Can the Easter Bunny boost your health this Easter?
19 Apr 2011

Can the Easter Bunny boost your health this Easter?

2 mins to read
With the consumption of chocolate likely to reach epic proportions over the Easter holiday, I thought now would be a good opportunity to help you make some informed decisions about what’s best for your health.


With the consumption of chocolate likely to reach epic proportions over the Easter holiday, I thought now would be a good opportunity to help you make some informed decisions about what’s best for your health.

Chocolate is often looked upon as an indulgent treat that contributes to weight gain. Yet the impact that chocolate has on your health can be either positive or negative depending on the type and quantity you eat.

Cocoa that is used to make chocolate contains fibre and polyphenol compounds that have antioxidant and possibly anti-inflammatory properties, and these may boost heart health in a similar way to tea and red wine.

But to make chocolate, other ingredients are added such as sugar, cocoa butter and dairy products – and all of these can add significant amounts of kilojoules and fat.

As a general rule, the darker the chocolate, the greater the health benefits. Dark chocolate contains 70% or more cocoa, and it is the only type of chocolate that could be described as ‘healthy’.

White chocolate contains cocoa butter, but little or no actual cocoa, while milk chocolate is too high in sugar and dairy fats and too low in cocoa to have a positive influence on heart health.

The following tips may be helpful when deciding what chocolate is best for you this Easter.

  • The best choice for your health is dark chocolate that contains at least 70 percent cocoa.
  • Cut back on or minimise your intake of white chocolate and dairy milk chocolate.
  • Skip the other additives that often come with chocolate such as caramel, nougat or cream fillings, as these just add extra sugar and fat. If you like something extra with your dark chocolate, eat it at the same time with raw, unsalted nuts.
  • All chocolate (dark included) is high in kilojoules and high in fat, so limit your portion size. If you do eat larger portions of chocolate, cut out other sweets or snacks, or perform extra exercise to balance out the extra kilojoules.

Do you find it hard to limit the amount of chocolate you eat over Easter?



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