4 Health Reasons to Eat Chocolate (and Cons to Consider)

When it comes to dessert, chocolate is my weakness. The silky rich, bittersweet stuff is sure to satisfy my sweet tooth. As a registered dietitian and associate nutrition editor of EatingWell Magazine, I also know that chocolate actually has several health benefits. Still, it's not kale-so before I totally get swept away by chocolate's healthy halo, I try to remember that there are some drawbacks to my favorite treat too.

Health Benefits of Chocolate

It's (almost) a diet food. Preliminary findings from Hershey suggest that natural cocoa, which has more flavanols than Dutch-processed cocoa, may limit the number of calories you actually take in during digestion by quashing the action of certain digestive enzymes, thus preventing some fats and starches in other foods from being absorbed. More research is needed-this study was done in test tubes, not humans-but the authors hope that the results will hold up in human trials.