Relation of Habitual Chocolate Consumption to Arterial Stiffness in a Community-Based Sample: Preliminary Findings.
Background
The consumption of chocolate
and cocoa has established cardiovascular benefits. Less is known about the
effects of chocolate on arterial stiffness, a marker of subclinical
cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study was to investigate whether
chocolate intakes are independently associated with pulse wave velocity (PWV),
after adjustment for cardiovascular, lifestyle and dietary factors.
Methods
Prospective analyses were
undertaken on 508 community-dwelling participants (mean age 61 years, 60%
women) from the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study (MSLS). Habitual chocolate
intakes, measured using a food frequency questionnaire, were related to PWV,
measured approximately 5 years later.
Results
Chocolate intake was
significantly associated with PWV in a non-linear fashion with the highest
levels of PWV in those who never or rarely ate chocolate and lowest levels in
those who consumed chocolate once a week. This pattern of results remained and
was not attenuated after multivariate adjustment for diabetes, cardiovascular
risk factors and dietary variables (p = 0.002).
Conclusions
Weekly chocolate intake may be
of benefit to arterial stiffness. Further studies are needed to explore the
underlying mechanisms that may mediate the observed effects of habitual
chocolate consumption on arterial stiffness.
Key Words: Arterial stiffness, Chocolate, Cocoa, Pulse wave
velocity
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