclerotic CVD long before a person is diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, and early treatment is needed to slow the process, according to a speaker. “What really kills our [diabetes] patients are microvascular complications, like heart attacks and strokes,” Ralph A. DeFronzo, MD, professor of medicine and chief of the diabetes division at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, said during a presentation at the World Congress on Insulin Resistance, Diabetes & Cardiovascular Disease. “This accounts for 80% of the mortality in our diabetic patients.”
Comment: what to make of cholesterol, then? It is poorly processed in the liver, where it becomes “sticky,” if the liver is FATTY, that is, burdened by insulin resistance from too much sugar (HFCS) in the diet. Sticky cholesterol then sticks to arterial walls. Instead of fulfilling its role as “The Little Dutch Boy.” Instead of healing “Leaky Arteries,” it leads to plaque formation. See below.
Fatty liver disease conditions ‘change the healthy heart to a failing heart’
Healio Minute, December 02, 2022
“CVD risk increases with the severity of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and both CV and liver events are “highly related” to the degree of hepatic fibrosis present, according to a speaker. CVD remains the leading cause of death in adults with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and liver fibrosis, Bart Staels, PhD, professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lille, France, said during a presentation at the World Congress on Insulin Resistance, Diabetes & Cardiovascular Disease. Data also show adults with biopsy-proven NAFLD have increased incidence of major adverse cardiac events, caused by atherosclerosis as well as valvular calcification and myocardial remodeling. “Patients with NASH are at elevated risk to develop CVD, but when the disease progresses — and especially when fibrosis kicks in — the risk goes much higher,” Staels said. “It is important when we discuss a link between NAFLD and the heart that we split NAFLD/NASH as one group, and [people with] fibrosis as another group.”
Many mechanisms could explain how the pathology of fatty liver disease has such an impact on CVD, Staels said during the presentation. People with NAFLD are often obese and have type 2 diabetes, comorbidities that further increase CV risk. “It is no surprise that in the presence of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, these patients are at higher CV risk,” Staels said. “The liver plays an important role in this part of the mechanism, because hepatic insulin resistance is important with respect to the development of fatty liver, steatosis and type 2 diabetes.” The liver also plays a role in progression of atherogenic dyslipidemia, Staels said. In the settings of insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes, dyslipidemia is characterized by high production of VLDL particles and low HDL, further contributing to increased CV risk, Staels said.”
Comment: great article. But it does not mention ICAM and VCAM particles, which are related to sticky cholesterol.
Soothing with digital devices may lead to more problems with emotional reactivity in the future
“CNN (12/12, Holcombe) reports a new study has shown “soothing with digital devices may lead to more problems with emotional reactivity down the road” with small children. Researchers “looked at 422 parent and caregiver responses to assess how likely they were to utilize devices for distraction and how dysregulated their 3- to 5-year-old child’s behavior was over a six-month period, according to the study published Monday in the JAMA Pediatrics.” The act of frequently “using digital devices to distract from unpleasant and disruptive behavior like tantrums was associated with more emotional dysregulation in kids – particularly boys and children who were already struggling with emotional regulation, according to the study.”
Comment: the NYT (December 18, 2022) article on the Luddite movement is refreshing. Teens from around the country are beginning to turn off their phone and get off social media. I have shared this article with several teens in my state. I recommend you do the same with your loved ones. The costs of digital technology may outweigh its benefits if we consider the emotional toll on forming brains and minds. And decaying minds: as an old man, I am annoyed how I must now clutter my phone with apps for practically all travel, lodging, sports and entertaining events.
