Cocoa for Diabetes Treatment
There are a wide range of treatments available to sufferers of diabetes, with regular blood-sugar checks and insulin ranking as most familiar among them, but research into more natural methods of treating this potentially debilitating disease is revealing a long list of entirely earthy offerings that are astoundingly effective.
Surprisingly, cocoa, that base of the chocolate that we all know and love, is one of the best.
Take control of your disease and your life by investigating and implementing natural solutions for managing diabetes; to get you started, here is a look at the details behind using cocoa for diabetes treatment:
Cocoa For Diabetes: Flavonols Galore
It probably sounds entirely counterintuitive that a cup of hot cocoa could do anything positive for the management of your diabetes, but the latest research suggests that the same compounds that make dark chocolate good for you have something special to offer diabetics. Those compounds are called flavonols, and the work that they can do in your blood vessels is particularly crucial to those whose diabetes threatens to have cardiovascular effects.
Flavonols are naturally occurring compounds that are generated by some plants, allowing them to be found in many fruits and vegetables, along with treats like dark chocolate and red wine. While their function is still somewhat mysterious, modern science suggests that they can have fantastic benefits for the cardiovascular system at large for all people, giving those suffering from diabetes an extra tool in their battle against potential complications in that area of the body.
The Research Behind Cocoa for Diabetes Treatment
In order to better understand how flavonols affect blood flow, researchers at the University Hospital Aachen at the Technical University in Aachen, Germany, gathered people suffering from type 2 diabetes and administered flavonols in order to measure their effect.
Participants in the study received a cup of cocoa containing either a meager 25 milligrams, or a much more potent 321 milligrams of flavonol per serving, taking three servings per day for a period of 30 days. Once completed, researchers focused their investigation on the cardiovascular system in all patients, finding that those who had ingested the 321 milligram per serving cups of cocoa had their overall blood vessel function improve from being severely impaired, to quite normal. Alternatively, those who drank only low amounts of flavonol saw no significant changes.
There is still more science to be done before the effects of flavonols – and therefore cocoa – on people suffering from diabetes is understood fully, but this research represents a promising area in the battle against the disease and its long-term effects.
