Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga
Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga
Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga
Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga
Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga
Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga Detoxify and Purify with the Cleanse and Kundalini Yoga
 

Cacao

Chocolate is one of America's most well-loved foods. Yet, uniquely, out of millions of Americans very, very few have ever had the raw food that all chocolate comes from - cacao beans!

All chocolate comes from cacao beans - the seeds of the cacao fruit - which grows on a jungle tree. Botanically, cacao is truly a nut. They may be referred to as cacao beans, cacao seeds, cacao nuts, chocolate seeds, chocolate beans, or cacao nibs - all essentially mean the same thing. For simplicity, we usually use the term "cacao beans."

Cacao beans taste like dark chocolate, because they are dark chocolate!

Cacao As A Superfood

Cacao beans contain over 300 chemically identifiable compounds making it one of the most complex food substances on Earth!

Substances in chocolate that have been discussed in the scientific literature as pharmacologically significant, include: anandamide (bliss chemical), arginine (nature's Viagra), dopamine (neurotransmitter), epicatechins (antioxidants), histamine, magnesium, serotonin (anti-stress neurotransmitter), tryptophan (anti-depressant amino acid), phenylethylamine (PEA), polyphenols (antioxidants), tyramine, and salsolinol.

Magnesium

Dr. Bernard Jensen's research on the heart indicates that this organ requires two minerals more than any other, magnesium and potassium. Magnesium is concentrated eighteen times greater in the heart muscle than in the bloodstream. Magnesium is the primarily mineral missing when heart problems occur. Magnesium increases the overall vigor of the heart muscle. This mineral also decreases blood coagulation thus lowering blood pressure and helping the heart pump more effectively. Cacao, of course, is a fantastic food source of heart-supporting magnesium.

Antioxidants

According to research cited in The New York Times, fresh cacao beans are super-rich in antioxidant flavonols. Cacao beans contain 10,000 milligrams (10 grams) per 100 grams of flavonol antioxidants. This is a whopping 10% antioxidant concentration level! This makes cacao one of the richest sources of antioxidants of any food. Compare the cacao bean to processed cocoa powder (defatted, roasted cacao treated with potassium carbonate) and chocolates which range in flavonol content from the more common concentration of 500 milligrams per 100 grams in normal chocolate bars to 5,000 milligrams in Mars Corporation's special Cocoapro cocoa powder.

Research has demonstrated that the antioxidants in cacao are highly stable and easily available to human metabolism.

Cornell University food scientists found that cocoa powder has nearly twice the antioxidants of red wine and up to three times what is found in green tea. Their findings were published in an article entitled "Cocoa Has More Phenolic Phytochemicals and a Higher Antioxidant Capacity than Teas and Red Wine," found in the American Chemical Society's Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, a peer-reviewed publication.

Scientists have known that cocoa contains significant antioxidants, but no one knew just how rich they were compared with those in red wine and green tea.

The Cornell researchers, led by Chang Y. Lee, chairman of the Department of Food Science and Technology at Cornell University's New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, N.Y., say the reason that cocoa leads the other drinks is its high content of antioxidant compounds called phenolic phytochemicals, or flavonoids. They discovered 611 milligrams of the phenolic compound gallic acid equivalents (GAE) and 564 milligrams of the flavonoid epicatechin equivalents (ECE) in a single serving of cocoa. Examining a glass of red wine, the researchers found 340 milligrams of GAE and 163 milligrams of ECE. In a cup of green tea, they found 165 milligrams of GAE and 47 milligrams of ECE.

Antioxidant ORAC levels per 100 grams:

  • dark chocolate - 13,120
  • milk chocolate - 6,740
  • prunes - 5,770
  • raisins - 2,830
  • blueberries - 2,400
  • blackberries - 2036
  • kale - 1,770
  • strawberries - 1540
  • spinach - 1260
  • raspberries - 1220
  • brussel sprouts - 980
  • plums - 949
  • alfalfa sprouts - 930

Information from Nature’s First Law website.