american food Resource - american food pictures -

Home
American Food Habits
American Food History
American Food Industry
American Food Ingredients
American Food Management
American Food Menus
American Food Pictures
American Food Processor
American Food Production
American Food Products

american food pictures articles and products

to help you on your way to success. The Great american food pictures Resource.

Chocolate, The Energy Food & The Cacao Tree
By Stephen
There have been numerous studies done on the health benefits of chocolate. Some dietitians (the ones we want to believe - say that chocolate contributes to a healthy diet. However, there is also some evidence in preliminary tests that are contradictory to this belief.

Chocolate is an energy dense food and responsible health care provider should use caution when making recommendations about including it in a healthy diet.

While some studies have found that eating dark chocolate is not harmful to serum cholesterol levels, reports that dark chocolate is able to improve cholesterol concentrations are mixed. No matter what the effect of cocoa products on cholesterol concentrations, they have been shown to decrease the likelihood of LDL cholesterol oxidizing in tests.

Another cardio-protective action of cocoa products is the ability to thin the blood by decreasing platelet activation. These studies have shown a decrease in platelet activity after being given cocoa beverages, cocoa flavonol supplements or dark chocolate has been linked to cardiovascular disease because of the high concentration of fat, most of which is saturated.

However, the saturated fat in chocolate is stearic acid, which does not seem to cause cholesterol levels to rise after it is eaten. Increased risk of heart disease has been associated with higher levels of stearic acid in some population studies.

Mainly because foods that are high in stearic acid also have high levels of other saturated fats, these do cause elevation of cholesterol levels. Studies of Indians in Panama have observed low blood pressure even though consumption of cocoa is high.

Several clinical studies have supported this theory that cocoa may have favorable effects on blood pressure and flow. Other studies have shown that it would take at a minimum of 100 grams of flavonol rich dark chocolate to decrease blood pressure by an observable amount.

The Cacao Tree:
Cacao trees in the wild grow to

The best american food pictures Resource.

We strive to provide only quality articles, so if there is a specific topic related to american food that you would like us to cover, please contact us at any time.

And again, thank you to those contributing daily to our american food pictures website.