Why is chocolate considered the most nutrient dense food?

Why is chocolate considered the most nutrient dense food?

Through out the ages, chocolate has been considered the most nutrient dense food there is.  While I teach this - repeatedly people ask what exactly are the nutrients in chocolate.

This list is organized in a few different ways:

1) A full list of the compounds in chocolate in alphabetical order

2 ) Specific Chocolate Bean Chemistry

•       General
•       Minerals
•       Vitamins
•       Amino Acids Unfermented Fermented
•       Unfermented & Fermented Bean Contain
•           Fermented Beans:
•           Unfermented Bean:
•       Pharmacologically Active Components in Cacoa
•          Neurotransmitters
•          Amines
•          Fatty acids
•          Unique lipids
Compounds in Chocolate:

• 3 – alpha – L arabinosidyl-cyanidin
• 3 – beta – D galactosidyl-cyanidin
• 4 – hydroxyl-3 –methoxy – benzoic acid
• 3 – methyloxytyramine
• Acetic-acid (1520-7100 ppm)
• Alanine (10,400 ppm)
• Alkaloids (33,900 ppm)
• Alpha-theosterol
• Amyl-acetate
• Amyl-alcohol
• Amyl-butyrate
• Amylase
• Anandamide
• Arabinose
• Arginine (800+ ppm)
• Ascorbic acid (31 ppm)
• Ascorbic – acid – oxidase
• Asparininase
• Beta – theosterol
• Caffeic – acid
• Caffeine : petiole (51-525 ppm) ; skin (130 – 723 ppm)
• Calcium (800 – 1100 ppm)
• Camposterol
• Carbohydrates 347,000 – 445,000 ppm)
• Catalase
• Catechins (30,000 – 35,000 ppm)
• Chloride (120 ppm)
• Chromium (10x more than whole wheat – highest of any major food)
• Citric acid (4500 – 7500 ppm)
• Copper (24 ppm)
• Coumarin
• Cyanidin – 3 Beta – L - arabinoside
• Cyanidin – 3 – Galactoside
• Cyanidin – glycoside
• Epigallocatechin
• Ergosterol
• Esculetin
• Fat (371,000 – 582,300 ppm)
• Ferulic acid
• Fiber (59,000 – 89,000 ppm)
• Formic acid
• Furfurol
• Glucose (3,000 ppm)
• Glutamic acid (10,200 ppm)
• Glycine (900 ppm)
• Histamine
• Histidine (800 ppm)
• Invertase
• Iron (36 – 37 ppm)
• Iron- oxide (40 ppm)
• Isobutyl acetate
• Isoleucine (5600 ppm)
• L-epicatechin (27,000 ppm)
• Lactic acid
• Leucine
• Leucocyanidins (14,000 – 35,000 ppm)
• Linalool (5 ppm)
• Linoleic acid
• Linolenic acid
• Lipase
• Lysine (800 ppm)
• Lysophophatidylchloine
• Magnesium (primary food source of Mg)
• Mannan
• Manninotriose
• Mannose
• Melibiose
• Meso-inositol
• Methyltetrahydroisoquinoline
• Methyl-heptenone
• N-butylacetate
• N-linoleoylethanaolamine – anandamide reuptake inhibitor
• N- oleolethanolamine – anadamide reuptake inhibitor
• Niacin (17-18 ppm)
• Nicotinamide (21 ppm)
• Nitrogen (22,800 ppm)
• Nonanoic acid
• O-hydroxyphenylacetic acid
• Octoic acid
• Oleic acid (190,000 – 217,000 ppm)
• Oleo – dipalmatin (76,500 – 92,800 ppm)
• Olespalmitostearin
• Oxalic acid (1520 – 5000 ppm)
• P – anisic acid
• P – courmaric acid
• P-hydroxy – benzoic acid
• P-hydroxy – phenylacetic acid
• P-tyramine
• Palmitic acid
• Palmitodiolen
• Pantothenic – acid (Vitamin B5 – 13 ppm)
• Pectin
• Pentose
• Peroxidase
• Phenylacetic acid
• Phenylalanine (5600 ppm)
• Phenylethylamine
• Phosphatidyl-choline (92 – 1328 ppm)
• Phospholipids
• Phosphorus (3600 – 5571 ppm)
• Polyphenols (78,000 – 100,000 ppm)
• Proline (7200 ppm)
• Propionic acid
• Protein (120,000 – 180,000 ppm)
• Proteinase
• Protocatechuic acid
• Purine (30,000 – 40,000 ppm)
• Pyridoxine (Vitamin B6 – 1 ppm)
• Riboflavin (Vitamin B2 – 1 – 4 ppm)
• Salsolinol
• Serine (8,800 ppm)
• Serotonin
• Sitosterol
• Spermidine
• Spermine
• Stachyose
• Starch (60,000 ppm)
• Stearic – acid
• Stearodiolein
• Stigmasterol
• Syringic-acid
• Tannins (75,400 ppm)
• Tartaric – acid
• Telemethylhistamine
• Theobromine (10,000 – 33,500 ppm)
• Theophylline (3,254 – 4,739 ppm) (theophylline is a methyl-xanthine with diurectic & bronchial smooth muscle relaxant properties)
• Thiamine (Vitamin B1 – 1-3 ppm)
• Threonine (1,400 ppm)
• Tocopherol (Beta, Gamma) (Vitamin E forms)
• Trigonelline
• Tryptophan
• Tyramine
• Tyrosine (5,700 ppm)
• Valerianic acid
• Valeric acid
• Valine (5,700 ppm)
• Vanillic acid
• Verbascose
• Verbascotetrose
• Water (36,000 ppm)
• Xylose

Average Bean Chemistry per 100 grms

General

• Calories        456.0
• Fiber                8.6 (albuminous matter ranges 6 – 18 gm)
• Fat                 46.3 (usually between 40-50 grms but as low as 12 gm)
• H20                 3.6 gm
• Protein           12.0 gm

• Total carb 34  (ranges from 1.3 – 7.5 gm)

Minerals

• Ash              3.4 gm
• Calcium       106 mg
• Iron             3.6 mg
• Magnesium
• Phosphorous 537 mg
• Potassium     1.5 gm
• Zinc

Vitamins

• Thiamine                (Vitamin B1: 0.17 – 0.24 mg)
• Riboflavin               (Vitamin B2: 0.14 – 0.41 mg)
• Niacin                     (Vitamin B3: 1.7 mg)
• Nicotinamide           (Vitamin B3: 2.1 mg)
• Pantothenic acid      (Vitamin B5: 1.35mg)
• Pyridoxine              (Vitamin B6: 0.09 mg)
• Ascorbic acid           (Vitamin C: 3.0 mg)

Amino Acids Unfermented Fermented

• Alanine                    1.04 3.61
• Arginine                   0.08 0.03
• Glutamic acid            1.02 1.77
• Glycine                     0.09 0.35
• Histidine                  0.08 0.04
• Isoleucine                0.56 1.68
• Leucine                    0.45 4.75
• Lysine                      0.08 0.56
• Phenylalanine           0.56 3.36
• Proline                     0.72 1.97
• Serine                      0.88 1.99
• Threonine                0.14 0.84
• Tyrosine                  0.57 1.27
• Valine                     0.57 2.60

Unfermented & Fermented Bean Contain

• p-hydroxbenzoic acid
• vanillic acid
• p-coumaric acid
• ferulic acid
• syringic acid

Fermented Beans:

• Protocatechuic
• Phenylacetic
• Phloretic acid
• Esculetin (a lactone)

Unfermented Bean:

Caffeic acid

Pharmacologically Active Components in Cacoa

Neurotransmitters :

• Serotonin 0.62 – 5.82
• Histamine 0.04 – 0.13

Methylxanthines :  (xanthines is purine base building block for DNA – converted to uric acid)

• Theobromine < 1.3
•  Caffeine not detected

Tetrahydroisoquinoline:      (2ndary amine:   used for muscle relaxants

•   Salsolinol High
•  Methyltetrahydroisoquinoline < 0.01

Amines:

• Phenylethylamine             0.02 – 2.20
• Tele-methylhistamine       0.01 – 1.54
• Spermidine                      0.05 – 1.15
• P-tyramine                      0.02 – 0.35
• 3-methyloxytyramine        0.02 – 0.33
• Tryptamine                      0.03 – 0.18

• Spermine                        0.00 – 0.13

Fatty acids:

• Linoleic (Omega 6)              2-4%
• Linolenic (Omega 3)            0-0.3%
• Oleic acid                          30-35%
• Palmitic acids & lower acids 20-30%
• Stearic & higher acids         30-35%

 Unique lipids to Cocoa butter:

• Beta & Gamma tocopherols : Forms of Vitamin E 150 – 250 mg/gram

• Polar lipids: Glycolipids, Phospholipids, Phytosterols

Cocoa beans can be separated into two components:

• solids (low fat) aka cocoa powder, cocoa and cacao
• butter (high fat) aka cocoa butter,
• cacoa liquor : combination of the melted butter and solids
• white chocolate: cocoa butter with sugar & milk solids and salt;
•                        does not contain solids or anti-oxidants or many of the other
•                            nutrients such as: vitamins B1, B2, serotonine, theobromine or             
•                            phenylthylamine.
•                        It is deordorized to eliminate the chocolate scent.
•                        Most white chocolate is simply made from inexpensive hydrogenated
•                            vegetable and animal fats and not derived from cocoa.

References:

Wolfe, David & Shazzie.  Naked Chocolate, Raw Creation Ltd, 2005.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3800293

http://www.chocolate.org/magnesium.html

http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~sgd2z/more/science/biot1.htm