Dark chocolate and red wine are two foods that are literally close to my heart. There is growing body of evidence pointing to the health benefits of two of our favorite foods.  There have been several studies by respected research institutions that have concluded the antioxidants in dark chocolate and red wine contribute to the prevention and cure of certain cancers, heart disease, Alzheimers and other illnesses associated with aging.

In order to put this evidence in perspective lets first define antioxidant, what it does, and how it affects heart health and the aging process.  Next we’ll review a few studies on the subject. Finally we will look at the Food and Drug Administration sponsored Radical Absorption Capacity Rating of Foods. This new evidence will arm us with the information needed to make healthy food choices, the type of choices that will allow us to have our dark chocolate and red wine too.

Antioxidants and Free Radicals

Antioxidants reduce oxidative damage by neutralizing free radicals. Free radicals are unstable cells.  The body naturally produces free radicals to fight bacteria and viruses.  Of concern are free radicals from foreign sources such as cigarette smoke and pollution.  We’ll call these bad free radicals. Bad free radicals, seeking stability, attack stable, healthy cells and tissues making them unstable.

The result is a chain reaction of cells attacking cells resulting in disease. As we age, the body will naturally develop bad free radicals leading to Cancer, Alzheimers, Parkinson and other diseases associated with aging.

A diet high in antioxidants will neutralize free radicals (health check systems.com) erasing their ability to damage healthy cells and tissues.

How do we know what foods are high in antioxidants?

The Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) is a system created by The U.S. Department of Agriculture.  It identifies the antioxidant value of 59 foods.  The higher the ORAC value of a food, the greater its capacity to neutralize free radicals. While it has long been known that fruits, grains and vegetables are high in antioxidants, red wine exceeds the daily recommended requirements and sorgum is the only food known to man have a higher antioxidant value than dark chocolate.

Chocolate

While we don’t normally think of chocolate as a plant, it is one of the antioxidant dense plants on the planet. Antioxidants are present in the highest concentrations in pure dark chocolate. The darker the chocolate, the higher the antioxidant or ORAC value. The more chocolate is processed, the more antioxidants are removed. Dark chocolate is so antioxidant rich, that even with processing, it still contains more than the recommended allowance of antioxidants.  Milk and white chocolate do not offer the same level of antioxidant power.

As a result of the antioxidant power of dark chocolate, the evidence indicates chocolate may contribute to prevention of tumor growth, ulcers, high cholesterol levels, poor circulation, high blood pressure, cardiovascular and other diseases.

Red Wine

In the most famous study to date (1995, The Copenhagen City Heart Study, sponsored by that cities Ministry of Health researchers monitored the relationship between wine, alcohol and health. They observed 13,000 people over a ten year period. Researchers found drinking a moderate level of red wine, 3-5 glasses a day significantly lowered the mortality rate for all causes.

Dr. Westphal and Sinclair of the Cambridge Massachusetts based research firm Sirtris found that resveratrol slowed down the aging process in mice. In what is now known as the Sirtris Study, the affects of Resveratrol was tested on mice.  Over a course of twelve weeks, one group of mice was given a diet high in Resveratrol. The second group was fed a diet high in fat.  According to Doctor Sinclair, “You have fat mice and you have fat mice with resveratrol.  And the ones that are on Resveratrol, run twice as far, and they live longer, about 20 percent loner.”

The difference between red and white win is the skins of the grape. Red wine is high in resveratrol because the skins of the grape are used in red wine production. According to Doctor Sinclair,”Red wine is brimming with Resveratrol.  It is found in high concentrations in the skin of the grape.”

Certainly there is no replacement for exercise, moderate food consumption and a well balanced diet with lots of fruits, vegetables, grains and spices. Based on the growing body of evidence there is every indication that dark chocolate and red wine aid in the prevention and cure of a myriad of diseases from high blood pressure, cancer, Alzheimers and heart disease.  This new information makes it clear you can have your dark chocolate and red wine too.

Sources

ORAC of Selected foods-2007 U.S. Department of Agriculture

The French Paradox, Maurey Schafer 60 Minutes 2009

Fountain of Youth in a Wine, Maurey Schafer 60 Minutes 2009

wineserver.ucdavis.edu/chocolate/choc1.htm

healthchecksystems.com