Dec. 5, 2024 – Attention, holiday candy shoppers. 

When facing the choice between milk and dark chocolate, yet another study suggests that reaching for dark chocolate is likely the more beneficial option.

People who ate at least five servings of dark chocolate per week had a 21% reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes, compared to people who rarely or never ate chocolate, according to a new study. Eating five servings of either kind of chocolate weekly was associated with a 10% reduced type 2 diabetes risk, compared to eating none.

“Our findings suggest that not all chocolate is created equal,” said lead author Binkai Liu, a doctoral student in the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, in a news release. “For anyone who loves chocolate, this is a reminder that making small choices, like choosing dark chocolate over milk chocolate, can make a positive difference to their health.”

The researchers noted that past research about dark chocolate consumption and type 2 diabetes risk has had inconsistent findings on whether or not it is beneficial, and few of those studies examined differences in milk chocolate vs. dark chocolate intake.

The new findings were published in the British medical journal BMJ and analyzed data from 192,208 nurses and health care workers who regularly reported their dietary habits via a survey and didn’t have type 2 diabetes at the outset. People who had heart problems were also excluded, as were people with cancer.

Study participants were asked how often they ate “one chocolate bar or pack,” and the researchers reported that they calculated each serving as being 1 ounce, calling it a standard food portion. One ounce is the equivalent of a small piece of chocolate.

Unsurprisingly, the more chocolate people ate, the greater likelihood of weight gain, although the researchers said this was most pronounced among milk chocolate eaters.

“We were surprised by the clear split between dark and milk chocolate’s impact on diabetes risk and long-term weight management,” said co-author Qi Sun, ScD, MD, a Harvard associate professor of medicine, nutrition, and epidemiology. “Even though dark and milk chocolate have similar levels of calories and saturated fat, it appears that the rich polyphenols in dark chocolate might offset the effects of saturated fat and sugar on weight gain and diabetes. It’s an intriguing difference that’s worth exploring more.”

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SOURCES:

The BMJ: “Chocolate intake and risk of type 2 diabetes: prospective cohort studies.”

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health: “Eating dark chocolate linked with reduced risk of type 2 diabetes.”

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