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Could cocoa help delay high blood pressure? Here’s what Brigham and Women’s researchers found.
But chocoholics take note: The findings come with some important caveats.
Centuries after the Mayans and Aztecs first turned to cacao for medicinal use, researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital have found promising evidence that cocoa extract could help older adults keep their blood pressure in check.
In an article published last month in the scientific journal Hypertension, the researchers reported that in older adults with normal blood pressure, consuming the dietary supplement long term may actually help preserve vascular function and reduce the risk of developing high blood pressure.
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“It was interesting nuance in that, if you have low blood pressure and want to keep it there, taking cocoa extract supplements seemed to be a way to do that,” explained Dr. Howard Sesso, an author on the paper and one of the principal investigators behind the Cocoa Supplement and Multivitamin Outcomes Study, or COSMOS.
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But chocoholics beware: While cocoa extract is derived from the cacao bean, the cornerstone ingredient of chocolate, it’s a far cry from the confections found in supermarket candy aisles. According to Sesso, the difference partly comes down to the nutritional components contained in cocoa extract, such as flavanols.
“When you’re looking at different cocoa or chocolate products on store shelves, you will not see anything listed about its cocoa flavanol content,” he noted. “All you’ll see is the fat and the calories and other things added to it, which is really kind of getting away from the purpose of looking at cocoa as a potential healthy food option, because you’re adding in all the sugar and the fat and the calories.”
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And Sesso had yet another bitter truth for chocolate lovers.
“For those that are thinking that dark chocolate somehow equates to healthier chocolate — just because something is bitter doesn’t necessarily mean it has cocoa flavanols,” he said.
What the research says
“There have been many shorter-term trials and other observational studies that have shown that cocoa might have promise for reducing blood pressure over the short term, over weeks,” Sesso explained, adding that the COSMOS trial’s multiyear span sets it apart.
The large-scale trial is supported by an investigator-initiated grant from Mars Edge, part of the company better known for making M&Ms and other popular chocolates.
“We were specifically interested in the question of, if you did not have hypertension at the start of the study, would taking cocoa extract compared to placebo result in reductions in the development or incidence of hypertension?” Sesso recalled.
While researchers didn’t find that long-term use of cocoa extract reduced the overall risk of self-reported incident hypertension — the first time someone experiences high blood pressure — Sesso said they did see some benefits for participants whose baseline systolic pressure was under 120 mmHg.
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“They had a 24% reduction in the incidence of developing hypertension over three to four years, and that translates loosely to adding a little over six months — six to seven months — of additional freedom from hypertension over the course of the study,” he explained.
Further, according to Sesso, the researchers didn’t really note any downsides to long-term cocoa extract supplementation.
“That’s not to say that everyone should start taking it because there’s no downsides,” he cautioned, adding that it’s important “to try and understand in whom cocoa extract supplementation might be best indicated.”
There’s still more trial data to analyze, and Sesso said the latest COSMOS findings need to be examined within the context of other healthy habits.
“So it doesn’t take anything away from the importance of a balanced diet and exercising and keeping the weight in check and all these other things that we know are very, very important,” he said.
In short, Sesso added: “It’s never been about consuming more chocolate in any way.”
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