Dark Chocolate is good for your Heart

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Healthy Heart Habits: 

This Valentine's Day remember that 'dark chocolate' is good for your heart. 

Dark chocolate contains a large number of antioxidants which is nearly 8 times more found in strawberries. 

A small bar of dark chocolate everyday can help keep your heart and cardiovascular system running well. 

Chocolate is made from plants, which means it contains many of the health benefits of dark vegetables. 

These benefits are from flavonoids, which act as antioxidants. 

Antioxidants protect the body from aging caused by free radicals, which can cause damage that leads to heart disease. 

Flavonoids also help relax blood pressure through the production of nitric oxide, and balance certain hormones in the body. 

As a result two heart health benefits of dark chocolate are: 

(1) Lower Blood Pressure: 

Studies have shown that consuming a small bar of dark chocolate everyday can reduce blood pressure in individuals with high blood pressure. 

(2) Lower Cholesterol: 

Dark chocolate has also been shown to reduce LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol) by up to 10 percent.