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5 Delicious Benefits of Eating Dark Chocolate This Halloween!

With Halloween looming on the horizon, you might be trying to find alternatives to high sugar sweets and chocolate treats, either for handing out to trick or treaters, or to indulge in yourself. With more and more of us being conscious of our health and weight, could dark chocolate give us the fix that we often crave without rotting our teeth and making us pile on the pounds?

Dark chocolate and its delicious health benefits

Studies are increasingly showing that dark chocolate and its main ingredient, cocoa, can reduce the risk of heart disease, thanks to the flavanols contained within it. Flavanols have anti-oxidant effects that can decrease cell damage linked to heart disease, and are also proven to help lower blood pressure and improve heart function.

Dark chocolate should contain at least 65% cocoa, and its wise to limit yourself to around 85 grams a day. Here are 5 other benefits of eating dark chocolate, just in time for Halloween:

1. It can help your brain function better

Increasing blood flow to the brain and heart, dark chocolate can improve cognitive function and reduce the risk of a stroke. Containing several chemical compounds that have been proven to have a positive effect on your mood and cognitive health, dark chocolate also contains phenylethylamine, or PEA, which is the very same chemical created by your brain when you fall in love.

2. It can help control blood sugar levels

By keeping your blood vessels and circulation healthy, dark chocolate can protect you against Type 2 diabetes. The flavonoids found in dark chocolate can also help to reduce insulin resistance by aiding cells in their normal function, and enabling you to regain the ability to use the insulin your body produces, efficiently.

With a low glycaemic index, dark chocolate won’t cause a big spike in blood sugar levels, either.

3. It is chock full of antioxidants

Helping to free your body of free radicals that cause oxidative damage to cells, dark chocolate is full of antioxidants. Often responsible for several aspects of the aging process and with possible cancer-causing qualities, free radicals are not good news for the body, but by consuming antioxidant rich foods such as dark chocolate, you can protect yourself from cancer and slow down the onset of aging.

4. It contains Theobromine

Proven to harden tooth enamel, Theobromine is found in dark chocolate, and when consumed, is far more likely to help prevent cavities than it is to cause them. Also a mild stimulant, Theobromine can help to suppress a cough.

5. It’s high in vitamins and minerals

With a number of vitamins and minerals contained within its deliciously dark exterior, dark chocolate can help support your health in a number of ways. Here are just some of the vitamins and minerals that can be found in high concentrations in dark chocolate:

• Potassium
• Copper
• Magnesium
• Iron

Both copper and potassium can help prevent strokes and cardiovascular ailments, while iron protects against iron deficiency anaemia, and magnesium helps prevent type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease.

Feeling like a delicious, healthy treat this Halloween? Now that you know the many health benefits of consuming regulated amounts of dark chocolate, it’s time to grab yourself a bar and take yourself to a guilt-free chocolate heaven!

7 Incredible Health Benefits of Manuka Honey

Have you heard the buzz about Manuka honey – pun absolutely intended!

In recent decades, Manuka honey has gained a growing following, with people loving its rich, earthy flavour and enjoying its many health benefits, too. Native to New Zealand, Manuka honey has strong antiseptic, antimicrobial, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties; it’s little wonder it’s so popular.

If you haven’t tried Manuka honey yet, here are 7 incredible ways in which it can benefit your health:

1. Promoting healing of wounds

Manuka has been approved for clinical use in Australia, New Zealand, Europe, the USA, Canada and Hong Kong, and is definitely no longer seen as an alternative medicine. Working very quickly due to its high sugar levels that act to draw fluid from a wound, Manuka honey also helps to remove diseased matter, dirt and debris, making it very advantageous when used in the dressing of wounds. Not only that, but it also has anti-inflammatory properties which can help to reduce the swelling of tissue.

2. Treating burns

Being antibacterial and anti-inflammatory, Manuka honey can be used to successfully treat burns, creating a physical barrier and a moist environment. When it comes to healing burns, this is especially helpful, as they tend to heal faster if kept moist. The use of honey when treating a burn also means that the bandages are less likely to stick to the wound and cause additional pain and discomfort for the patient.

3. Healing skin infections

Manuka honey’s antifungal properties mean that it can be used as an effective treatment for such fungal diseases as ringworm and tinea infections, and it can also be used to help treat skin disorders like dermatitis, which are renowned for their stubbornness.

4. Treating acid reflux, heartburn and GERD

Research has recently shown that Manuka honey can be used to effectively treat a variety of stomach conditions, such as oesophagitis, heartburn, GERD and acid reflux. With its natural viscosity, it can remain for longer in the oesophagus and act as a protective, anti-inflammatory layer.

5. Treating stomach ulcers

Containing flavonoids that produce antioxidant effects, honey can be used to treat peptic ulcers by preventing the formation of gastric ulcers. There are many health benefits contained within flavonoids, and Manuka honey is overflowing with them.

6. Soothing sore throats and coughs

Honey has long been used to treat coughs and sore throats, and with the antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties contained within it that reduce swelling and kills germs, it’s easy to see why this home remedy has endured.

7. Treating acne

Manuka honey is now being widely used in face masks and acne treatments, as a result of its incredible antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties.

While Manuka honey isn’t as affordable as other types of honey, it can prove to be less expensive than prescription medicines in the long run (think of the multiple uses you’ll get from a jar of honey, and the speed at which it can heal you, preventing the need for a further course of treatment), and if you could heal yourself naturally, why wouldn’t you?