A key component of dark chocolate slows down aging - study
Kyiv • UNN
British scientists have found that theobromine in dark chocolate may slow down biological aging. The study showed a link between the level of theobromine in the blood and epigenetic changes.
A chemical substance found mainly in dark chocolate is able to slow down the rate of biological aging. British scientists came to this conclusion based on the results of a new study. This is reported by UNN with reference to NewScientist.
Details
The chemical in question is theobromine. It is probably best known to the public for its deadly effect on dogs. But scientists have also found that it extends the lifespan of one strain of simple worm, and there is evidence of health benefits for humans.
To learn more about the potential benefits of dark chocolate, scientist Rami Saad of King's College London and colleagues analyzed data from 500 women from a study called TwinsUK. It measured the levels of a number of components in the blood of the subjects, including theobromine.
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Epigenetic changes were also considered - the presence or absence of chemical tags on DNA that change gene activity - in blood cells. Some of these changes are related to aging and can be used to assess whether a person's "biological age" is higher or lower than their chronological age.
We found a link between the level of theobromine in the blood and epigenetic estimates of biological age. People with higher levels of theobromine were more likely to have a biological age lower than their chronological age
The team then analyzed similar data from 1,160 people from a study conducted in Germany called KORA and found a similar association.
One of the advantages of the latter study is that it uses direct measurements of theobromine in the blood, rather than people's reports of how much chocolate they ate.
Theobromine can be formed from the breakdown of caffeine, although in very small amounts. The main source of theobromine in the diet is cocoa products. Dark chocolate has a high content of cocoa products, milk chocolate has a much lower content, and white chocolate has none at all. For example, I wouldn't expect to get much theobromine from Milkybar
Let us remind you
The price of cocoa beans at the end of 2024 increased by 185% due to climate problems in West Africa, reaching $12,000 per ton. Cocoa beans have overtaken bitcoin and become the most profitable commodity of the year