When you’re stressed, few things feel better than indulging in some comfort food. But while most comfort foods aren’t the healthiest choice, there’s good news: adding a cup of minimally processed cocoa or green tea might make a real difference to your health.

“Food choices during stressful periods often worsen, which can influence the impact of stress on vascular health,” explain the authors of a new study. Stress already takes a toll on your body, and unhealthy meals, like those high in fat, can worsen its effects.

However, new research from the University of Birmingham suggests that cocoa, rich in flavanols, could help mitigate the damage.

Flavanols in the Spotlight

Flavanols are natural compounds found in foods like apples, tea, chocolate, and cocoa. Recent studies show they can help regulate blood pressure, improve blood flow to the brain, and protect cardiovascular health. Now, this research extends flavanols’ benefits to stress-induced vascular impairments.

Participants consumed a high-fat meal—two butter croissants, cheddar cheese, and whole milk—alongside either high-flavanol (150 mg epicatechin) or low-flavanol (<6 mg epicatechin) cocoa. After 1.5 hours, they completed an acute stress test involving mental arithmetic under time pressure and social evaluation.

Researchers measured key markers of vascular function, including brachial flow-mediated dilatation (FMD), before and after the stress test. The main noticed effects were:

• Endothelial Function: Participants consuming high-flavanol cocoa maintained FMD levels after stress, while those with low-flavanol cocoa experienced a decline.
• Recovery Time: FMD improved 90 minutes post-stress with high-flavanol cocoa, suggesting enhanced vascular recovery.
• Cerebral Oxygenation: Surprisingly, flavanol content did not significantly affect brain oxygenation during stress, suggesting its primary benefit is peripheral vascular protection.

Why This Matters

Cardiovascular disease stands as the leading cause of death globally, claiming millions of lives annually, and its roots often lie in two interconnected factors: stress and diet. Chronic stress initiates a cascade of harmful processes in the body, including the release of stress hormones like cortisol, which trigger inflammation and oxidative stress. These conditions damage the delicate lining of blood vessels (called endothelial), impairing their ability to function effectively and maintain healthy circulation. Adding to this burden, high-fat meals further impair endothelial function, leading to reduced vascular elasticity and increased risk of arterial blockages. Together, stress and unhealthy dietary choices create a dangerous synergy.

Cocoa flavanols offer a promising dietary solution to counteract these harmful effects. By incorporating minimally processed, high-flavanol cocoa into a balanced diet, you may protect your cardiovascular system from the compounded effects of stress and unhealthy meals. It’s a simple yet effective tool to support heart health.

However, this shouldn’t be taken as “hot cocoa and chocolate are always good for you.” These foods contain a number of other substances that can have different effects on your body. In particular, it’s important to pay attention to sugar, which is known to exacerbate the effects of stress.

Furthermore, not all cocoa products are created equal. The flavanol content in cocoa varies significantly depending on processing methods. Alkalized cocoa powders, often used in commercial chocolate, have lower flavanol levels than minimally processed options like natural cocoa.

So if you’re looking to counteract some of the effects of a fatty comfort meal, minimally processed cocoa with no sugar is a good bet. Bottoms up!

The study Cocoa flavanols rescue stress-induced declines in endothelial function after a high-fat meal, but do not affect cerebral oxygenation during stress in young, healthy adults was published in the journal Food Function.