Cocoa; a blessing or a curse?

Chocolate is made from a plant called COCOA. Pressing roasted cocoa seeds between hot rollers forms bitter chocolate while leftover from squeezing the cocoa butter from bitter chocolate creates cocoa powder. Add sugar and vanilla to bitter chocolate and you get sweet chocolate.

Earlier considered as a food treat, cocoa has proven to be beneficial for medicinal purposes as well. It is commonly used for heart disease and high blood pressure while some apply cocoa butter to the skin to prevent wrinkles and stretch marks or consume it orally to treat health conditions such as liver, bladder or kidney diseases and memory loss. According to a  cross‐sectional survey of over 13,000 US adults, dark chocolate has proven to lower levels of depression by a massive 70 percent!

How does it work?

Cocoa enfolds a variety of chemicals that include antioxidants known as flavonoids that appear to cause vein relaxation. This might lead to lower depression levels and blood pressure. Similarly, dark chocolate also reduces cholesterol and inflammation of blood vessels as it contains little to no sugar.

What’s the catch?

Consuming cocoa is safe for most people. However it contains caffeine and related chemicals that might cause side effects such as nervousness, an increase in urination, insomnia, and a rapid heartbeat. Cocoa itself, if consumed excessively, can result in allergic skin reactions, constipation and might cause digestive problems like nausea, intestinal discomfort, stomach aches, and rumbling and gas. Some people have complained about their migraines triggered after consuming too much Cocoa. For a few out there with sensitive skin, applying cocoa butter to the skin can cause a rash. Most of the side effects of chocolates and cocoa are due to the caffeine levels present in it.

When to avoid cocoa?

• Pregnancy and breast-feeding: although limited consumption of cocoa is safe during pregnancy and breastfeeding but larger amounts is possibly unsafe due to the caffeine it contains. Caffeine crosses the placenta which might cause premature deliveries, low birth weight, and even miscarriages! Medical experts advise to keep caffeine consumption below 300 mg per day when pregnant. Breast milk concentrations of caffeine are measured to be almost half the level of caffeine in the mother’s blood. If the mother eats too much chocolate her baby may have frequent bowel movements due to the caffeine and become irritable and sleepless.

• Anxiety: cocoa containing caffeine in large amounts might make anxiety disorders worse. Caffeine is a stimulant that might cause jittery effects on your body, similar to those of a frightening event. This is because caffeine stimulates our “fight or flight” response, and studies have proven that this makes anxiety worse and even triggers an anxiety attack.

• Bleeding disorders: cocoa works like aspirin and hinders with your blood levels that can slow blood clotting. Although this is beneficial to keep you off the edge of heart attacks and brain hemorrhage but excessive consumption of cocoa might result in an increased risk of bleeding and bruising in those with bleeding disorders.

• Heart conditions and diabetes: The caffeine in chocolates might disturb heartbeat in some people and should be used cautiously in people with heart conditions. Sweet chocolates contain high levels of sweeteners and sugar which raise blood sugar levels and put people with diabetes at a risk of Hyperglycemia which damages the vessels that supply blood to vital organs and can increase the risk of heart strokes, kidney diseases, and nerve and vision problems. By increasing blood sugar, cocoa might also decrease the effectiveness of medicines used for diabetes.

• Diarrhea and Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD): The caffeine causes laxative potential in cocoa that when consumed in large amounts might worsen diarrhea and symptoms of Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Cocoa disturbs the efficiency of the valve in the esophagus, which keeps the contents of the stomach from coming back into the food tube or the airway. This could possibly make symptoms of GERD worse.

• Antibiotics (Quinolone antibiotics) and Birth control pills (contraceptive drugs): our bodies break down caffeine to get rid of it. Some antibiotics and birth control pills might decrease how quickly the body breaks down caffeine. Taking these antibiotics and pills along with cocoa can increase the risk of side effects that includes jitteriness, headache, rapid heartbeat rate, and other side effects. Some over the counter antibiotics that decrease the break down of caffeine by our body include ciprofloxacin (Cipro), trovafloxacin (Trovan), grepafloxacin (Raxar), norfloxacin (Chibroxin, Noroxin), sparfloxacin (Zagam), and enoxacin (Penetrex).

• Glaucoma and Migraines: Research shows that caffeinated products cause eye pressure to go up. The risk is highest in glaucoma patients however eye pressure goes up only a small amount, so it is safe till your consumption of caffeine-containing chocolates is limited.

• Weak bones (osteoporosis): The caffeine in cocoa might increase the amount of calcium released in the urine. People with osteoporosis should limit their intake of cocoa to prevent their bones from further deterioration.

So should we stop consuming chocolate at all??

The answer is NO! Chocolate and cocoa are not poison. it depends on the amount you’re consuming that decides whether its a blessing or a curse for you. So eat less and be safe everyone!

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