Transcript Chocolate
Chocolate A Functional Food? Julie Albrecht, Ph.D. Professor and Extension Food Specialist Marilynn Schnepf, Ph.D., Professor Carol Schwarz, Extension Educator ‘Twill make old women young and fresh, Create new motions of the flesh. And cause them long for you know what, If they but taste of chocolate. - James Wadworth (1768-1844; A History of the Nature and Quality of Chocolate) Chocolate A Functional Food? Program Goal: Participants will increase their knowledge about functional foods using chocolate as an example. Program Objectives: - Know what a functional food is - Know what a health claim is for functional foods - Know the health benefits of chocolate “The divine drink which builds up resistance and fights fatigue. A cup of this precious drink permits man to walk for a whole day without food.” - Hernando Cortés, 1519 Chocolate • Comes from seed (bean) cacao trees • Scientific name is Theobroma cacao (Which means – “Drink of the Gods”) Producers of Cocoa • Grown 15 degrees north or south of the equator • 70% grown in West Africa with Ivory Coast and Ghana largest producers • Brazil and Ecuador also large producers • Takes 5 years for trees to produce • Most produced by small farmers Producers of Cocoa • Pods Harvested • Beans removed from shell, fermented and dried in the sun • Cleaned • Roasted • Ground Processing of Chocolate Nibs ground to cocoa paste Paste Pressed Grinding Cocoa butter Grinding Cocoa powder Conching and Tempering Tempering Mixed and ingredients added (Milk Sugar Flavors Nuts, etc) Molded, Made into products Conching Processing of Chocolate Types of Chocolate • Unsweetened Chocolate, Bitter Chocolate, Baking Chocolate • Dark chocolate • Bittersweet, Semisweet Chocolate • Milk Chocolate • “Dutch” Chocolate • White “Chocolate” Consumption of Chocolate Chocolate Consumption Kilos per person 2005 Belgium 10.74 Austria 8.33 Switzerland 10.14 Denmark 7.13 UK 9.94 Sweden 6.97 Norway 9.19 Finland 6.43 Germany 8.96 USA 5.58 Source: Adapted from CAOBISCO Source: www.herseys.com Lipid Composition of Cocoa Butter 3% Stearic Linoleic 35% 36% Oleic 26% Palmitic Source: Chocolate Manufacturers Association, www.chocolateusa.org Chocolate Labels Chocolate Labels Health Benefits th before 20 Century • • • • • Comforted the liver Aided in digestion Made on happy and strong Stimulated the kidney Treatment of anemia, tuberculosis, fever, gout, heart pain • Strengthening the heart Current Health Benefits Functional Food- a food that contains physiologically active compounds that provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition Nutraceutical- physiologically active components in food that have health-promoting, diseasepreventive, or medical properties Physiologically Active Components in Chocolate • Flavonoids (Flavanols) • Stearic Acid (fatty acid) • Methylxanthines • Caffeine • Theobromine • Magnesium Examples of Nutraceutical Flavonoids/Flavanols Flavonoid compounds - act as antioxidants: • Reduce free radicals produced by oxidation • Lower LDL cholesterol • Reduce blood pressure • Reduce platelet aggregation Chocolate Chocolate and cocoa flavanols appear to reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) via several mechanisms, including: ● Reducing serum total and LDL cholesterol ● Lowering blood pressure ● Reducing platelet adhesion/aggregation ● Increasing antioxidant defenses ● Decreasing inflammation Stearic Acid (fatty acid) • Neutral effect on blood cholesterol • Did not adversely affect LDL- cholesterol levels Magnesium • Low Dietary Magnesium – Craving ? • Low Dietary Magnesium – risk factor for hypertension, stroke and cardiac arrythmias – Controversial Caffiene/Theobromine • Chocolate Addiction/Craving???? Chocolate Myths • • • • • Allergies Cavities Cravings/mood Migraines Acne Dose for Health Benefits • Cardiovascular disease – Cocoa, 5 g = 1 Tbsp to 50 g = ~10 Tbsp – Dark chocolate = ~7 g to 40 g • Weight modification – Dark chocolate = 90 to 100 kcal/d Food-Based Health Benefits • Dark chocolate – 2 tasting squares (20 g) – 90 kcal (45 kcal/square) • Cocoa – 5 g = 1 Tbsp = 10 kcal – 50 g = 10 Tbsp = 100 kcal Source:http://www.hersheys.com/home.asp Functional Foods Health Claim Example of one FDA-approved health claim: A diet rich in fruits and vegetables and reduced risk of some cancers Many epidemiologic studies have shown that diets high in vegetables, fruit, whole grains, nuts, seeds and certain vegetable fats and low in calories, meat and animal fat reduce the risk of some common cancers. Recommendations • Variety of plant-based foods in the diet can provide a wealth of potentially beneficial phytochemicals (components) • Wide variety of flavonoid-rich foods such as fruits, vegetables, and beverages should be an integral part of a healthy diet. • Energy density – consideration on how much chocolate to include in diet Questions? EXTRA Slides On Free Radical activity and antioxidants Basis of Free Radical Activity Many diseases, including cancer, diabetes, heart disease, aging, are the result of free radical damage and oxidation Many nutraceuticals are classified as antioxidants, which are compounds that can scavenge or neutralize free radicals (Free radicals have lost electrons making them very reactive) Free Radicals If the amount of free radicals exceed the amount of antioxidants, the free radical will react with and damage other molecules If the “other molecules” are DNA, mutations can occur- if unchecked can lead to cancer Basis of Antioxidant Activity Antioxidants act to control damage caused by free radicals. A primary mechanism used by antioxidants is hydrogen donation R. + AH → RH + A. Structure & Activity What structural components have been found to be important for activity? First need hydrogen that can be donated without damaging the parent molecule Structure & Activity A second factor that increases activity is the side chain. A side chain with a double bond has greater activity because the double bond contributes to the stability of the compound Flavonoids Have antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic, and enzyme altering capabilities Includes flavonols, flavanols, anthocyanins, catechins, and isoflavones Known as polyphenolic compounds Flavonoids • Reduce platelet aggregation • Suppress pro-inflammatory mediators, enhance anti-inflammatory mediator (nitric oxide) • Antioxidant effect – protective effect against LDL oxidation, immune function • Cancer – limited studies Catechins (Specific Flavanoids) Strong antioxidants associated with a decreased risk of heart disease and cancer (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate has very high free radical scavenging activity and is capable of interrupting signals needed for survival of cancer cells Food Sources of Catechins Green tea, black tea, berries, and cocoa Antioxidant Effects • ORAC value – Oxygen radical absorbance capacity • ORAC is a measure of the antioxidant power of a food • Flavonoid-rich foods are not equal ORAC Value for Select Foods Dark Chocolate Blueberries Cocoa (natural) Raspberries Pecans Cranberries Cherries Walnuts Milk chocolate Grapes Almonds ORAC units/serving 9080 8708 8260 6895 5382 5201 4705 4062 3200 1764 1336 http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/index.html