Chocolate: food as medicine/medicine as food.
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.
Keen
C L
CL
Department of Nutrition, University of California at Davis, 95616, USA. clkeen@ucdavis.edu
D000975:Antioxidants / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D044946:Biflavonoids; D002099:Cacao / Q000737:chemistry*; D002392:Catechin / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005419:Flavonoids / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015539:Platelet Activation / Q000187:drug effects; D044945:Proanthocyanidins
D000975:Antioxidants; D044946:Biflavonoids; D005419:Flavonoids; D010936:Plant Extracts; D044945:Proanthocyanidins; C017674:procyanidin; D002392:Catechin