Feed Your Brain Better with Chocolate (and some other foods, too)!
It’s wondrous to think about all that our brain is in charge of. It’s controlling literally everything we do during our waking AND sleeping hours. Our minds control our thinking, breathing, our heart beating. So, while feeding our guts with foods rich in nutrients is important, an argument can be made that feeding our brains with healthy foods is paramount. In fact, if you’re a chocolate lover, you may wonder, “is chocolate good for mental health?”
A nutritious diet is imperative to maintaining our cognitive function and mental health and there are some foods that are top of the list when trying to maintain a healthful mind diet, dark chocolate being one of them.
Chocolate has long been associated with improvements relating to health since ancient times. Most often, its contributions to cardiovascular health and the attributes that fight heart disease are showcased. Less known have been the effects and raw cacao benefits on brain function, but studies have shown that chocolate is indeed food that is good for the brain. Studying subjects in their 20’s to 90’s scientists found that habitual chocolate intake could be associated with better memory, organization and reasoning.
Brain Food: Flavonoids
Flavonoids are one of the main contributors to brain health. When consumed, the flavonoid gathers in the areas of the brain that assist with learning and memory, and some studies suggest that may even slow cognitive impairment, the progression of Alzheimer’s disease and cognitive decline. Dark chocolate, green tea, dark leafy greens and red wine all contain flavonoids.
Start Your Day with Flavonoids: Super Cacao Elixirs
At the heart of our super cacao elixirs is the mighty cacao bean. Designed as an alternative to your daily coffee ritual, they are a portal to deliver the cacao beans’ health benefits to your mind, body and soul in its purest form. The colorful elixirs leverage the healthy fats from cocoa butter, unrefined coconut nectar and various adaptogens, spices and flowers. They feature naturally occurring theobromine, which boosts energy and mood without the crash of caffeine. Offered in a variety of parfums: Reishi Mushroom and Walnut, Ceremonial Cacao, Ceremonial Matcha or Golden Milk. Just add your favorite non-dairy alternative to enjoy the elixir and create a moment of self-care or chocolate ritual for yourself.
Brain Food: Fatty Acids
Foods rich with essential fatty acids are also an addition to our plates that can help us maintain a healthy brain. Polyunsaturated fatty acids like Omega 3’s, are important to keep our bodies and brain functioning. They’ve been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease and the onset and progression of dementia. Our body cannot produce fatty acid, so they must be consumed through our food. Foods like oily, fatty fish (salmon, tuna, halibut and anchovies are all good ones,) seeds and nuts, firm tofu, lentils, beans and some cheeses are all rich in Omega 3’s. These are foods that contain the “good fats” as opposed to the sometimes health risk inducing saturated fats that should be a very limited part of our diet.
Sometimes our brain cells crave chocolate. At the end of a lunch or with an afternoon cup of tea, a truffle can be the very thing to propel you into the rest of your day.
Our Favorite Truffles for Getting Some of Your Omegas: The Dark Chocolate Truffle Collection
This truffle collection is a perfect way to satiate the strongest of cravings. Seeds, nuts, fruits and flowers all find their way into these chocolates. The collection merges truffles from our twenty-year history and our Exotic, Italian, Groove and Aztec Collections through a deep dark chocolate tasting experience, ranging from 62% to 75% cacao. This collection blends flowers, roots, herbs and spices with dark chocolate from around the world. These truffles are a perfect bite of chocolate!
Brain Food: Extra Virgin Olive Oil
A stand alone in terms of overall health and brain function is extra virgin olive oil. A main ingredient in the Mediterranean diet, this oil is partially responsible for some of the healthiest populations in the world. It may even be said that reasonable amounts of olive oil are the healthiest fats you can include in your diet. With modest levels of vitamin E and vitamin K, this powerful antioxidant contains high levels of fatty acids and is a disease fighter and an anti-inflammatory.
Our favorite Olive Oil Confection: The Vegan Truffle Collection
Wondering what chocolate is vegan? At Vosges Haut-Chocolat we blended a treasured early harvest olive oil with our proprietary 72% dark chocolate and added luscious pockets of fruit and nuts. Having minimal amount of sugars present in the chocolate and the fruits to sweeten them, these Vegan truffles are low in sweetness and sumptuously rich without any dairy. Pair these truffles with your favorite jammy red wine for a treat that will indulge your sweet tooth and deliver all the brain benefits of wine and chocolate.
Our Favorite Small, Health-Minded Bite: Our Pure Plant Chocolate Bars
The five bars in our Pure Plant collection are the culmination of more than a decade of friendship between Katrina and scientist, Dr. William Li and are a perfect square of chocolate to incorporate into your plant-based healthy diet. Over the course of the past ten years, they have developed a vocabulary informed by their mutual science background, global adventures, and palates. Katrina challenged herself to create new bars with limited ingredients that would surprise the palate with their complexity. Using unrefined sweeteners and olive oil, the bars could remain creamy and rich, without dairy and all without the addition of any refined sugar.
Our brain deserves all the attention we can give it. Small additions to our diet may be just what the doctor ordered to ensure the longevity of a healthy brain and overall brain function. The next time you take a bite of your favorite piece of Vosges chocolate, you may think that you are simply about to taste something truly delectable, but you’re giving your mind a gift as well!
We also recommend learning about high frequency foods and how they provide your body with energy. After all, who couldn’t use more of that?