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For Cathy Bouchard of Naperville, Ill., eating an ounce of dark chocolate every day isn’t merely a treat in her diet; it’s a lifesaver.
“I’m not a doctor. I’m not a nutritionist. All I do is tell my story. I have been cured by chocolate,” she told an audience earlier this year during a session of her lecture, “The Bittersweet History of Chocolate."
Her journey with chocolate began about five years ago after she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. The pain kept her from leaving the house to go to work or to the grocery store. So Bouchard spent her time exploring life through reading about places like Egypt and China, which led her to the Myan culture.
“I read their contribution was cultivation of cacao, which we know as chocolate,” she said. “It’s always been used for health issues.”
After reading about chocolate’s health benefits, Bouchard decided to search for cacao to try it for herself. It took her more than two months to find a candy bar made with 70 percent cacao. She ate 1 ounce of the dark chocolate every day. She decided to see what would happen after four to six weeks of eating the chocolate since her doctor always told her it takes that long for a new medication to work.
One night, with a piece of chocolate in one hand and a book in the other, Bouchard was reading about chocolate being used as a muscle relaxant. At that moment, Bouchard said she realized she hadn’t been in pain for awhile.
“I thought, could this piece of chocolate be working,” she said. But it did because, she said, “After six weeks, I was totally pain free.”
Soon after, Bouchard was back to work and back to grocery shopping.
Today, Bouchard owns Le Choclat Bar in Naperville; she plans to open another store soon. She shares her story with customers who also have found dark chocolate to relive other ailments, such as headaches.
But Bouchard is quick to point out not any old piece of chocolate will work. A milk chocolate candy bar has only 8 percent cacao while a quality chocolate bar has 40 percent cacao.
“Enjoy your chocolate, but watch your labels. Dark chocolate has no milk in it. Dark chocolate has cacao, sugar and vanilla,” she said.
Although she is not aware of any clinical studies yet about dark chocolate’s effect on fibromyalgia or headaches, Cathy Cabanban, clinical dietitian and certified diabetes educator at Advocate Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove, Ill., said there are health benefits to consuming 1 ounce of dark chocolate every day.
“Most of the studies are with people with high blood pressure and cholesterol,” Cabanban said. She added if people with mild blood pressure add dark chocolate to their diet, it can lower their blood pressure.
While dark chocolate does have beneficial compounds, such as flavenoyds, Cabanban points out other foods contain flavenoyds as well, such as wine, apples and tea. If someone wants to add 1 ounce of dark chocolate made with 70 percent cacao, Cabanban will suggest substituting the dark chocolate for another junk food so as not to add extra calories to their diet.
“I often recommend if people want to use dark chocolate ... to make homemade hot chocolate,” Cabanban said, adding the drink has less fat and calories than a chocolate bar.
Suburban Life Publications
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