Chocolate as an anti-aging technique, is this some type of joke? Nope! The facts are in chocolate is bursting with antioxidants. An antioxidant is a molecule capable of slowing or preventing the oxidation of other molecules. The chemical reaction of oxidation can produce free radicals, which start a chain reaction of cell damage. Antioxidants actually stop these negative chain reactions. Many fresh fruits and vegetables have a high quantity of antioxidants, but pure raw chocolate is chocked full of flavonoids, which are some of the most powerful antioxidants on earth.
There is a trick to the chocolate though, you have to eat it raw. Now you are wondering, what is raw chocolate? Well, it helps to start from the beginning. Until recently I never really took much thought about where chocolate comes from. I just figured it came from the Hershey chocolate factory. But there is in fact a "chocolate tree." The tree was named Theobroma cacao, in Latin that means 'food of the gods.' Well, this 'food of the gods" is actually cacao beans. They grow on the tree. Some people call them nuts, but they are actually seeds. Once you remove the skin you have the cacao or chocolate. Now, before you roast it, process it, and load it with refined sugar -that is raw chocolate. Heating the cacao beans kills most of the antioxidants and other minerals and vitamins in the chocolate. In order to preserve the nutrients the beans must be dried at a low temperature, typically below 120 degrees. Then they can be enjoyed whole as nibs (the bean with the skin removed), in bits, or as a powder. Raw cacao has a bitter flavor like dark chocolate. Some enjoy it just like that. Others prefer to sweeten it by blending it with other natural ingredients like fruit or honey. I prefer it mixed into a fruit smoothie with other raw, fresh fruits.