Does Eating Chocolate Make You Smarter? New Study Says YES!

Chocolate
Chocolate

I love when scientific studies tell me something we actually want to hear. This time, there's been yet another study telling us that chocolate is good for us.

A preliminary study found that two cups of hot cocoa a day, for 30 days, gave older patients with impaired brain bloodflow a 30% bump in memory and thinking abilities.

Related: 9 surprising reasons why coffee is good for you

The study, published this week in the journal Neurology, was authored by my new BFF, Dr. Farzaneh Sorond, a neurologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital and assistant professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School. It's an admittedly small study, involving 60 people with an average age of 72. There was no control group.

"The areas of your brain that are working need more fuel," said Dr. Sorond. For people whose brain blood flow is impaired, "cocoa may be beneficial by delivering more fuel."

Dr. Sorond cautioned against self-medicating with chocolate, though. People with diabetes, high blood pressure and tendencies toward vascular dementia, "can't really afford to take in more sugar, fat and calories," she told ABC News.

Other doctors agreed, including cardiologist Dr. Peter McCullough, who told ABC News that the fat and sugar in chocolate can negatively impact health, and that a healthy diet and exercise also boost blood flow to the brain.

Blah, blah blah. In other recent health news, we learned that salad might give you incredibly gross tropical intestinal parasites. On the other hand, coffee is so awesome it actually reduces suicide risk. And now a totally (tiny, non-randomized, non-controlled) scientific study says chocolate might stave off dementia. So obviously, we should just pop dark chocolate-covered coffee beans all day.

Or just get that mocha latte, and you'll be all set.

- By Joslyn Gray

For 21 guilt-free ways to eat chocolate, visit Babble!

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