What Is Chocolate Exactly?

Let's first make it clear what we're talking about here when we say "chocolate". Typically when we think of chocolate, candy bars, fudge and cake comes to mind. But where does chocolate originate from and how did it gain a reputation as a "health food"?

Chocolate comes from the seeds of the tropical plant Theobroma cac ao. These seeds are ground into a paste called chocolate liquor which contains potentially beneficial phytochemicals called flavanols. These "healthy" compounds are what give dark chocolate its "good" name (see the next argument). The down side is these favanols make the chocolate liquor quite bitter. Not exactly the sweet and creamy taste you expect from that delicious milk chocolate bar.

To make it taste better and fit for commercial consumption, manufacturers process the chocolate liquor via fermentation, drying, roasting, alkalizing and so on. All of this processing can deplete the chocolate of those naturally occurring flavanols which may have health benefits.

Then to top it off, manufacturers add sugar, fat and or milk to the chocolate to make various confections. This of course adds lots of calories, which in turn gives chocolate it's "bad" name.