Did you know that there is a food that fights diabetes?
Chocolate is a popular food enjoyed by people all over the world. The population includes me.
When you just read the word chocolate, you probably associate it with indulgence and pleasure.
But did you know that chocolate may also have some health benefits?
Today, I want to share the growing clinical literature suggesting that the consumption of dark (but not milk) chocolate may lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
I will also offer some tips on how to enjoy chocolate healthily.
Musicians on Chocolate
Let’s start with musicians singing about chocolate.
Here’s Kylie Minogue on chocolate in 2003:
And Morris Day in 1990:
Writers on chocolate
Next up, writers on chocolate.
“There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.”
― William Shakespeare, Hamlet.
“If music be the food of love, play on;
Give me excess of it, that, surfeiting,
The appetite may sicken, and so die.
That strain again! It had a dying fall:
O, it came o’er my ear like the sweet sound,
That breathes upon a bank of violets,
Stealing and giving odour! Enough; no more:
’Tis not so sweet now as it was before.
O spirit of love! how quick and fresh art thou,
That, notwithstanding thy capacity
Receiveth as the sea, nought enters there,
Of what validity and pitch soe’er,
But falls into abatement and low price,
Even in a minute: so full of shapes is fancy
That it alone is high fantastical.”
― William Shakespeare, Twelfth Night.
“Your hand and your mouth agreed many years ago that, as far as chocolate is concerned, there is no need to involve your brain.” ― Dave Barry.
Everywhere in the world, there are tensions, economic, political, and religious. So we need chocolate. — Alain Ducasse,
Chocolate: A Food That Fights Diabetes
Not all chocolate is created equal.
That’s the takeaway from a December 2024 study in the British Medical Journal.
At least five servings of dark chocolate per week were linked with a one-fifth (21 percent) lower risk of type 2 diabetes among study participants.
Moreover, there appears to be a dose-related benefit: Researchers report a three percent drop in risk for every serving of dark chocolate consumed weekly.
Milk chocolate consumption did not appear to be associated with a reduced type 2 diabetes risk.
Increased consumption of milk (but not dark) chocolate was linked with long-term weight gain.
Why Might Dark Chocolate Be A Food That Fights Diabetes?
Although dark and milk chocolate have comparable calories, sugars, and saturated fats, its higher cocoa content may account for its health advantages.
Cocoa, derived from beans, is rich in fiber and beneficial plant compounds called flavonoids.
Flavonoids’ antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and potential to improve blood vessel dilation may explain cocoa’s health benefits.
My Take – A Food That Fights Diabetes
This study does not prove that dark chocolate is an agent of diabetes risk reduction; the researchers cannot establish a causal association between eating dark chocolate and lower diabetes risk.
Association does not mean causality.
I like to use this example: Ice cream consumption rises in summer, and drownings increase. However, we should not assume that eating ice cream causes drownings.
Perhaps we chocolate eaters are more likely to walk. Or use cinnamon.
The study participants were mostly white and well-educated, so the results may not be universal.
And please don’t interpret the findings as a magic bullet for diabetes prevention.
But dark chocolate (70 percent or higher) lovers like me might rejoice a little: some dark chocolate can be part of a healthy diet.
Action Items
Even if dark chocolate protects against type 2 diabetes, it is not my leading go-to maneuver.
Here are my anti-diabetes tactics:
- Consuming a diet rich in whole grains and vegetables
- Getting healthy fats
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity weekly.
- Getting sufficient sleep
- Skipping fad diets. Not my thing, but if you are thinking about pursuing one, here’s a good resource:
Fad diets and diabetes: 5 popular meal plans you should know about
In summary, dark chocolate might lower your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Thank you for reading “A Food That Fights Diabetes.” One more thing: Please consider following me! Thanks.
