My Mum always slapped my hand if I took more than one line of chocolate bar as a child. “It’s not good for you,” she implored.
However, thankfully she was wrong. New research has shown that chocolates can actually help in addressing one of the main health issues associated with ageing.
A study, published in the journal Aging US, has linked eating chocolate and drinking green tea to reducing age-related neuromuscular alterations that occur with sarcopenia – the progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and function.
Sarcopenia is one of the main reasons for the loss of muscle mass, which in turn can lead to frailty and an increased risk of falls and fractures.
On average, it is estimated that 5-13 per cent of elderly people aged 60-70 years are affected by sarcopenia. The numbers increase to 11-50 per cent for those aged 80 or above, said Dr Jordi Calderó, from the Universitat de Lleida in Spain.
The study looked at the impact of two flavonoid-enriched diets containing either green tea or cocoa on age-associated regressive changes in the neuromuscular system of mice.
Dr Calderó and his team found both diets clearly preserved neuromuscular junctions’ innervation and maturity, delayed the loss of muscle, and enhanced its regenerative capacity.
The lesson: the more cocoa in your chocolate, the better.
Green tea is not our favourite bevvy – but we’re willing to take one for the team on this one.
