CHOCOLATES....

[jamesbond]

hahaha... tama sir @Itachi101... kung nagkataon ang dami nating nagka diabetes na dito sa thread na ito... best chocolate for me are the dark ones... a little bitter and yet so sweet... ummm... delightful.... 

  ah yes. . .  me too, i'm a sucker for dark chocolates. . . .  +likes po sa mga dumaan dito especially to the one ^up above me, nice share labs. . .  thanks. . .

[-kobe-]

parang ang sarap nmn nito...kakagigiltum...


bakit pag kelangan mag sipag eh sinasabihan magsunog ng kilay, aber !
ano pla ibig ng tamad, pagandahin ang kilay..hahahaha -kobe -

[jamesbond]

Scientists Probe Dark Chocolate's Health Secrets
By Dr. Mercola

The health benefits of dark chocolate are all the rage right now, with increasing numbers of studies pointing to its rich concentrations of beneficial antioxidants and polyphenols.

This applies particularly to dark chocolate because it contains a higher concentration of cacao seeds than milk chocolate, and therein lies the secret to its health-promoting powers.

Cacao refers to the plant, a small evergreen tree of the species Theobroma cacao, which is cultivated for its seeds, also known as cacao beans or cocoa beans. The term "chocolate" refers to the solid food or candy made from a preparation of cacao seeds (typically roasted). If the cacao seeds are not roasted, then you have "raw chocolate," which is also typically sweetened.

Cocoa, on the other hand, refers to the powder made from roasted, husked, and ground cacao seeds, from which most of the fat has been removed. Knowing the meaning of these terms is important, because if you think you're improving your health by eating typical chocolate candies, you're being misled.

That being said, however, certain types of chocolate, as well as cocoa powder and cacao, are turning out to be powerful superfoods that rank right up there among the most anti-inflammatory and antioxidant-rich foods known to mankind.

Your Gut Bacteria Help Unlock Dark Chocolate's Anti-Inflammatory Powers

Research presented at the 247th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS) claims to have unraveled the precise reason why dark chocolate is so beneficial. While it's known that cocoa powder is rich in antioxidants including catechin and epicatechin, along with a small amount of fiber, it was thought that these molecules were poorly digested and absorbed due to their large size.

The new study found, however, that your gut bacteria breaks down and ferments the components in dark chocolate, turning them into anti-inflammatory compounds that benefit your health. In particular, beneficial microbes including Bifidobacterium and lactic acid bacteria "feasted" on chocolate, according to the researchers.

The study, which involved three cocoa powders tested in a model digestive tract, may help explain why chocolate has been found to be so good for your heart, as the anti-inflammatory compounds may reduce inflammation of cardiovascular tissue. The study's lead author explained:1

"In our study we found that the fiber is fermented and the large polyphenolic polymers are metabolized to smaller molecules, which are more easily absorbed. These smaller polymers exhibit anti-inflammatory activity… When these compounds are absorbed by the body, they lessen the inflammation of cardiovascular tissue, reducing the long-term risk of stroke."

Chocolate and Your Heart: What Does the Research Say?

A seven-study meta-analysis sought to find a link between chocolate consumption and certain cardiometabolic disorders, such as coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and metabolic syndrome. Along with those disorders are related problems like hypertension, elevated fasting glucose and triglycerides, high cholesterol, and abdominal obesity.2

But rather than negative effects, scientists found that chocolate – specifically the dark unprocessed raw cacao kinds – actually reduced the risk of such disorders.

In fact, the highest levels of chocolate consumption were associated with a 37 percent reduction in cardiovascular disease and a 29 percent reduction in stroke compared with the lowest levels! Other research has also shown that the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds in chocolate may lower your risk of heart attack and stroke considerably.

Small amounts of dark chocolate can cut your risk of heart attack because, like aspirin, chocolate has a biochemical effect that reduces the clumping of platelets, which cause blood to clot.3 Platelet clumping can be fatal if a clot forms and blocks a blood vessel, causing a heart attack.
Specially formulated raw cocoa powder has the potential to prevent cardiovascular disease in diabetics. When diabetic patients were given a special high-flavonol cocoa drink for one month, it brought their blood vessel function from severely impaired to normal. The improvement was actually as large as has been observed with exercise and many common diabetic medications.4
Researchers also discovered that a compound in dark chocolate, called epicatechin (a flavonoid), may protect your brain after a stroke by increasing cellular signals that shield nerve cells from damage.5 A stroke is similar to a heart attack, but occurs when the blood supply to your brain becomes blocked or reduced, as opposed to blocking the blood supply to your heart.
Another one of the ways chocolate may provide cardiovascular benefit is by assisting with nitric oxide metabolism, as described by Ori Hofmekler.6 Nitric oxide protects your heart by relaxing your blood vessels and thereby lowering your blood pressure.

However, nitric oxide production produces adverse reactions and toxic metabolites, which must be neutralized by your body so they don't result in oxidative damage to your blood vessel lining (by peroxynitrite oxidation and nitration reactions). Cocoa polyphenols protect your body from these metabolites and help counter the typical age-related decline in nitric oxide production.7

[lovemarie]

The smell of chocolate increases theta brain waves, which triggers relaxation.

[-kobe-]

mmmmmmmmm... ang sarap nmn tlga ... papakalula nga ako sa reribbon pag uwi ko..hehehehe

[carlo1225]

Chocolate Taco...
Chocolate Tacos filled with vanilla ice cream, chocolate ice cream, whipped cream and strawberries.
 

[lovemarie]

Ease a Cough With Chocolate
Blueberry BarOne of chocolate's active ingredients, Theobromine, suppresses activity in the vagus nerve, which causes coughing. According to a study published in a recent issue of The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology journal, it was one-third more effective at stopping a persistent cough than a placebo.

[naruto789544]

nice article sir @jamesbond... now, our chocolate eating is beneficial after all... the only setback i see of eating too much is measured in our waists... 

[lovemarie]

Seven days without chocolates makes one weak 

[jamesbond]

parang seven days na stress yun kapag walang chocolates haaaays. . . . .  ^ ang ganda ng lava cake mam. . .  mouth-watering. . .  +like po yan mam. . .

[lovemarie]

pagdamutan mo na po ito sir james . . . yan lang ang dala ko ngayon hehehe . . .

[jamesbond]

ang sarap nung choco balls siguro. . . .  itong lastmukhang cake na may toppings of m&m,s. . . . sarap naman talaga. . . .

[naruto789544]

there goes my diet again... passing this thread is dangerous... parental guidance is a must.. 

[lovemarie]

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt.
Charles M. Schulz

[-kobe-]

mmmm..... chokolate...ang weekness ng mga gurls...


pacenxa na..walang kakulitan kaya eto.. papansin lang - kobe -