New Study: Up All Night? Eat Dark Chocolate

Good news for chocolate lovers: An Italian study by two researchers from the University of L'Aquila examined the impact of cocoa consumption on various cognitive areas—both immediately after consumption and from regular cocoa intake.

The health benefits of cocoa stem from antioxidants called flavonoids. The researchers analyzed a series of studies about the effects of flavonoids in cocoa and found that participants who consumed cocoa showed improvements in working memory and visual information processing. For women, consuming cocoa after a sleepless night compensated for the cognitive limitations typically resulting from such a night—promising results for women suffering from chronic sleep deprivation (think of a mother of triplets, for example...) or those working shifts.

However, it should be noted that the positive effect depended on the difficulty and duration of the cognitive test. Young and healthy individuals required a very demanding test to detect the subtle effect of cocoa. In contrast, elderly participants who regularly consumed cocoa before the test (over several weeks or months) showed clear improvements in memory, speech fluidity, and more. The improvement was particularly evident among older adults who had already begun to suffer from mild cognitive decline.

This last finding, say researchers Michelle Ferrara and Valentina, is the most encouraging. "If you examine the mechanism responsible for this, flavonoids have a positive effect on cardiovascular health and can thereby increase blood flow and volume in the brain. This structure is affected by aging and is likely a potential source of memory decline in old age."

So, is cocoa on its way to becoming a recommended dietary supplement for improving cognition—especially among the elderly? Despite the benefits, the researchers are not quick to recommend daily chocolate consumption. "There are potential side effects of cocoa consumption as chocolate—usually because of the chocolate's caloric value and various additives like sugar and milk."

Their recommendation? Regular consumption of very dark chocolate with the highest possible cocoa content.