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Chocolate

SCIENTISTS serve up some good news for chocolate lovers - those left-over-from-Christmas selections could help to prevent heart disease and even cancer.

For every person who grins at the mention of that lustrous melt-in-the mouth sweetmeat, there's at least one who is racked with guilt about their love for chocolate. How about giving the festive remains the kind of welcome normally reserved for a health food? Recent evidence shows that alongside all the fat and the sugar that makes us think guilt, there are chemicals in chocolate that protect us against a range of diseases.

Just to stamp on one myth for starters - in a message to sweet-toothed teenagers everywhere - chocolate does not cause acne. Experts at Imperial College, London, have condemned that as an old wives' tale and pointed out that acne is caused by blocked pores.

The best news for chocolate lovers is the recently-revealed research that it contains naturally-occurring compounds called procyanidines, which appear to have a powerful antioxidant effect that could help to prevent heart disease and even cancer.

The research by scientists at Buenos Aires University suggested that chocolate consumption caused an increase in blood antioxidant capacity within two hours.

Dutch studies have shown that chocolate contains a high concentration of antioxidant compounds, called catechins, which have the same properties as tea.

Antioxidants are believed to help protect the body from the effects of free radicals, which are suspected of contributing to a host of chronic diseases. Scientists analysed six different catechins in dark chocolate, milk chocolate and tea.

Dark chocolate contained 53.5mg of catechins per 100g, milk chocolate contained 15.9mg and black tea 13.9mg.

Heart disease can also be slowed, according to a separate American study, which suggested that a mug of cocoa could have a similar effect in preventing the progression of heart disease.

So is this a signal from the experts to go out to health-food shops and stockpile on choc bars?

Nutrition scientist from the British Nutrition Foundation, Sara Stanner, herself a chocolate lover, warns: ''Unfortunately, chocolate is also packed with fat and sugar, so it is high in calories. So you don't want to eat too much of it.

''Nobody enjoys chocolate without feeling guilty about it. Maybe it is because we like it so much. Anything we enjoy very much we feel guilty about.''

The goodness from chocolate comes from the cocoa powder, made from the fruit of a tropical tree native to South America. Mayans and Aztecs drank liquid cocoa to increase their alertness and to treat indigestion.

Chocolate is a very complex food, consisting of thousands of chemical compounds including other antioxidants, called polyphenols, contained in red wine, which enhance immune system functions as well as preventing ulcers. It also contains small amounts of phenylethyamines, which stimulate the pleasure centres of the brain, and magnesium, which contributes to quick energy release.

So why is chocolate so appealing? According to Sara, it's not its chemical properties. She says: ''Research suggests it is down to the taste and texture. It melts at the right time in the mouth and feels good in the mouth.''

Chocolate may have a lot going for it, but the fat and sugar we use to make it into the beloved product consumed by the British public at a rate of 500,000 tonnes a year, is a discouragement to those who might like to adopt a ''the more you eat the healthier you will be'' philosophy.

There are healthier ways of ensuring that you get your antioxidants, like eating the Government-recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables a day, which will also give you valuable minerals and vitamins.

If you are intent on being healthy and also enjoying your chocolate, why not first eat your official fruit and vegetable ration, which will fill you up so that you have less room, and you will be able to limit your indulgence.

Dieters take heart, too. According to Sara, studies on people trying to lose weight indicate that those who are most successful are those who give themselves a reward. So how do you approach that groaning array of waistline-expanding treats left over from Christmas? Do you scoff the lot at once, or spread out the enjoyment?

The official line appears to be the latter, but how easy is it to stop once you have started?

If you do crack, and go on a chocolate binge, you can comfort yourself with the knowledge that in 1998 researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health found that a few pieces of chocolate every month may extend the human lifespan.