Why You Should Eat That Easter Chocolate

There are certain times of year when we can cut ourselves a bit of slack for a little over indulgence. I believe Easter to be one of them.  Dark chocolate is my absolute favourite type so I was pleased to come across this article outlining its benefits.  Read on....and then go ahead, enjoy your Easter egg! 

 

Regarded by many as the tastiest food on Earth, dark chocolate also has many health benefits..

1. It’s loaded with antioxidants

Dark chocolate contains hefty amounts of disease-fighting flavenoids, antioxidants also found in red wine and many fruits and vegetables. In fact, it appears to have more flavenoids than any other food.

2. It helps you through PMS

“There’s a reason we crave certain foods, such as chocolate, at that time of the month,” says Toronto-based raw foods coach Nathalie Lussier. “Chocolate releases calming endorphins that reduce anxiety. Plus, it’s high in magnesium,” which lifts moods and reduces water retention. But overindulging in sugar, salt and caffeine can backfire, causing bloating and fluid retention (not to mention weight gain).

3. It may lower cholesterol

A small study from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign found that daily consumption of cocoa flavanol-containing dark chocolate lowered cholesterol and improved blood pressure.

While the research was funded by chocolate manufacturer Mars, Inc., the study was double-blinded and peer reviewed.

4. It may prevent pregnancy complications

A new study reports that a chemical (theobromine) found in chocolate may reduce preeclampsia, a major pregnancy complication. The darker the chocolate, the better.

Preeclampsia is primarily noted for raising blood pressure in pregnant women, and eating chocolate helps to lower this risk by up to 69 percent. The study of nearly 2,300 women established greater benefits to those who ate five or more servings per week, especially in their third trimester.

Despite the results from this study, researchers have said that further studies are needed to prove the direct link between chocolate and preeclampsia.

5. It helps prevent heart disease

A recent study shows that people who regularly consume 70% dark chocolate (about 20 g per day) show a marked improvement in blood flow, while no improvement is observed in those who eat “processed” chocolate, which contains very little cocoa paste. It seems that the positive effect of dark chocolate is linked to a property in its polyphenols that releases a chemical messenger, nitric oxide, which increases arterial dilatation, at the same time improving blood flow and reducing platelet aggregation.

However, it is important to note that previous studies have shown that milk prevents the absorption of dark chocolate’s polyphenols, thereby neutralizing its beneficial effects. Milk contains large amounts of casein, a protein that interacts with polyphenols and prevents them from being efficiently absorbed by the intestine. It is therefore always preferable to consume dark chocolate unaccompanied by milk.

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How to Balance Healthy Living....and Weekends

When talking about how to keep on track with your healthy lifestyle at the weekend, we really need to talk about what we’re doing the rest of the time...

We’ve all done it, eating a diet of lettuce leaves and apple slices before a big weekend full of meals out and one too many cocktails. The warped cycle of being ‘good’ by nibbling on carrots during the week for substance ahead of a ‘bad’ weekend full of over-indulgence is one that we can all get stuck in, which can not only be damaging for our bodies but our minds too.

The truth is that we should all be striving for a balance. The old 80/20 rule is a firm favourite of the SourcedBox team; eat natural, nourishing foods 80% of the time and allow yourself to enjoy less nourishing foods the other 20% of the time.

All sounds pretty straight forward, but how do we actually put it into practice?

Get Researching

A lot of us don’t actually know what we should be eating and how different foods impact our bodies. For instance, did you know that starting your day with protein will keep you fuller for longer throughout the day? Or that the more sugar you eat, the more you will crave it? Or that eating some fruits after meals will make it harder for your body to digest?

There are so many brilliant resources online and offline that will give you the lowdown on how to shape your diet so that you are getting the most from your foods. Time spent on understanding your nutrition is time well spent.

Get To Know Your Body

You could be deficient in minerals and vitamins and not even know it. You can download the VITL app for free to see which nutrients you might be lacking and what foods you can eat to get back into balance.

It’s also useful to do an analysis of how much food you should be eating, the amount of food you need varies depending on your weight, height and activity levels. You may be unknowingly over or under eating which could be damaging your overall wellbeing and quality of life. This can be easily checked out by your GP or a by doing a quick test online.

Get Experimenting

Are you a creature of habit, constantly remaking the same meals? This could be the reason why you’re reaching straight for the junk when it gets to the weekend and who can blame you? After a week of limp salads, anybody would be craving some flavour.

The good news is that nourishing food can be both healthy and delicious. In an age where healthy living is cool, there are a ton of blogs, Pinterest boards and recipe books crammed full of healthy meals. Give them a go and discover a whole new range of meals to enjoy.

Get Planning
After learning about how to fuel your body properly in an enjoyable way, get planning. If you know you’ve got a birthday at the weekend it makes sense to balance out the rest of your week. Prep a couple of nourishing meals that you can easily grab on the go, this will enable you to stay satisfied all week long and stop you from stuffing yourself with birthday cake at the weekend.

If you’re meeting friends for brunch at the weekend, pick a spot that serves balanced meals. A quick search online will give you a list of the best places to visit. Eating out doesn’t have to mean unhealthy foods, there are lots of restaurants serving healthy meals and with avocado on toast being such a huge food trend, you can guarantee to see this green goodness popping up on most menus.

Relax

And our final tip, relax! If you’ve had a weekend of birthday cake and cocktails, don’t panic and definitely don’t punish yourself by eating way less than required on Monday. The trick is to keep yourself full and satisfied with delicious, healthy foods and enjoy treats occasionally. The more you eat to nourish your body, the more you will naturally eat the foods your body needs.

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