A Chocolate Tax?
There was a stir in the media when last week when Scottish doctors came within 2 votes of passing a tax on chocolate, which many feel contributes greatly to the overweight problem in the British Isles. Fueled by increasing cases of obesity and Type 2 diabetes, the tax would have been similar to that on alcohol and tobacco. What’s your take on a chocolate tax? Would it make you eat less of your favorite food group?
Yet the positive health benefits of chocolate, such as the antioxidants in dark chocolate which cut risks of cardiovascular disease, have been known for some time now. Just last month, studies also showed that dark chocolate may also help reduce cancer risks.
So what is a chocolate lover to do?
As far as chocolate goes, it might be helpful to repeat the following “cacao” mantra: More is NOT Better, More is NOT better, More is NOT Better…
Although it is high in antioxidants, chocolate is also unfortunately high in sugar, calories and fat. So it may be useful to consider chocolate as an “extra” part of one’s diet and one luxury that needs to be eaten in moderation.
One recent study suggests eating 1 ounce every three days. When subjects ate more than this amount, there were no additional reported benefits.
Bummed to hear this news? In the long run, this finding may actually help all us chocolate enthusiasts to more consciously savor each and every morsel.
First, pick a quality dark chocolate with 60% or higher cacao content. Then when you taste it, try not to chew and just let the chocolate melt on your tongue for a more satisfying experience. Now the harder part- try not to eat more than ONE ounce every three days. How does this break down? That comes to about 9-10 grams per day (A 3 ounce bar is equal to 85 g).
We can think of this as the new One Ounce Dark Rule to live by. It would force us to read the Nutrition Facts on the bars and do a bit of math. So it’s good “brain aerobics,” too! (I think I’ll use this the next time I cover Measurement and the Metric System with my Third Graders!).
Enjoy! And let me know how this all works for you.
Tags: dark chocolate, health