Middle-aged and elderly Swedish women who regularly ate a small
amount of chocolate had lower risks of heart failure risks, in a
study reported in Circulation: Heart Failure, a journal of the
American Heart Association. The nine-year study, conducted among
31,823 middle-aged and elderly Swedish women, looked at the
relationship of the amount of high-quality chocolate the women
ate, compared to their risk for heart failure. The quality of
chocolate consumed by the women had a higher density cocoa
content somewhat like dark chocolate by American standards. In
this study, researchers found: - Women who ate an average of one
to two servings of the high-quality chocolate per week had a 32
percent lower risk of developing heart failure. - Those who had
one to three servings per month had a 26 percent lower risk. -
Those who consumed at least one serving daily or more didn't
appear to benefit from a protective effect against heart
failure. The lack of a protective effect among women eating
chocolate every day is pro