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History
Cacao is seed (nut) of a fruit, each cacao fruit (pod) contains anywhere from twenty to fifty "Beans" inside surrounded by a pulp. Mesoamerican people have used cacao as food, medicine, and currency throughout central, and South America since before christ. Olmec Indians were believed to be the first to grow cacao as a crop. Later on the Mayans had migrated to Northern regions of South America taking the cacao with them and establishing plantations. To this day cacao is widely grown in Central and South America (Tohi, 2013).Benefits
Cacao has numerous benefits for the human body. As stated in David Wolfe's book,"Superfoods: The Food and Medicine of the Future", the main nutrients found in cacao are the following:- Antioxidants: Protects the body from age related illnesses and shields our DNA from free-radical damage.
- Magnesium: Supports the cardiovascular, relaxes muscles, increases brain power, increase flexibility, helps build strong bones, and increases alkalinity.
- Iron: Is a part of oxygen carrying- protein called the hemoglobin that keeps blood healthy and helps with anemia.
- Chromium: Is a important blood sugar balancing trace mineral.
- Manganese: An essential trace mineral promoting the formation of hemoglobin.
- Zinc: has a critical role in the immune system, liver, pancreas, sexual fluids, and skin.
- Copper: Helps to build healthy blood and immunity.
- Vitamin C: Important essential vitamin the body cannot naturally produce.
- Omega 6 Fatty Acids: Healthy fat that is good for brain and heart function.
- Phenylethylamine (PEA): Increases focus and alertness, also known as the "love chemical" of the body.
- Anandamide: Known as the "bliss chemical"that is naturally produced after exercise.
- Tryptophan: Critical for the production of serotonin, diminishes anxiety, and literally improves "stress-defense shield".
- Serotonin: Primary neurotransmitter in the human body for the "stress-defense shield". Has similar chemistry to tryptophan, melatonin, and DMT.
- Soluble Fiber: Helps human digestive system and increases bowel movements.
For more information on cacao and more health benefits for the human body, read Lisa Marshall's article, Research Shows Cacao's Heart Health and Diabetes Prevention Benefits.
Tohi, Willow. "History of Cacao." NaturalNews. NaturalNews, 13 July 2013. Web. 19 Sept. 2013.
Wolfe, David. "Cacao." Superfoods: The Food and Medicine of the Future. Berkeley: North Atlantic, 2009. 40-45. Print.
I am a fan of superfoods and even use superfood supplements from GNC in my morning brussel-sprout smoothie (a grotesque/awesome concoction from my husband's cooking repertoire). So this is a great discussion for me and even for readers just getting into the superfoods discussion.
ReplyDeleteI do have some questions: is the bullet list word for word from Wolfe? or paraphrased? Also, since these are the benefits of superfoods, are there any downsides? Is this blend safe for all users? I happened to realize it isn't when we poured my daughter a small cup of smoothie, and too late I remembered the warnings of Superfood supplements when given to children. It can kill them because of the too-high iron content (among other issues). So fair warning--when you write about benefits and you're providing health commentary on the web, be very careful in also showing potential problems in certain populations.