The ongoing changes in product value often are prompted by significant changes in perceptions by the public and new scientific discoveries.

An excellent example comes when one studies the Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate which, over the course of centuries, were once considered extremely high, later denigrated to a role of being unhealthy, and now, through the advent of science, once again have been cast in the role of not only being a health food, but a health food of the highest quality.

An ancient civilization, that of the Central American Mayan Indians, was the first known culture to learn of and apply the advantages that consumption of dark chocolate has as a health food. ”The Food of the Gods” was the verbiage used by the Mayan Indians to describe dark chocolate, a food they reserved for special religious occasions.

Trying to appeal to the masses with added taste in the mid-1900’s, many manufacturers of dark chocolate tossed in hydrogenated oils and unhealthy sugars that reduced the health benefits of dark chocolate, thus giving dark chocolate a bad rap. These additives basically negated the overall health benefits of dark chocolate.

Scientists now know the true health benefits of dark chocolate are made possible because of the high incidence of antioxidants, a form of chemical compound, found in dark chocolate. Neither white nor milk chocolates are nearly as healthy as dark chocolate.

Antioxidants are a crucial element in the fight against free radicals which are thought by many to be the cause of a large number of health issues, including cancer. Antioxidants have the innate ability to neutralize free radicals by restoring the

balance of electrons in a molecule.

Among many healthy benefits of dark chocolate consumption by humans are:

• Improves one’s mood
• Fights aging
• Decreases risk of heart disease
• Fights cancer
• Can help in weight loss

There are many sources from whom one can buy dark chocolate, but one of the healthiest, if not THE healthiest brand name is Xocai. Antioxidant retention is at a premium via Xocai’s patented cold pressing technique; and Xocai’s many products only are available online. Cooking chocolate over high heat, a commonly accepted practice, greatly reduces the health benefits that could be realized through that dark chocolate because a significant portion of the highly beneficial antioxidants are lost in the process.

Although the dark chocolate consumption range all over the human body from the brain to the heart to the blood to the teeth, possibly the most exciting recent revelation in regards to dark chocolate and human health deals with the impact antioxidants in dark chocolate have on free radicals and cancer.