The most delicious Christmas gift

Posted on 11. Dec, 2009 by Becky in Aerobics Reviews, Feed Your Body

So Christmas Gift ideas: Post #3.  This one will be a shocker.

My suggestion?  Chocolate.  Yes, that’s right.  Chocolate.

Yes, this is a health and wellness blog.  Yes I am recommending you buy a box of chocolates as a guaranteed winning gift idea this Christmas.

No, I am not a hypocrite.

The health benefits of chocolate, particularly dark chocolate, are well documented.

About. com explains:

Chocolate is made from plants, which means it contains many of the health benefits of dark vegetables. These benefits are from flavonoids, which act as antioxidants. Dark chocolate contains a large number of antioxidants (nearly 8 times the number found in strawberries). Flavonoids also help relax blood pressure through the production of nitric oxide, and balance certain hormones in the body.

Heart Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate:

Dark chocolate is good for your heart. A small bar of it everyday can help keep your heart and cardiovascular system running well. Two heart health benefits of dark chocolate are:

• Lower Blood Pressure: Studies have shown that consuming a small bar of dark chocolate everyday can reduce blood pressure in individuals with high blood pressure.
• Lower Cholesterol: Dark chocolate has also been shown to reduce LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol) by up to 10 percent.

Other Benefits of Dark Chocolate:

Chocolate also holds benefits apart from protecting your heart:

• it tastes good
• it stimulates endorphin production, which gives a feeling of pleasure
• it contains serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant
• it contains theobromine, caffeine and other substances which are stimulants

The calories in one chocolate treat will vary depending on which brand and which variety you choose.  But, though life is like a box of chocolates, you should know what you’re going to get calorie-wise if you’re going to incorporate this little number into your diet (An average of 100 calories per chocolate).  Certainly, if you can exercise self-control, this is a serving size that you can live with.  But you definitely need to exercise self-control!

Personally, I try to keep a box of hand-selected gourmet chocolates hidden in an undisclosed location of my home at all times.  (I can’t say where because my husband might read this post).  On particularly stressful days, I will sneak up to this spot, shut the door, select the chocolate that looks best, sit on the floor, and indulge my sweet tooth.  I savor every second of this experience, and for that moment, the sound of screaming children melts away and I am lost in the endorphin oblivion of my chocolate habit.  It takes me on average about 4 months to get through one box of chocolates, so you can see that I am not talking about a binge by any means.  And a small indulgence now and then builds a healthy mindset that helps stave off those unfortunate episodes where you find you’ve eaten a carton of ice cream at one sitting.

Buy a box of stress-relief for your loved one right here!   They’ll be grateful the chocolate is there when they need it!

Leonidas Belgian Chocolates: Signature Dark Chocolates Assortment