Cocoa can improve brain function

[kestrell]

So, prune juice may be the drink of warriors, but cocoa could be the drink of geeks
https://scitechdaily.com/can-drinking-cocoa-make-you-smarter-cocoa-flavanols-found-to-boost-brain-oxygenation-and-cognition/

Comments

[cvirtue]

I must experiment now.

[kestrell]

Experiment with flavor concoctions or flavanol concoctions? I wonder if there is a brand of cocoa that contains maximum flavanols? Please keep informed regarding best experiment results.

[siderea]

Important detail: if I am understanding the article correctly, it's quality cocoa which provides the brain-boost. They used low-quality cocoa as the control.

So they're saying gourmet cocoa is the drink of geeks.

[kestrell]

Thanks! I was going to research which brand had the maximum amount of flavanols, but I hadn't connected it with quality, but o course that makes sense.

[cvirtue]

Right - was about to say I was going to "experiment" using fancy cocoa. The reason I put experiment in quotes is because what I really plan to do is drink a lot of cocoa without worrying about it much.
Not that this is much of a change from my usual behavior.

[kestrell]

I did some research, which reminded me that cocoa can trigger migraines, so drinking lots of cocoa probably isn't in the cards for me, but here are the links
Your chance of choosing a cocoa product with lots of flavanols by NUTRITION ACTION
https://www.nutritionaction.com/daily/heart-and-disease-cat/chances-choosing-cocoa-product-lots-flavanols/

CocoaVia: cocoa flavanol supplements and drink mixes
https://www.cocoavia.com/

Flavonoids and Flavanols 101
https://www.cocoavia.com/blogs/cocoapedia/how-many-flavonoids-cocoa-powder

Cocoa, Cognition, and Aging (CoCoA) Study
https://www.cocoavia.com/pages/cocoa-flavanols-benefits

Color me suspicious

[jesse_the_k]

...of all chocolate-related science that's disseminated via press releases.

After this NPR story on the chocolate will help you lose weight hoax -- engineered by John Bohanon -- I understood that not only am I woefully illiterate in basic statistics, but so are altogether too many journal editors.

That said, I do find excuses twice a week to visit my local coffee shop for an oat-milk-cocoa, and it's delicious.