Eating chocolate every day for a year, with a good excuse? Who could ask for more?
British scientist are looking for 150 postmenopausal women under the age of 70, to be chocolate-eating lab rats for a year to test whether a natural compound found in cocoa, the main ingredient of chocolate, could cut the risk of heart disease among women with diabetes.
A Belgian confectionist has created the special chocolate bar containing high levels of flavonoids — a plant compound that has been shown to reduce heart risk factors — to be used in the experiment. Soy, another natural source of flavonoids, has also been added to the bar.
The women will have their risk of heart disease tested on five occasions during the year to see whether change occurs. Deaths due to heart disease among women increase rapidly after menopause. For women who suffer from type 2 diabetes, the risk of heart disease is up to three and a half times higher. Despite this, heart disease in women is still not properly researched, and many women, and doctors, are woefully ignorant of the risks of heart disease that we women face. Perhaps these a-chocolate-a-day-keeps-the-doctor-away trials will make a difference!
Can’t believe I’m saying this.. but I almost wish I was postmenopausal!
