This answers the question about whether the antioxidant totals in the cocoa study I posted earlier are per 'pure powdered cocoa' or 'as drunk:' http://www.brightsurf.com/news/nov_03/ACS_news_110603.php
"Researchers at Cornell University have shown that the popular winter beverage contains more antioxidants per cup than a similar serving of red wine or tea and may be a healthier choice...Their study, which they say is the most complete comparison to date of the total antioxidant content of these three popular beverages, will appear in the Dec. 3 issue of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society....The beverages tested included a cup of hot water containing two tablespoons of pure cocoa powder, ///roughly equivalent to the amount of cocoa in a normal-size packet of instant hot chocolate;/// a cup of water containing a standard size bag of green tea; a cup of black tea; and one glass of red wine (California Merlot)." [Slash emphasis mine; no wonder I couldn't find it in PubMed - not out yet!.] Note that there was no milk in the tested liquid; there has been some research suggesting that milk proteins might reduce the bioavailability of tea antioxidants, so it is possible that the same holds for cocoa antioxidants. I think I can live with that. :) This site gives more information about the beneficial chemicals in cacao beans; I didn't know that some company has already marketed cocoa pills. http://www.pdrhealth.com/drug_info/nmdrugprofiles/nutsupdrugs/coc_0078.shtml "Cocoa and chocolate are products derived from cacao beans, the seeds of the Theobroma cacao tree. Polyphenols comprise about 12 to 18% of the dry weight of cacao beans. About 60% of the polyphenols are in the form of procyanidins (also known as leucocyanidins)... "...Cocoa flavonoids have been shown to inhibit the oxidation of LDL. The oxidation of LDL is thought to be a crucial event in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. "Some of the cocoa flavonoids appear to reduce the expression of phytohemagglutinin-induced interleukin 2 (IL-2) mRNA, as well as the expression of interleukin 1beta (IL-1B), in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). Reduction of IL-2 and IL-1beta in PBMC could account, in part, for possible anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory activities of cocoa flavonoids..." This is a full article from _Current Opinion in Lipidology_ 2002, 13:41-49; "Evidence that the antioxidant flavonoids in tea and cocoa are beneficial for cardiovascular health" http://keenlab.ucdavis.edu/articles/kris-etherton.pdf Debbi Mocha This Morning Maru :) __________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Protect your identity with Yahoo! Mail AddressGuard http://antispam.yahoo.com/whatsnewfree _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
