Thrilling news, Soma-allies,
After years of wondering wistfully, we finally stumped up the cash to get our cacaos lab-tested for their polyphenol content. Polyphenols are notoriously hard to test for, since they react with just about everything (which is also why they’re such good antioxidants) - to do it properly, you have to perform tests with names like ‘mass spectrometry’ and ‘high-performance liquid chromatography’, which require expensive equipment and well-educated technicians in designer glasses.
We got those tests, and we have the results, but first - what is a polyphenol?
Polyphenols are compounds that occur naturally in plants. They contain multiple phenols, which are antioxidant structures capable of neutralising free radicals. Free radicals are villainous little compounds bitter about the loss of an electron in their childhood - they seek to exact revenge on life by charging around the body stealing electrons from innocent compounds. In small quantities, free radicals are healthy and even necessary, especially for the immune system, but when they aggregate (due to bad diet, stress, pollution, ageing, etc) they cause oxidative damage to cells.
Polyphenols swallow free radicals without themselves becoming unbalanced. Plants produce them to protect against sun damage, fight off pests and pathogens, neutralise antioxidants caused by drought, cold, heat, or injury, and to help with hormones and signalling.
When we eat polyphenol-rich foods, they have a similar anti-oxidant effect in our bodies. They help our bodies turn on their own protective pathways, especially the Nrf2 pathway, which stimulates the production of protective enzymes. They also reduce inflammation and stimulate bloodflow. Polyphenols are unique among antioxidants because they tend to pass intact through the small intestine to the gut, where they feed healthy bacteria and fight unhealthy bacteria.
Measured in mg/kg, the foods richest in polyphenols are:
- cloves (150,000),
- dry peppermint (120,000),
- star anise (55,000),
- dried oregano (20,000),
- elderberries (20,000), and
- cacao (c15,000).
Other polyphenol-rich foods include tea, coffee, olive oil, berries and bright fruits, other herbs and spices, and colourful vegetables.
But is there anything unique about the polyphenols in cacao?
Indeed there is!
Of the 8000 known polyphenols, cacao is extremely rich in about 100 (calling a food ‘polyphenol-rich’ is like saying it’s ‘rich in vitamins’ - variety is as important as quantity). Most of the 100 polyphenols in cacao are flavanols, which have all the standard polyphenol effects in the body (antioxidant, feed good gut bacteria, reduce inflammation, etc), but also have a particular effect on bloodflow.
Cacao flavanols stimulate the production of Nitric Oxide in the bloodstream, and also protect that Nitric Oxide from degradation. Nitric Oxide relaxes the smooth muscle in the wall of blood vessels, improving blood flow, reducing clotting, and delivering more oxygen to tissues and organs. This is the mechanism by which cacao has such tremendously positive effects on the heart and brain (eg significantly improved memory performance, higher verbal fluency, lower blood pressure, lower LDL-cholesterol, etc).
And now for some results:
Just as each of our cacaos, which have different genetic make-ups and grow in different climates and soil in different nations all around the world, have different
theobromine and caffeine contents (see
here) each of our cacaos has different polyphenol readings, too.
They are:
The you have done on cacao is so worth the knowledge especially for the people who eat clean.
Thank you for taking the time to do the test and the cost involved.
It just shows how your product is more superior thank others. It’s a shame though when you go and purchase a hot chocolate, 99% of cafe’s and restaurants only have cocoa 😞