Research claims that morning chocolate may help burn fat

We all have a craving for chocolate many times, but usually not when we first wake up.

However, new research shows that eating a sweet treat for breakfast can actually have “unexpected benefits” by helping the body burn fat.

Boston researcher, Massachusetts Within an hour after waking up and within an hour before bedtime, 19 postmenopausal women were given 100 grams of milk chocolate.

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Brigham and Women’s Hospital scientists in Boston say starting a day with chocolate may actually help your body burn fat

This is roughly equivalent to two standard size mars bars (58g), but researchers used standard milk chocolate with 18.1g of cocoa.

Surprisingly, the team found that milk chocolate intake did not lead to weight gain, either morning or night. This is probably because it acted as an appetite suppressant.

In fact, consuming milk chocolate during the morning hours has been shown to help burn fat and lower blood sugar levels.

This was probably due to a beneficial chemical called flavanols found naturally in cocoa that increases fat oxidation.

However, because the study was limited to postmenopausal women, researchers say further studies in men and young women are needed to confirm these results.

Sadly for chocolate lovers, according to other experts, it’s high in fat and sugar and should be eaten moderately as part of a balanced diet.

The study was conducted by experts at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, in collaboration with researchers at the University of Murcia in Spain.

“Our volunteers didn’t gain weight when they increased their calorie intake,” said Martha Garaulet, a research author at the University of Murcia.

“Our results show that chocolate reduced free energy intake, with the observed reduction in hunger, appetite, and desire for sweets shown in previous studies. It matches. ”

This study is particularly surprising because it uses milk chocolate, which is reputed to contribute to weight gain due to its high fat, sugar, and calories.

Regular chocolate eating habits are also associated with long-term weight gain, especially in postmenopausal women who may be vulnerable to pounding.

The 19 women who participated in the study ate 100 g of milk chocolate for 2 weeks within 1 hour of waking up with breakfast, 100 g of milk chocolate for 2 weeks within 1 hour before bedtime, and chocolate for 2 weeks. Did not eat

The study also revealed that eating chocolate in the morning or evening can affect hunger and appetite.

“Women were less hungry when eating chocolate in the evening than in the morning, or when eating without chocolate, and had less desire for sweets when eating chocolate (morning or evening) than when not eating chocolate. “They report.

Interestingly, sleep records showed that eating chocolate at night had less variation in sleep onset and more regular timing of sleep episodes than eating chocolate in the morning.

Bridget Benelam, an expert at the British Nutrition Foundation, told MailOnline that the results were “interesting,” but that the study samples were scarce.

“The results are interesting, but more work will be needed to understand the effects they have found,” she said.

100 grams of milk chocolate also contains a lot of calories. That’s about 530 calories, about a quarter of the average calories a woman needs.

Chocolate is usually considered a luxury because it is a popular milk chocolate with a particularly high sugar and fat content.

“This will contribute to a significant amount of sugar and saturated fat, and is inconsistent with the balanced and diverse diet we know can help us stay healthy. “Benelam said.

“If you eat foods like chocolate, it’s best to maintain a subdivision size, such as 100-150 calories.”

New research published in FASEB journalFollows other recent studies on the potential benefits of eating cocoa, the main ingredient in chocolate.

Earlier this year Discovered by Columbia University Scientists Cocoa consumption was associated with improved performance of list learning tasks.

This is due to flavanols, which are abundant in cocoa beans and dark chocolate, which is high in cocoa solids. Flavanols tend to be less in milk chocolate.

And in 2019, Portuguese researchers said they would eat a few squares of dark chocolate every day. Lower blood pressure In just one month.

However, there is little evidence to suggest the health benefits of milk chocolate.

This is because the milk chocolates on the market are increasingly packed with milk, sugar and fat at the expense of the amount of cocoa.