health care england

It is widely known that dark chocolate is one of the best sources of antioxidants and flavonoids that help protect your body from aging caused by free radicals. So the question is how much is enough and how much is too much?

When you hear that dark chocolate has almost 8-times the amounts of antioxidants found in strawberries you might think that it's ok to just eat mass quantities for ultimate health. However, that is certainly not the case. The bottom line is that it is still a very high fat and high calorie food and you should still limit your intake even though the antioxidants are superior to many other sources. Ideally if you're interested in reaping the benefits from dark chocolate you should be eating no more than a half bar or about 3-4 ounces per day. Anything more than this and the benefits are simply overtaken by the harm of extra calories and fat.

So now that you know how much is just enough, what exactly are the benefits you'll gain from eating 3-4 ounces per day. Here are some of the good aspects of dark chocolate:

1. First and foremost, it tastes good. If someone told you eating a bowl of ice cream everyday is one of the most healthiest things you could do, wouldn't that be spectacular? Well, this is as close as it gets as chocolate is definitely a great treat to have and having it daily is even better.

2. You can actually lower LDL cholesterol, which is the bad cholesterol, by upwards of 10% by eating small amounts daily. Again, all in moderation so make sure you're only eating the minimal amounts (3-4 ounces or less.)

3. Eating dark chocolate can actually lower your blood pressure. There have been many studies throughout the world that prove that eating a few ounces per day can help those suffering from high blood pressure.

4. Dark chocolate actually contains a compound called serotonin which is a well known anti-depressant. It's hard to be depressed when you're eating chocolate and now serotonin helps that whole theory!

My last recommendation is to make sure you're getting the highest quality dark chocolate with the highest percentage of cocoa you can find. Anything over 70% cocoa and you'll have some of the best on the market with the ultimate in health benefits. Keep looking around at your local food stores as they're beginning to stock these higher quality chocolate products in their candy aisles.

Good luck and keep eating that dark chocolate, within reason of course.

Marc Davis is an author and writer for numerous popular websites. Come visit his newest Pop Corn Machine website and learn about the best Hot Air Popper on the market.