Cacao – a Superfood
23 Sep
Cacao beans are the raw ingredient of chocolate and although many people associate chocolate with
all the bad consequences of an unhealthy diet, such as heart problems, weight gain diabetes, raw cacao in fact has numerous healthy properties and healthy benefits. This article will explain what the exact health benefits are and how you can enjoy eating raw cacao.
The basic raw ingredient of chocolate comes from a tree . The cacao tree produces pods which contains anywhere from 30 to 50 large cacao beans . The tree grows in South America and was spread by the ancient cultures that lives there, such as the Mayans and Aztecs.
In order to create chocolate the cacao seed has to be processed and often when processed a lot of milk and sugar is added to create the final product. Unfortunately these ingredients and other unhealthy additives far outbalance the benefits of eating raw cacao. In order to get the health benefits from cacao you need to consume it in other ways, which will be explained later.
The benefits of raw cocao are numerous. It contains large numbers of protein, phospate, calcium and other micro and macro-nutrients.
Some more awesome health benefits include:
- Raw cacao contains flavonoids such as epicatechin which keeps the heart and circulation system healthy.
- The Kuna Indians who from Panama who consume large amounts of raw cacao have significantly lower rates of cancer and heart disease compared to the locals that do not each as much raw cacao.
- Raw cacao has benefits for brain function including learning and memory.
Cacao has also proven to reduce LDL cholesterol and reduce blood pressure. In addition to the healthy benefits that raw cacao provide to the body it also does wonder for your mood. This is because raw cacao contains a chemical called anandamide a neurotransmitter which naturally occurs in the brain when you are in a good mood, in love or very happy. So eating raw cacao actually makes you feel as if you are happy and in love . The amount of antioxidants in raw cacao has been shown to be much more than other foods such as fruit, vegetables and teas.
One of the biggest problems that raw cacao has been shown to help with is fybromygalia. Fybromigalia is a serious disease that affects the muscles of the sufferers. It is a tingling sensation that sometimes develops into muscle spasms which impair the normal use of muscles. The nutrient arginine that is present in raw cacao helps build muscles and make them stronger which can potentially help with the results of this disease. Besides this it also contains tryptophan an amino acid that, once converted into serotonin in the body, helps you feel relaxed and removes the stress from your muscles. Since the cause of fybromygalia is the build up of toxins in the body it is helpful to consume the large amounts of antioxidants that are present in raw cacao in order to combat this disease.
Raw cacao is truly one of natures super-foods and learning to use it in your cooking and food preparation will give you many health benefits. Do not hesitate to start eating it in order to find out why raw cacao has been cultivated and consumed as a health food for hundreds of years.






