Chocolate

Studies in people

• Benefit

  Muscle recovery after exercise²

  Drinking chocolate milk after a workout may help muscles recover, though scientists are still working out the best amount and timing.

• No harm found

  Heart and blood health³

  In healthy people, eating chocolate or cocoa products made no real difference to blood pressure, blood sugar, or most cholesterol numbers.

• Open question

  Heart health⁵

  Scientists do not yet know whether chocolate truly helps the heart, though cocoa may affect blood pressure and blood flow.

• Benefit

  Hearing loss link⁶

  In middle-aged people, eating chocolate was linked to less hearing loss, but not to tinnitus.

• Benefit

  Type 2 diabetes risk⁷

  People who often ate dark chocolate had lower rates of type 2 diabetes; milk chocolate showed no such link.

• Benefit

  Mood and gut bacteria⁸

  In people, eating 85% dark chocolate daily for 3 weeks improved negative mood and changed gut bacteria.

• Open question

  Food craving triggers⁹

  Chocolate's fat, sugar, texture and aroma, plus its natural mood chemicals, may drive cravings some people feel.

• Open question

  Heart and blood vessel health¹⁰

  Chocolate may help the heart in moderate amounts, but scientists still disagree and more studies are needed.

• Open question

  Cocoa and bone strength¹¹

  Chocolate's effect on bones is unclear; some studies show teens grew more bone, but women past menopause saw no change.

• Benefit

  Heart and stroke risk¹²

  In studies of people, eating chocolate was linked to lower heart and blood vessel risk, especially in women.

• Concern

  Acne-prone skin¹³

  In acne-prone men, eating 99% dark chocolate daily for 4 weeks made acne worse.

• Benefit

  Artery stiffness¹⁵

  In young adults, eating high-cocoa chocolate daily for four weeks made their arteries less stiff.

• Benefit

  Tiredness and brain health¹⁶

  In middle-aged adults, dark chocolate may reduce fatigue, which may improve brain health and thinking.

Animal and lab studies only

• Concern

  Digestive toxin formation²¹

  In lab studies, digesting chocolate raised glyoxal and methylglyoxal, which are building blocks of AGEs.

Study type not stated

• Open question

  Heart and blood pressure¹⁹

  Chocolate may help blood pressure and blood vessels, but scientists do not yet know whether it truly does in people.

Found in some samples or products

These come from where it was grown, how it was processed or cooked, or what it was made into. They are not about the ingredient itself, so the signal does not count them.

• Food poisoning outbreaks⁴

  Chocolate has carried Salmonella in outbreaks that mostly sickened children, with cases reported every decade.

How it’s made and used

• Chewing and swallowing differences¹⁴

  People chew and swallow chocolate differently, and chocolate that coats the mouth stays in the mouth longer.

• Yeast effect on liking¹⁷

  Chocolates made with Pichia kluyveri and Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeasts were liked more by tasters than those made without them.

• Taste and texture¹⁸

  Adding goji berry to white chocolate made it more bitter and astringent, and weakened most aroma and flavor.

• Texture while eating²⁰

  How chocolate feels in your mouth depends on what happens to it as you eat it.

The signal at the top counts the findings in people and in animal and lab studies. A concern in studies of people outranks animal and lab studies, and “No concerns” needs at least one finding in people. When most findings in people point one way, the page leans that way (“Mostly”), and every finding is still shown. Findings whose study type is not stated are shown but not counted. This page is a reference, not medical advice. It describes what regulators and published research say. Talk to a doctor or dietitian about your own diet.