The results of a University of Illinois study have demonstrated that eating dark chocolate is an effective way to lower cholesterol levels.

“[Eating two] dark chocolate bars a day not only lowered cholesterol, it had the unexpected effect of also lowering systolic blood pressure,” said John Erdman, a U. of I. professor of food science and human nutrition.

The study was published in this month’s Journal of Nutrition.

Erdman attributes the drop in cholesterol numbers (total cholesterol by 2 percent and LDL or “bad” cholesterol by 5.3 percent) to the plant sterols that have been added to the chocolate bar and the drop in blood pressure to the flavanols found in dark chocolate.

Erdman says that some people will assume the study is flawed because of Mars’ funding role.

“I know that it was a double-blinded trial that wasn’t skewed toward a particular result,” said Erdman.. “Moreover, the paper was peer-reviewed and published in the Journal of Nutrition, which ranks in the top 10 percent of all the biological science journals.” Mars has spent millions of dollars studying the biological impact of the flavanols found in cocoa beans and learning how to retain their benefits during the refining process, Erdman said.

Forty-nine persons with slightly elevated cholesterol and normal blood pressure were recruited for the study. Those chosen for the double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study began the American Heart Association’s “Eating Plan for Healthy Americans” (formerly the Step 1 diet) two weeks before the study started; then they were divided into two matched groups.

One source of healthy dark chocolate is Xocai's Dark Chocolate Nuggets and Power Squares.