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Want to Eat Chocolate Every Day For a Year?

Scientists from the University of East Anglia are studying the potential health benefits of dark chocolate, and need 40 female volunteers who would like to eat chocolate every day for a year. The chocolate loving 40 must be post-menopausal and have type 2 diabetes so it can be determined if the flavonoid compounds in chocolate can reduce the risk of heart disease. Dr Peter Curtis, of the UEA's School of Medicine, said, "Our first volunteers are about to return for their final visit to see if the markers of heart health - such as blood pressure and cholesterol levels — have changed. A successful outcome could be the first step in developing new ways to improve the lives of people at increased risk of heart disease."

15 of 158 comments (clear)

  1. slashdot demographics by BigHungryJoe · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I'm sure the post-menopausal, type-2 diabetic woman that regularly reads slashdot appreciates knowing about this study.

    1. Re:slashdot demographics by clone53421 · · Score: 4, Funny

      You'd better not be thinking of the children.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
  2. If there's a more underrepresented demographic... by swillden · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... on slashdot than post-menopausal women, I don't know what it would be.

    --
    Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
  3. Well... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    I bet Chastity Bono is kicking himself right now.

  4. Re:If there's a more underrepresented demographic. by Monkeedude1212 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Pre-Menopausal.

  5. Anonymous Coward by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Informative

    Just FYI: Flavonoids are polycyclic aromatic molecules, capable of absorbing free radicals through their conjugated bonds (i.e. moving the unpaired electron around so that a built-up of charge is not created (which drastically lowers its reactivity (and therefore stops a free radical's harmful effects (like the hydroxyl radical, which is used by fungi to invade the cell walls of wood (which is why flavonoids are being explored as wood preservatives, and why the Osage Orange tree is naturally resistant to fungi (since it has a natural abundance of flavonoids)))))). Flavonoids are good at absorbing the harmful affects of free radicals (unpaired electrons) in the body, and this can be a very good thing :)

    1. Re:Anonymous Coward by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      are you a lisp programmer?

  6. You're doing it wrong by eln · · Score: 4, Funny

    Seriously guys, this is why scientists can't get dates. You have a requirement for female volunteers to come to your lab and eat chocolate...this may be the experiment that actually gets you a woman for once. Then, you screw it all up by requiring that the women be post-menopausal with type 2 diabetes, guaranteeing you're going to get a bunch of fat old chicks. Seriously guys, if you really want to have fun with this study, you need to require that the women be 18-25, physically fit, and sexually attracted to glasses and pocket protectors. You know, for science. Surely you could come up with some sort of sciency rationalizations to justify those requirements.

  7. Re:Chocolate.... type 2 diabetes..... by ShadowRangerRIT · · Score: 4, Informative

    Dark chocolate is relatively low in sugars compared to other forms of chocolate. Many Type 2 diabetes patients can handle sugar, without insulin, in limited quantities. If there are health benefits from the dark chocolate, expending some of your limited sugar intake on dark chocolate may be worth it, particularly if one of the benefits is to mitigate other risks related to diabetes.

    --
    $_ = "wftedskaebjgdpjgidbsmnjgcdwatb"; tr/a-z/oh, turtleneck Phrase Jar!/; print
  8. Purely anecdotal by joeasian · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Jeanne Calment, the oldest person who had ever lived, ate a kilo of chocolate every week.

    More interesting is that she smoked until the age of 117. As with Henry Allingham, who credited cigarettes, whisky and wild, wild women - and a good sense of humour for his longevity.

    I'll be picking up some Lucky Strike and prostitute this evening and do my own study.

  9. Re:If there's a more underrepresented demographic. by Zerth · · Score: 5, Funny

    Bisexual, attractive, nudist 19yo women who care more about her WoW character's latest adventure than shoes, that are looking to move into a basement, has a couple of friends of a similar nature that also need a place to stay, and hopes to trade their domestic skills in place of rent so they can afford the gigabit fiber drop, which they'd also share, but only if you agree to referee their jello-wrestling.

  10. There's a problem here.... by sunderland56 · · Score: 5, Funny

    Finding 40 women willing to eat chocolate daily: easy.

    Finding 40 women that will agree to NOT eat ANY chocolate for a year, as a control: yeah, good luck with that.

  11. Re:If there's a more underrepresented demographic. by Clandestine_Blaze · · Score: 4, Funny

    Women.

  12. Re:If there's a more underrepresented demographic. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    So it's okay to leave off 'attractive' and 'women', then?

  13. Cocoa is not chocolate by Kainaw · · Score: 4, Informative

    The study actually uses extremely bitter cocoa powder, not sweet and tasty chocolate. The study is on the antioxidants in the cocoa powder. When sweetened, the antioxidants are destroyed. So, you have to choke down a nasty bitter powder every morning. Not something most people are willing to do.

    --
    The previous comment is purposely vague and generalized, but all of the facts are completely true.