Chocolate for Heart Health

This one’s for you, chocolate lovers. The results of a new study indicate that a daily dose of the sweet stuff may decrease your risk for heart attack and stroke by almost 40%!

German researchers studied the diet and exercise habits of 20,000 people over the course of eight years and found that those who consumed an average of 6 grams of chocolate per day—approximately one square of a chocolate bar—had a 39% lower risk for heart attack and stroke. The health effects of dark chocolate have been introduced in previous studies, but this is the first to observe its effects over a long period of time.

The flavonol content is thought to be responsible for chocolate’s heart benefits. Flavonols help widen blood vessels, leading to a drop in blood pressure.

Before you go out and buy a economy pack of candy bars or replenish the office chocolate stash, note that the researchers aren’t recommending that you satisfy your sweet tooth every time the urge strikes. They suggest, instead, replacing high-fat snacks with a small piece of dark chocolate as a way to reap the potential benefits.

Consuming large amounts of chocolate, of course, can lead to weight gain, and researchers caution that more study is needed to test chocolate’s effect on the body.

Still, with Easter and its goody-filled baskets just around the corner, you might take this study as reason enough to eat—and thoroughly enjoy—a chocolate egg or two.

The best Tweets of the week: