UK Scientists Wanted Volunteers to Eat Chocolate Every Day For a Year

Scientists are looking for women willing to eat chocolate every day for a year -- all in the name of medical science.

Photo: UK Scientists Wanted Volunteers to Eat Chocolate Every Day For a Year

Researchers at the University of East Anglia and a hospital in Norwich, eastern England are trying to find out whether chocolate can cut the risk of heart disease and need 40 women to step forward and help, informs AFP.

According to the scientists, all of the female participants will be subjected to a battery of tests gauging their health over the course of a year, with most of them consuming two bars a day of a "super-strength" variety of chocolate produced specifically for the experiment by elite Belgian chocolatiers. The other research subjects will eat "normal" chocolate by way of a placebo.

Citing the potential benefits connected with the flavonoid plant compounds found in dark chocolate, study co-ordinator Dr. Peter Curtis of the UEA School of Medicine said that a successful outcome "could be the first step in developing new ways to improve the lives of people at risk of heart disease," informs The Tech Herald.

According to Medical News Today, the risk of death from coronary heart disease associated with Type 2 diabetes is about 50 per cent greater in women than it is in men. Research suggests that although statin therapy can reduce the risk of heart disease, foods like cocoa and soy which contain flavonoids, can offer further protection from the disease.
It is hoped the trial will pave the way for a larger clinical study to examine the subject in more detail.