Researchers at John Hopkins University discovered that chocolate may help to prevent heart attacks by the same mechanism as aspirin. The discovery was not part of the original study design and was happened upon only because a select few of the study participants could not kick the habit.
The original study was aimed at determining the effects of aspirin intake on heart disease, specifically if it changed the way blood clotted.
Aspirin is often prescribed to patients with particular types of cardiovascular disease when the risk for a heart attack or stroke is high. Both heart attacks and stroke are caused by clots that dislodge from larger blood vessels and travel through the circulatory system until they become stuck in a vessel smaller than its diameter. Blood supply and subsequently oxygen is cutt-off and the event occurs.
Aspirin makes platelets less sticky, and helps to prevent clot formation. It also helps to keep the blood thinner, so it flows through vessels easier.
And now, chocolate appears to act in a similar way. A small group of 139 chocolate eaters were included in this data. Consumption of chocolate caused the blood to clot at a slower rate compared to non-chocolate eaters.
The researchers wanted to stress that the effect was evident, but not as significant as taking aspirin. Chocolate should not replace any prescription for aspirin that your physician has given you.
These findings have prompted the researchers to begin another study measuring the effect of diets high in chocolate on heart disease risk and incidence.
Posted by Dr. Christina Gutierrez on December 12, 2006 03:18 PM
