Easter chocolate is all over supermarket shelves. Some people reach straight for milk chocolate eggs while others pause at the darker varieties, assuming they’re healthier.. Dark chocolate has gained a reputation as the “better” choice because it usually contains more cocoa and less sugar than milk chocolate.. But is dark chocolate actually healthier? Let’s see how the evidence stacks up.. All chocolate begins with the cocoa (or cacao) bean. Cocoa beans are the seeds of the Theobroma cacao tree, a tropical plant native to Central and South America.. Processing the bean gives you cocoa solids (the bitter part) and cocoa butter (the fat part that gives chocolate its smooth texture).. Chocolate is made from cocoa solids, cocoa butter and sugar. Milk chocolate also contains milk powder or condensed milk.. Story continues below this ad. Dark chocolate typically contains a much higher proportion of cocoa solids, usually 50–90 per cent.. Milk chocolate generally contains 20-30 per cent cocoa solids, with the remaining bulk made up of milk ingredients and sugar.. How about nutritional benefits?. Because dark chocolate contains more cocoa solids than milk chocolate, it naturally provides slightly higher amounts of certain minerals.. This table shows the differences between milk chocolate (30 per cent cocoa) and dark chocolate (more than 60 per cent cocoa) per 20-gram serve. That’s about one row of a Lindt chocolate block.. Story continues below this ad. As you can see, dark chocolate provides more minerals such as magnesium, iron and zinc. It also contains noticeably more caffeine (but far less than in a typical cup of coffee, which would contain about 100mg).. Milk chocolate offers significantly more calcium due to its milk solids, but it generally contains more added sugar.. Cocoa is naturally rich in plant compounds called polyphenols. These act as antioxidants in the body, helping to protect the body’s cells from damage.. Because dark chocolate contains more cocoa, it naturally contains higher levels of these compounds. In fact, dark chocolate contains roughly five times more flavanols (a type of polyphenol) than milk chocolate.. Story continues below this ad. Compared to other foods often praised for their antioxidant content, cocoa contains around 17 times more catechins (another type of polyphenol) per serving than black tea. It also contains around three times more than red wine.. Does dark chocolate improve your health?. Research into cocoa and dark chocolate has produced some interesting findings, particularly about heart health.. Cocoa flavanols appear to help blood vessels relax and support better blood flow. Some clinical trials have reported small reductions in blood pressure and improvements in measures of blood vessel function after consuming cocoa products.. There is also broader evidence suggesting diets rich in flavanols may be linked with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease overall.. However, these findings come w
