This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences
Stubbe H. The Indian Nectar, or a discourse concerning Chocolata. London: J. C. for Andrew Crook at the Sign of the Green Dragon in St. Paul’s Church-yard; 1662.
Dillinger TL, Barriga P, Escarcega S, et al. Food of the gods: cure for humanity? A cultural history of the medicinal and ritual use of chocolate. J Nutr. 2000;130(8S Suppl):2057S–72.
Waterhouse AL, Shirley JR, Donovan JL. Antioxidants in chocolate. Lancet. 1996;348(9030):834.
Galleano M, Oteiza PI, Fraga CG. Cocoa, chocolate, and cardiovascular disease. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2009;54(6):483–90.
Visioli F, Bernaert H, Corti R, et al. Chocolate, lifestyle, and health. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2009;49(4):299–312.
Vinson JA, Proch J, Bose P, et al. Chocolate is a powerful ex vivo and in vivo antioxidant, an antiatherosclerotic agent in an animal model, and a significant contributor to antioxidants in the European and American Diets. J Agric Food Chem. 2006;54(21):8071–6.
Katz DL, Doughty K, Ali A. Cocoa and chocolate in human health and disease. Antioxid Redox Signal. 2011;15:2779–881.
Fraga CG. Cocoa, diabetes, and hypertension: should we eat more chocolate? Am J Clin Nutr. 2005;81(3):541–2.
Engler MB, Engler MM. The emerging role of flavonoid-rich cocoa and chocolate in cardiovascular health and disease. Nutr Rev. 2006;64(3):109–18.
Alspach G. The truth is often bittersweet …: chocolate does a heart good. Crit Care Nurse. 2007;27(1):11–5.
Bisson JF, Nejdi A, Rozan P, et al. Effects of long-term administration of a cocoa polyphenolic extract (Acticoa powder) on cognitive performances in aged rats. Br J Nutr. 2008;100(1):94–101.
Fisher ND, Hollenberg NK. Aging and vascular responses to flavanol-rich cocoa. J Hypertens. 2006;24(8):1575–80.
Fisher NDL, Sorond FA, Hollenberg NK. Cocoa flavanols and brain perfusion. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2006;47(Suppl 2):S210–4.
Breteler MM. Vascular risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease: an epidemiologic perspective. Neurobiol Aging. 2000;21(2):153–60.
Kokmen E, Whisnant JP, O’Fallon WM, et al. Dementia after ischemic stroke: a population-based study in Rochester, Minnesota (1960–1984). Neurology. 1996;46(1):154–9.
Kalaria RN. The role of cerebral ischemia in Alzheimer’s disease. Neurobiol Aging. 2000;21(2):321–30.
Kalaria RN, Ballard C. Overlap between pathology of Alzheimer disease and vascular dementia. Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord. 1999;13(Suppl 3):S115–23.
Joseph JA, Shukitt-Hale B, Casadesus G. Reversing the deleterious effects of aging on neuronal communication and behavior: beneficial properties of fruit polyphenolic compounds. Am J Clin Nutr. 2005;81(1 Suppl):313S–6.
Brown LA, Riby LM, Reay JL. Supplementing cognitive aging: a selective review of the effects of ginkgo biloba and a number of everyday nutritional substances. Exp Aging Res. 2010;36(1):105–22.
Rozan P, Hidalgo S, Nejdi A, et al. Preventive antioxidant effects of cocoa polyphenolic extract on free radical production and cognitive performances after heat exposure in Wistar rats. J Food Sci. 2007;72(3):S203–6.
Sorond FA, Lipsitz LA, Hollenberg NK, et al. Cerebral blood flow response to flavanol-rich cocoa in healthy elderly humans. Neuropsychiatr Dis Treat. 2008;4(2):433–40.
Francis ST, Head K, Morris PG, et al. The effect of flavanol-rich cocoa on the fMRI response to a cognitive task in healthy young people. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2006;47(Suppl 2):S215–20.
Crews Jr WD, Harrison DW, Wright JW. A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial of the effects of dark chocolate and cocoa on variables associated with neuropsychological functioning and cardiovascular health: clinical findings from a sample of healthy, cognitively intact older adults. Am J Clin Nutr. 2008;87(4):872–80.
Scholey AB, French SJ, Morris PJ, et al. Consumption of cocoa flavanols results in acute improvements in mood and cognitive performance during sustained mental effort. J Psychopharmacol. 2010;24(10):1505–14.
Field DT, Williams CM, Butler LT. Consumption of cocoa flavanols results in an acute improvement in visual and cognitive functions. Physiol Behav. 2011;103(3–4):255–60.
Nurk E, Refsum H, Drevon CA, et al. Intake of flavonoid-rich wine, tea, and chocolate by elderly men and women is associated with better cognitive test performance. J Nutr. 2009;139(1):120–7.
Scalbert A, Williamson G. Dietary intake and bioavailability of polyphenols. J Nutr. 2000;130(8S Suppl):2073S–85.
Hollenberg NK. Vascular action of cocoa flavanols in humans: the roots of the story. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol. 2006;47(Suppl 2):S99–102.
Kris-Etherton PM, Keen CL. Evidence that the antioxidant flavonoids in tea and cocoa are beneficial for cardiovascular health. Curr Opin Lipidol. 2002;13(1):41–9.
Smit HJ, Gaffan EA, Rogers PJ. Methylxanthines are the psycho-pharmacologically active constituents of chocolate. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2004;176(3–4):412–9.
Cho ES, Lee KW, Lee HJ. Cocoa procyanidins protect PC12 cells from hydrogen-peroxide-induced apoptosis by inhibiting activation of p38 MAPK and JNK. Mutat Res. 2008;640(1–2):123–30.
Poli G, Schaur RJ. 4-Hydroxynonenal in the pathomechanisms of oxidative stress. IUBMB Life. 2000;50(4–5): 315–21.
Cho ES, Jang YJ, Kang NJ, et al. Cocoa procyanidins attenuate 4-hydroxynonenal-induced apoptosis of PC12 cells by directly inhibiting mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 4 activity. Free Radic Biol Med. 2009;46(10):1319–27.
Ramiro-Puig E, Casadesus G, Lee HG, et al. Neuroprotective effect of cocoa flavonoids on in vitro oxidative stress. Eur J Nutr. 2009;48(1):54–61.
Heo HJ, Lee CY. Epicatechin and catechin in cocoa inhibit amyloid beta protein induced apoptosis. J Agric Food Chem. 2005;53(5):1445–8.
Hetherington MM, MacDiarmid JI. “Chocolate addiction”: a preliminary study of its description and its relationship to problem eating. Appetite. 1993;21(3):233–46.
Drewnowski A, Krahn DD, Demitrack MA, et al. Taste responses and preferences for sweet high-fat foods: evidence for opioid involvement. Physiol Behav. 1992;51(2):371–9.
Tiggemann M, Kemps E, Parnell J. The selective impact of chocolate craving on visuospatial working memory. Appetite. 2010;55(1):44–8.
Hollenberg NK, Martinez G, McCullough M, et al. Aging, acculturation, salt intake, and hypertension in the Kuna of Panama. Hypertension. 1997;29(1 Pt 2):171–6.
McCarty MF. Toward prevention of Alzheimer’s disease – potential nutraceutical strategies for suppressing the production of amyloid beta peptides. Med Hypotheses. 2006;67(4):682–97.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Nurk, E. (2013). Flavonoid-Rich Chocolate and Cognitive Improvement. In: Watson, R., Preedy, V., Zibadi, S. (eds) Chocolate in Health and Nutrition. Nutrition and Health, vol 7. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-803-0_28
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61779-803-0_28
Published:
Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ
Print ISBN: 978-1-61779-802-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-61779-803-0
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)