Scientists at one of America’s top hospitals have found that a compound found in cocoa can dramatically protect the heart, reducing the risk of cardiovascular death by nearly a third.
Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Massachusetts tested the ability of cocoa extract supplements to reduce markers of inflammation in people’s blood that raise the risks of heart disease, rheumatoid arthritis, cognitive decline and dementia, type 2 diabetes and age-related muscle wasting.
Flavanols are considered the key active component behind the anti-inflammatory properties observed in the cocoa extract.
Flavanols directly neutralize free radicals, or unstable molecules that cause stress and damage cells, which is a significant trigger for inflammation, suppress the production of pro-inflammatory proteins like the cytokines mentioned in the study and reduce the activation of genes that are involved in the inflammatory response.
Over the course of a year, the group taking the cocoa extract saw an eight percent drop in a key marker of inflammation compared to the group taking the placebo, reducing their overall heart disease risk.
The researchers believe that cocoa extract supplements, which are priced between $15 and $45, could be the solution for slowing ‘inflammaging,’ a term they coined by combining ‘inflammation’ and ‘aging.’ It describes the chronic, low-grade, and systemic inflammation that slowly builds up in the body as people get older.
Dr Yanbin Dong, senior study author and director of Augusta University’s Georgia Prevention Institute, said in a statement: ‘While cocoa extract is not a replacement for a healthy lifestyle, these results are encouraging and highlight its potential role in modulating inflammation as we age.’
Cocoa flavanol supplements are widely available for purchase online and in health food stores, vitamin shops and pharmacies, but supplements are not regulated tightly and therefore buyers can never be absolutely certain that what they are buying is both safe and effective.
Researchers at a top American hospital have discovered that a natural compound in chocolate can dramatically reduce the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by nearly 30 percent (stock)
Dr Howard Sesso, associate director of the Division of Preventive Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, said: ‘We also appreciate the important overlap between healthy aging and cardiovascular health, where aging-related inflammation can harden arteries and lead to cardiovascular disease.
‘Because of that, we wanted to see whether multi-year cocoa extract supplementation versus a placebo could modulate inflammaging—and the data suggests it does.’
The findings, published in the journal Age and Ageing, come as part of the COcoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study (COSMOS), a landmark clinical trial investigating the health effects of cocoa flavanols by taking 500mg of cocoa extract supplements.
Scientists identified five different markers in the body that play different roles in the generation and reduction of inflammation that affects the heart.
The results showed that cocoa extract had a targeted effect. It significantly reduced levels of hsCRP, a key marker of systemic inflammation associated with heart disease.
After two years, the group taking the cocoa extract saw a significant, year-over-year drop of 8.4 percent in hsCRP.
Conversely, it increased levels of IFN-γ, a marker that plays a vital role in the immune system, stimulating immune cells and ‘killer’ cells to protect against infections and clear tumor cells from the body.
The three other markers remained mostly unchanged.
Flavanols are the key anti-inflammatory component in cocoa extract. They work by neutralizing cell-damaging free radicals and suppressing the production of pro-inflammatory proteins, helping to calm the body’s inflammatory response at a cellular level (stock)
Cocoa flavanol supplements are widely sold, but as they are not tightly regulated, their safety and efficacy are not guaranteed (stock)
The researchers found that the supplement also caused a noticeable increase in a different immune molecule called interferon-gamma.
This, they said, suggests that it may be calming the harmful, chronic inflammation (hsCRP) while potentially enhancing the body’s defensive forces (IFN-γ).
Cardiovascular disease is the nation’s number one killer, responsible for one death every 34 seconds in the US, according to the CDC.
The researchers emphasized that while the reduction in inflammation is a promising sign, it does not conclusively prove that the supplement will prevent disease or extend lifespans, noting that further study is essential.
Sesso said: ‘This study calls for more attention to the advantage of plant-based foods for cardiovascular health, including cocoa products rich in flavanols.
‘It reinforces the importance of a diverse, colorful, plant-based diet—especially in the context of inflammation.’
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