is raw chocolate Healthy or Even Raw?

January 2, 2006

Is Raw Chocolate Healthy Or Even Raw?Have you been convinced that raw cacao is somekind of superfood or food of the Gods? Below I'mgoing to share with you a number of resourcesthat thoroughly discuss this issue. That way youcan better make up your own mind.I have tried raw chocolate or cacao nibs. Fromthe first one I ate, I immediately felt a senseof stimulation. Stimulants like caffeine, drugsand even vitamin supplements are not things thatpromote health. If you are being stimulated, your body is atthe same time being enervated. A stimulant issimply a toxin to your body. The reason you feelthe extra energy is because your body goes into aheightened elimination mode. You're body requiresextra energy to eliminate this toxin and itreleases reserve sugar into your bloodstream toprovide it with the extra energy to eliminate

thetoxin.** You Don't Get Energy from Caffeine andStimulants, You Actually Lose Energy **With caffeine for instance, the body is able tocompletely rid itself of the caffeine within twohours of ingesting it. All the extra energy youfeel is literally robbing you of minerals,nutrients and energy so that you're body caneliminate this very toxic substance as quickly asit can.This is the problem with so many claims to thehealth benefits of certain foods. Thesesuperfoods, may have some valuable nutrients inthem, but their overall effect on your healthmight be more negative than positive. You alwayshave to look to the overall effect of a food onyour health, not just to a few nutrients in thefood.In my research of the nutrients in chocolate,there is no valuable nutrient in it, that isn'teasily available in a variety fruits andvegetables. Remember, raw fruits and vegetablesare the real

superfoods for humans.You can confirm this for yourself by using thisgreat nutritional website:http://www.nutritiondata.com/index.html You can put in any nutrient and it will tell youwhich foods are highest in that nutrient. Plus somuch more.*** Is Raw Chocolate Even Raw? ***This is an interesting topic that has beenhighly debated. There are some experts who claimthere is no way to make cacao taste likechocolate unless it is heated to cookingtemperatures. This even goes for those so-calledraw cacao companies that ferment their cacaobeans. Supposedly they still have to heat thebeans in order for them to taste any good at all.I've read about this from several sources.Here's a post by Dr. Douglas Graham about thistopic.*~*~*~*~*~*

Dr. Doug Graham (DrGraham.vegsource.com)ChocolateJune 7, 2005 at 3:49 am PSTIn Reply to: Naked Chocolate posted by JamieClark on June 5, 2005 at 5:35 pm:Briefly, ever so briefly,First, there is no raw chocolate being sold,anywhere. In order to taste like chocolate, cacaobeans must be heated. I have lived in the tropicsand have tried to bring out the chocolate tastein other ways, it simply cannot be done. There isno such thing as raw chocolate.Even the chocolate that is fermented so said tobe raw is eventually heated, and high enough tobe cooked.I am sure you know that heating the proteins inchocolate denatures them and causes them tobecome carcinogenic. I assume you are aware thatheating the carbohydrates caramelizes them,adversely affecting their GI rating and alsocreating carcinogens. It made worldwide headlinesthree years ago that heating fats, even the fatsin

chocolate, results in the production ofcarcinogens, so that is no news to you, I amsure. It also results in the production of enzymeresistant protein bonds that are a causativeagent in conditions ranging from arthritis toallergies, leaky gut, and many others. The doublebonds of the fats in chocolate become triplebonds under the influence of heat making themphysiologically nonviable for humans andadversely impacting upon our cholesterol levels.As far as the components of chocolate,essentially it is a cocktail of toxic chemicalsand drugs.Cacao beans contain:methylxanthines such as the stimulant drugsknown as caffeine, theobromine, and theophyllin,all of which are known to produce permanentdegenerative alterations in cellular protoplasm.More tannin than tea.Oxalic acidCannabinoidsAflatoxinsThere is not the time to go into the toxicimpact of each of this drugs, but if you wantsuch

information I can supply it via aconsultation. I am sure you can do a search onthese substances to find their debilitatingeffects on human health.So, chocolate is not raw, is defintely nothealth food, and cannot be considered asuperfood. There is nothing about marketingchocolate that can be considered a positiveexcept for the possible bottom line profits thatit may offer.Hope this helps,Dr DHere's the direct link to his post:http://www.vegsource.com/talk/raw/messages/15852.html This is a very informative post:http://www.vegsource.com/talk/raw/messages/15839.html For the whole

discussion, you can continuereading here:http://www.vegsource.com/talk/raw/messages/15830.htmlFrom Another Forum:http://snipurl.com/l6nq Plus you'll discover proof that a major raw foodauthor plagiarized his first book.*~*~*~*~*~**** Is Raw Chocolate Healthy? ***Raw Cacao: another stimulant disguised as ahealthy foodby Frï¿½dï¿½ric PatenaudeMany of my readers have been asking me what Ithink of the whole raw cacao craze. For those whodon't know, raw cacao beans are now sold bydifferent raw-food companies as the latest"superfood." Cacao beans are traditionallyroasted and used to make chocolate.

Now, raw-foodists have found a raw version of the belovedbean and are apparently using it for its magicalproperties.First, let me start by explaining what my ownpersonal use of cacao is. I've known for a longtime that cacao is a stimulant. Not as strong ascoffee, but its stimulating "qualities" are easyto spot when your body is not used to eating suchfoods. Because of this, I often used carob powderin my recipes. Carob powder is made from a fruitand has a taste that reminds of chocolate. It isnaturally sweet. Instead of being a stimulant,carob is a mineral rich food and has a calmingeffect. So, like most raw-foodists, I used carobpowder in my recipes. But, then one day, Idecided to use cacao powder. I figured: if I'mgoing to make something that tastes likechocolate, why not use the real thing? I'venoticed that cacao has a stimulating effect, butsince I was using it occasionally (i.e. less

thanonce a month) and just for fun in some recipes, Iwas not too bothered by that little indiscretion.However, I never considered it to be a health food.Now, cacao beans are sold to us at an exorbitantprice under the assumption that it's one of thebest things we could ever eat. I couldn'tdisagree more.First of all, cacao beans are not really food.If you found them in nature, you wouldn't eat theseeds. You would eat the fruit, which isapparently delicious, and throw away the seeds.Even if you wanted to eat the seeds, they wouldnot taste like chocolate. In order for the cacaoseeds to taste like chocolate and become thecacao beans that we know, they have to befermented first. They are fairly bitter,indicating the presence of a poison. And when Isay a "poison," I'm not making this up. Just do alittle research and you'll discover that cacaocontains many chemicals with a stimulatingeffects, such as

theobromine and caffeine.Frederic Patenaude has a free weekly e-newsletter filled with unique nutrition tips,informative articles and exclusive interviews foryou.A popular article on raw cacao beans claims thatcacao "increase(s) your focus and alertness andcontains nutrients to keep you happy."My answer to that is the same as has been saidand is being said about coffee. The fact is thatwhat people actually confuse with "alertness" isactually an adrenal response to the stress thatthe body has to deal with when eliminating thetoxins found in cacao beans. What you get is NOTenergy. What you experience as energy is actuallyyour body working hard to establish balance(homeostasis) again! It's like whipping a horse.Eventually, it will fall down.Here's an excerpt from Neal Barnard's book,"Breaking the Food Seduction": "Researchers at the University of

Michiganbrought out the truth about chocolate. In aresearch study, they gave 26 volunteers a drugcalled 'noxalone.' They then offered them a trayfilled with Snicker's Bars, M & Ms, chocolate chipcookies, and Oreos. Normally, these snacks wouldhave quickly disappeared. But, the drug knockedout the desire for chocolate. A candy bar was notmuch more exciting than a crust of dry bread. "Noxalone is an opiate blocker. That is,it stops heroin, morphine, and other narcoticsfrom affecting the brain. And, it blocks theeffects of chocolate, too. This research studyshowed that chocolate's appeal does not come fromits creamy texture or deep brown color. Chocolatestimulates the same part of the brain thatmorphine acts on. For all intents and purposes,chocolate is a drug - not necessarily a bad oneand not a terribly strong one, but strong enough,nonetheless, to keep us coming back for

more."Many people would argue that when cacao is notcooked, these chemicals do not have the sameeffect on the body. But yet, those same peoplewho say that actually admit to eating cacao beansfor their stimulating effect! Many people havereported not being able to fall asleep if theyeat cacao beans late at night and that they arestill looking for the "best" time of the day toeat them. Others tell me that when they eat cacaobeans, they get so much energy, but then have a"down" later on. Does that remind you of something?If you like the taste, you could use some cacaoonce in a while in a recipe. But don't foolyourself into thinking that there's somehowsomething really good about this. Personally, Iwould consider using cacao when making a specialdesert for a special occasion. I don't recommendeating cacao otherwise. I don't find anythingspecial in it. I don't buy the whole raw cacaocraze and I don't

think it is worth the pricethat is charged for it.Remember: A rose by any other name is ... justas thorny. Have fun! ;-)Frï¿½dï¿½ric Patenaude has written several greatbooks on the raw food diet and is the publisherof a informative weekly ezine called "Pure Health andNutrition." To learn more about what Frï¿½dï¿½ric hasto offer, please visit his website with the linkbelow.http://www.howtogoraw.com/RawSensations.html *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*I hope you've found this information helpful toyou. I'm sorry if I burst your bubble about so-called raw chocolate or cacao. You can still eatit (I'd only do it occasionally if at all.) butat least now you know what you are gettingyourself into.Ronald A. Fells

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