About Cacao
Cacao is derived from the Theobroma cacao, a small evergreen tree native to Mesoamerica.
The organic Dominican cacao we source contains no additives, sugar, other flavorings or dyes.
Cacao is a less processed version of cocoa, roasted at a lower temperature to retain its natural fats and high nutrient value.
Cacao boasts a variety of potential health benefits including blood sugar regulation, improved circulation, and clarification of the digestive and endocrine systems. It contains stress-relieving magnesium, immune boosting antioxidants and blood enriching iron, to name a few. These compounds and minerals work together to enhance metabolism, brain, and heart functioning.
Cacao can improve mood, stimulate blood flow, relieve stress and abdominal discomfort, stimulate the heart and nourish the nerve endings, and clarify the glandular system.
Cacao is known as a heart opening and stimulating mood booster owing to its neurotransmitter anandamide, the same hormone produced whilst falling in love, it’s name anada meaning joy, bliss and delight in Sanskrit.
Our Turmeric Chocolate Chai blends cacao, coconut sugar, and the Caffeine free Turmeric Chai blend for optimal nutrients and rich flavor.
Cacao contains: Magnesium, Potassium, Iron, Antioxidants, and Theobromine which helps more efficiently deliver additional herbal properties of Jahmu throughout the body.
Organic Raw Cacao makes up more than 35% of our Turmeric Chocolate Chai Mix.
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Further reading:
The neuroprotective effects of cocoa flavanol and its influence on cognitive performance
This article purports nearly a dozen health effects of cacao but please note we have not yet vetted this article and so we encourage you to conduct your own research and due diligence.
A meta-analysis of 14 studies including over half a million participants found that: “chocolate intake is associated with decreased risks of chronic heart disease (CHD), stroke, and diabetes. Consuming chocolate in moderation (less than 6 servings/week) may be optimal for preventing these disorders.” Read the study in the National Library of Medicine.
A very recent test tube study conducted at North Carolina State University seems to indicate that certain nutrients in cacao and green tea may inhibit replication of the coronavirus:
“Green tea, dark chocolate and cacao are rich in flavan-3-ol gallates and dimeric PAs. To understand whether these plant products could inhibit the Mpro activity of SARS-Cov-2, we extracted flavan-3-ol gallates and dimeric PAs from the five types of materials and then completed in vitro assays.”…”Cacao and dark chocolate extracts were shown to inhibit the Mpro activity when the extract concentrations tested were higher than 10 μg/ml and their IC50 values were 153.3 ± 47.3 μg/ml and 256.39 ± 66.3 μg/ml, respectively (Figures 7D,E). Given that ECG, EGCG, and PB2 were characterized to be main plant flavonoids in the cacao and dark chocolate extracts, the inhibitory activity of these two extracts resulted from these compounds. We further compared the inhibitory activity of all extracts at 100 μg/ml tested, the results showed that the extracts of green tea and two muscadine grapes completely inhibited the Mpro activity and the extracts of cacao and dark chocolate reduced the Mpro activity by 40–50%”
This research involved molecular simulation on a computer followed by an “in vitro” or test tube experiment and was not tested on humans or animals and should be consider a preliminary finding.