Cocoa Butter And It's Health Benefits

The name cocoa butter has become a house hold name. it pops up more and more in health food stores as well as in recipes for yummy desserts. It is all part of the growing interest in this beloved plant we call chocolate. It has been used for ages as the solid to make white chocolate, as well as other chocolate bars. We also notice it as one ingredient in a good number of moisturizers. Its good to know that our favorite food and cosmetic ingredient has great health benefits.


Cocoa butter, also called theobroma oil, is a pale-yellow, edible vegetable fat extracted from the cocoa bean. It is used to make chocolate, as well as some ointments, toiletries, and pharmaceuticals. Cocoa butter is obtained from whole cocoa beans, which are fermented, roasted, and then separated from their hulls. About 54–58% of the residue is cocoa butter. Chocolate liquor is pressed to separate the cocoa butter from the cocoa solids.The Broma process is used to extract cocoa butter from ground cacao beans. Cocoa butter is usually deodorized to remove its strong and undesirable taste.

Benefits of cocoa butter  

Cocoa butter has many health benefits internally and externally.

1. Skin benefits

• A lot of skin products tend to have cocoa butter in them. Because it is rich in fat and easily absorbed due to the fact that it melts at body temperature, it happens to be great for skin moisturizing and softening.

• It has a light smell of chocolate to it, which makes it a favorite among skin care moisturizers and lotions. This soothing aroma can even help people relax more and alleviate more stress during massages. 

• Cocoa butter possesses powerful antioxidant properties, which can protect your skin from dangerous factors in the environment and give your skin care products a much longer shelf life. In fact, lotions and moisturizers that use this product can last up to five years. 

• Cocoa butter can also prevent and treat stretch marks and keep your skin hydrated and protected at all times. 

• If you need help treating skin disorders such as dermatitis and eczema, cocoa butter can help with those, too. 

Health benefits

• High magnesium levels in high quality chocolate containing cocoa butter can prevent the progesterone drop that leads to PMS.

• Cocoa butter can lower LDL (bad cholesterol) levels. Also, cocoa butter contains oleic acid, an unsaturated fat that raises HDL (good cholesterol) levels.

• Cocoa butter contains a chemical called Pentamer which can help protect against cancer.

• Cocoa butter is high in antioxidants in the form of flavonoids that protect the heart and arteries from damage by free radicals.

• Cocoa butter in chocolate raises endorphin and serotonin levels in the brain which can improve your mood. 

• When it comes to pharmaceutical products, cocoa butter can help relieve arthritis and prevent arthritis.

That is quite a lot of  benefits packed in one ingredient. So, now that you know about the skin and health benefits of cocoa butter , you can start looking for various cosmetic products with cocoa butter in them.



References

• vegetarian.about.com 
• http://en.wikipedia.org 
• http://www.thoughtsonchristianliving.org/Health 
• http://voices.yahoo.com