Long branded as a dieter's foe, chocolate may have been given an unduly bad rap.
That's what the latest study to balance the health benefits and harms of the sweet treat shows: sure, chocolate is loaded with calories, but its fattening potential may be more than offset by its positive metabolic effects--which also improve heart health, cholesterol levels, glucose control and blood pressure.
In the study, involving more than 1,000 men and women who reported their chocolate consumption over a week and had their body mass index (BMI) measured, those who ate chocolate more frequently had lower BMIs than those who...