We think of ‘indulgences’ as extravagant, gluttonous, unrequired… but that’s not necessarily true.
Studies show that indulging yourself as little as once per week can have huge health benefits – mood, irritability, binge eating resistance, and the ability to complete tasks.
The benefits of dark chocolate and red wine can be significant, and it all starts with their high level of polyphenol antioxidants.
“Antioxidants are really like little bodyguards inside your body that protect your cells from disease” –Cynthia Sass, MPH, MA, RD, CSSD, New York Times bestselling author and sports nutrition consultant for the Yankees
One glass (150mL/5oz) of red wine contains the same amount of flavonoid polyphenols as four squares (40g/1.4oz) of 70% chocolate. Other foods with a high flavonoid content include teas and herbs, onions, berries (including the super-fruit acai), bananas, citrus fruits, and Ginkgo biloba.
Plants, containing flavonoids, have been traditionally used in Eastern medicine for thousands of years. Western medicine is recently discovering the beneficial effects of flavonoids, but the good news is you can easily (and deliciously) incorporate them into your diet!