Eating five servings of dark chocolate, rather than milk chocolate, a week may help reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, according to a long-term US study.
Published in the BMJ, the researchers also found that increased consumption of milk, but not dark chocolate, was associated with long-term weight gain. Chocolate contains high levels of flavanols (a natural compound found in fruits and vegetables), which have been shown to support heart health and reduce the risk of diabetes.
But the link between chocolate consumption and the risk of type 2 diabetes remains controversial due to conflicting results.
Furthermore, most previous studies have not considered whether the consumption of dark and milk chocolate, which have different cocoa, milk and sugar contents, may have different effects on the risk of type 2 diabetes.
To explore this question further, the researchers combined data from three long-term observational studies in the United States of female nurses and male health professionals who did not have diabetes, heart disease, or cancer when they were recruited.
They analyzed the associations between type 2 diabetes and total chocolate consumption for 192,208 participants and chocolate subtype (dark and milk) consumption for 111,654 participants over an average follow-up period of 25 years.
In the analyses for total chocolate, 18 862 people developed type 2 diabetes.
After adjusting for risk factors related to personality, lifestyle and diet, the authors found that people who consumed at least five servings per week of any type of chocolate had a significant 10% lower rate of type 2 diabetes compared with those who rarely or never consumed chocolate.
In analyses by chocolate subtype, 4,771 people developed type 2 diabetes.
After adjusting for the same risk factors, people who consumed at least five servings of dark chocolate per week showed a significant 21% lower risk of type 2 diabetes, but no significant associations were found for milk chocolate consumption.
The researchers also found a 3% reduction in type 2 diabetes risk for each additional weekly serving of dark chocolate.
"Clinical studies are needed to confirm the results and help identify the reasons for the protective effect of dark chocolate," the researchers said. | BGNES
