As temperatures continue to drop and snowstorms become more and more frequent, nothing hits quite like a steaming mug of hot cocoa. Whether you prefer the fancy drinking chocolate or a classic packet of Swiss Miss, drink it plain or doctor it up with whipped cream, marshmallows, and even sprinkles, hot cocoa is arguably one of the best parts of winter. But aside from the sweet chocolate and cozy vibes, hot cocoa has benefits, too—in fact, drinking more hot chocolate might just be improving your health.
How Hot Chocolate Can Improve Your Health
There’s no denying many of us spend long periods of our day sitting—whether it’s working at a desk, driving in the car, or relaxing on the couch. Research has shown that even just two hours of uninterrupted sitting can lead to a decline in vascular function, or how well blood vessels expand and contract to move blood through the body. Even a small drop in cardiovascular efficiency can increase the risk of heart disease, heart attacks, and strokes by as much as 13%.
According to a recent study from the University of Birmingham, researchers suggest that consuming cocoa may be beneficial for your cardiovascular health. Given the known benefits of chocolate, the new study makes sense—but is hot cocoa really the fix for heart health?
The study, which was published in The Journal of Physiology, examined how specific dietary compounds called flavanols may help protect your cardiovascular system from the negative effects of prolonged sitting. Flavanols are a class of phytonutrients (a fancy way of saying compounds found in plants) that act as powerful antioxidants to help protect cells from damage, and thus can contribute to healthy aging and disease prevention, according to the National Institute of Health. The good news for hot cocoa lovers? High-quality cocoa is chock-full of the nutrient.
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To test the effects of flavanols on cardiovascular health, Study participants drank either a high-flavanol cocoa drink or a low-flavanol cocoa drink before sitting for two hours. Researchers then used a technique called Flow-Mediated Dilatation to measure the flexibility of the arteries in limbs while seated and determine if and how vascular health was affected by flavanol consumption.
Participants who consumed the low-flavanol drink showed declines in vascular flexibility in their arms and legs. Plus, results also showed that low-flavanol cocoa consumers had increases in blood pressure, reduced blood flow, and lower leg muscle oxygenation.
On the other hand, the participants who consumed the high-flavanol cocoa showed no decline in blood vessel function; in fact, their arteries continued to function normally despite two hours of sitting. Moreover, the high-flavanol group also avoided the blood pressure spikes and the drop in leg muscle oxygenation that tend to occur during extended periods of inactivity, aka staying seated.
While the study suggests that consuming flavanol-rich foods, including hot chocolate, may be helpful to protect your heart during long periods of sitting, the “dietary shortcut” isn’t necessarily a cure-all for cardiovascular health. Instead, hot chocolate could be an ideal treat when you can’t avoid sitting. First and foremost, researchers still recommend taking quick breaks to stand or walk, but the study notes that foods packed with flavanols can definitely help boost vascular health and resilience.
Flavanol-Rich Foods To Try
So how do you know if you are choosing a cocoa drink that’s high or low in flavanols? The darker the chocolate, the more likely it is to be higher in flavanols. Also, seeking out hot chocolate made with cacao—which undergoes less processing than cocoa powder, preserving more antioxidants—increases the likelihood that your sweet treat is flavanol-rich.
The best news of all, though, is that cocoa isn’t the only flavanol-rich food fit for snacking while staying seated. High-flavanol foods like nuts, apples, berries, and plums, and other drinks including black and green teas, could provide the same benefit if hot cocoa isn’t your thing. Either way, I’ll take every excuse to eat more chocolate that I can get.
