Professor Tim Spector says the one ingredient in chocolate can help prevent dementia

Chocolate aficionados have reason to celebrate, according to nutritional scientist Tim Spector, who claims that indulging in the right kind of chocolate can be beneficial for your health. The King's College London professor and Zoe health app founder has highlighted that dark chocolate with a cacao content of over 70% is packed with health perks.

These benefits stem from polyphenols, compounds that help reduce inflammation and may lower the risk of conditions like dementia, arthritis, and diabetes.

In an Instagram update, Prof Spector, author of the new 'Food for Life Cookbook', shared his personal affection for chocolate: "Everyone loves chocolate. I know I do, and I didn't need my book to tell me that. But my book writing has told me much more about what's in chocolate that is not only tasty but is actually good for our health."

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He further explained that high-quality chocolate, rich in cacao, derives its benefits from the plant-based origins of the beans, which are enhanced by fermentation: "And we're talking about chocolates that are good quality, with over 70% cacao in it, because that's all from a plant. And the bean itself is packed with polyphenols that are made greater by fermenting process. So those polyphenols are really healthy for us and give us a lot of the advantages of eating chocolate."

Prof Spector also pointed out that such chocolate increases fibre intake, which is crucial given that 90% of people don't meet the recommended daily fibre intake of 30g. He has suggested that increasing fibre consumption by 5g a day could potentially double the blood pressure-lowering effects compared to reducing salt intake, reports Gloucestershire Live.

He further explained: "There's also fibre in it, and a normal portion of dark chocolate has over double the equivalent slice of whole grain bread in terms of fibre. So chocolate is a great thing to have as a little treat at the end of the day, knowing that as well as being super tasty, it's also really good for you, and I certainly enjoy it."

Elaborating on the benefits, he said: "Cocoa is a rich source of polyphenols such as flavanols which act as rocket fuel for your gut microbes, enhancing the growth of beneficial gut bacteria and reducing the number of pathogenic or bad bacteria. One study found the total polyphenol content of cocoa powder exceeds that of so called "superfoods" acai, blueberries and pomegranate."

"One thing that always surprises people is how much fibre is in chocolate too, around 712g in 100g of 70% cocoa dark chocolate which increases with the cocoa percentage. The 85% Lindt bar in this video contains 15g of fibre per 100g bar or 6g per 40g serving. These are significant levels when you remember that the average European eats a total of 15g or less a day although I'm not suggesting you replace vegetables with dark chocolate."

"Some chocolate bars will contain emulsifiers so it's best to check the label and choose the highest percentage you can enjoy to minimise the sugar content and maximise the polyphenol and fibre content."