Just read this article from Vox.com contending that dark chocolate is not healthy for us, despite all we have heard and read -- even from such revered and unquestioned sources as WebMD.com.
According to the authors (who must be hateful people bent on depriving us from such simple pleasures as a dark chocolate truffle), the reputation of dark chocolate being healthy was created by millions of dollars worth of chocolate industry-paid research that the media only too happily passed on to us.
That is really bad news. Why, just before Halloween when we might be tempted to have an extra treat, do they come out with such things? How mean can they be?
The other day some kids came to the door selling little chocolate bars for $1 each to benefit their school's choral program.
"Would you like to buy some chocolates?" the girl with the box of candy asked me. "It's for our school."
I looked, and there among the bars of chocolate with caramel and chocolate with almonds were some dark chocolate bars. So I bought five.
"Hey, they're healthy for us," I thought. "Why not?"
I think those guys that wrote that article have a lot of nerve, trying to question the validity of all of those research studies that tell us that dark chocolate are phony just because the chocolate industry paid for them.
After all, Dr. Axe says dark chocolate offers these benefits:
1. They provide protection from disease causing free-radicals.
2. They may be able to help prevent cancer.
3. Flavanols in dark chocolate can help improve heart health.
4. It's beneficial in the battle against high cholesterol.
5. It helps your brain function better.
6. It's a blood pressure and blood sugar aid.
7. It's an anti-oxidant-rich superfood.
So I don't care what these Vox.com guys say. And I don't care who paid for the research.
I go with Dr. Axe.