By Maureen Farrar
Good news for chocolate lovers! It turns out that enjoying a few servings of dark chocolate each week might actually help reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
A recent study published in the British Medical Journal found that people who ate at least five servings of dark chocolate per week were 21% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes compared to those who rarely or never indulged. And the more dark chocolate they ate, the better. Researchers observed a 3% lower risk for each additional weekly serving.
While dark chocolate seems to offer some protection against type 2 diabetes, the same can’t be said for milk chocolate.
The study, which tracked the health data of over 190,000 U.S. healthcare professionals for 30 years, found no link between milk chocolate consumption and a reduced risk of diabetes. In fact, eating milk chocolate regularly was associated with weight gain, which is a major risk factor for type 2 diabetes.
While the exact reasons why dark chocolate seems to protect against type 2 diabetes are still unclear, researchers believe it might be due to its higher cocoa content. Cocoa contains beneficial compounds that can improve how our bodies use insulin and process sugar.
Although dark chocolate does contain sugar and saturated fat, it also boasts a rich supply of polyphenols, which are plant compounds with antioxidant properties. These polyphenols might help counteract the negative effects of sugar and fat, potentially explaining why dark chocolate doesn’t seem to contribute to weight gain in the same way that milk chocolate does.
Related: Moderate Coffee Consumption Linked to Lower Disease Risk
