Chocolate Consumption Is Associated with Reduced Risk for Adverse CV Outcomes

People who ate chocolate more than five times a week had lower risks for any cardiovascular disease and stroke.

Cocoa products contain polyphenols, which have salutary cardiovascular (CV) effects. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, investigators evaluated whether an association exists between chocolate consumption and CV outcomes.

Seven observational studies involving 114,000 adults (age range, 25–93; follow-up range, 8–16 years) were included in the analysis. After adjustment for various potential confounding variables, high chocolate consumption (i.e., >5 times weekly) was associated with a significantly reduced risk for any CV disease (relative risk, 0.63) and stroke (RR, 0.71) compared with low chocolate consumption (i.e., none). High chocolate consumption was not associated with reduced risk for heart failure.

Reviewing Author

Paul S. Mueller, MD, MPH, FACP

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Paul S. Mueller, MD, MPH, FACP

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose