As a non-diet nutritionist and dietitian, I try to encourage people not to think of foods or food choices as ‘good’ or ‘bad’. Healthy eating is flexible, intuitive, and allows for all foods to be eaten without feeling guilty. Yes, chocolate is classed as a ‘sometimes’ food but this still allows for you to be in control of how much and how often you eat it. As long as you choose a variety of nourishing ‘everyday’ foods to fill you up then there’s no harm in have a small amount of chocolate on a regular basis. I would encourage you to practice eating the chocolate mindfully, to avoid consuming more than you need to be satisfied. Mindful eating is a great skill to learn, that allows you to really appreciate your food and derive pleasure from eating without eating more than your body is comfortable with. It’s about saying to yourself “Do I really feel like eating more of this now, or can I leave it for a later time when I’ll appreciate it more?”
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Up until two years ago I ate chocolate once a year. I then discovered raw dark chocolate and never looked back. From my research it reduces LDL cholesterol, lowers blood pressure, reduces levels of stress hormones, improves brain function, controls appetite…. and many other benefits too !
The type I enjoy is the one that has no sugar, soy, dairy, gluten, preservatives, colours, flavourings, or additives.
There are many health websites that sell this type of chocolate (deliciouschocolates.com.au )(panachocolate.com.au)
I would encourage people to do their own research and try the healthier raw dark chocolate. Happy eating !
Hi Brian, thanks for your comments. It’s great that you’ve found a product that you enjoy, but for many people the idea of eating sugar-free chocolate isn’t a pleasant one! Our advice to those people would be to enjoy a small amount of the one that you enjoy, rather than feeling like you have to go for the “healthier” one and feeling miserable while eating it. ‘Healthy eating’ is about enjoying your food too, not just the nutritional composition! Keep in mind that just because a food is sugar-free, doesn’t automatically mean that it’s a healthier choice. Most sugar-free chocolate is high in fat, and classed as a ‘sometimes’ food. The benefit from certain compounds in chocolate can also be obtained from other foods that fit into the ‘everyday’ category.