Over 100,000 people in the UK are affected by multiple sclerosis (MS), a chronic disease that affects the central nervous system, causing a wide range of symptoms which can include problems with vision, movement, sensation and balance.
MS is a lifelong condition that can cause serious disability although it can also occasionally be mild. Fatigue is the most frequently reported symptom of MS with nine out of 10 patients suffering from tiredness. Fatigue is often present even when neurological disability is still low, for example at the early stage of the disease, and significantly impacts patients’ quality of life.
A new study from the Oxford Brooke's Centre for Nutrition and Health in the UK suggests that consuming high flavanol cacao on a regular basis could help reduce fatigue in MS sufferers.
The Food of the Gods: how cacao can help
Made from gently roasted cocoa beans, cacao is the purest, most natural form of chocolate. Known as "The Food of The Gods" to the Ancient Mayans, cacao is renowned all over the world for its delicious flavour and exceptional health benefits.
Aduna Super Cacao Powder is made from high flavanol cocoa beans. Flavanols are a plant-based antioxidant which studies show support a wide range of benefits from cardiovascular to cognitive health.
The feasibility trial, which used Aduna's high flavanol Super Cacao powder, looked at flavonoid enriched cocoa for the treatment of MS related fatigue and showed promising results that encourage the conduction of a phase III clinical trial.
Researchers tested the use of flavanol-rich cacao on 40 recently diagnosed adult MS patients, who drank a cup of cocoa every day for six weeks. Participants were either given a flavanol-rich chocolate drink made with Aduna Super Cacao Powder or a low-flavanol version.
Dr. Shelly Coe from Oxford Brookes Centre for Nutrition and Health who carried out the research said: “The participants with MS that drank a high flavanol cacao drink daily for six weeks experienced a 45% improvement in fatigue according to their own ratings and an 80% boost in walking speed according to results. While more studies are needed, the results indicate that consuming high flavanol cacao may show potential for helping to reduce tiredness and fatigue in the body.”
Aduna Super Cacao health benefits
Thanks to its high flavanol content, Aduna Super Cacao is the only cacao powder in the UK that carries a health claim approved by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on the packaging.
Consuming 20g of Aduna's high flavanol Super Cacao a day (4-5 teaspoons/ 200mg cocoa flavanols) has been scientifically proven, and verified by EFSA, to support healthy blood flow, contributing to cardiovascular health and blood circulation. Healthy blood flow is vital for overall health, ensuring a good supply of nutrients, oxygen and water to organs and cells.
In addition to its high flavanol content, Aduna Super Cacao is also a source of:
- protein (22%), important for growth and maintenance of muscle mass
- fibre (33%) essential for a healthy gut
- potassium (15% NRV), supporting muscular and neurological function
- magnesium (26% NRV), needed for energy metabolism, normal psychological function and healthy bones and teeth
- antioxidants - with an ORAC value of 97,428 Umol TE per 100g, Aduna Super Cacao has 80x the antioxidants of green tea, helping reverse the damage of free radicals and signs of ageing
- serotonin and endorphins - known to promote feelings of happiness in the body
Super Cacao is 100% natural, vegan and has no additives, preservatives or added sugar.
How to use Aduna Super Cacao
Aduna Super Cacao Powder has a delicious luxuriously rich, chocolatey flavour - like dark chocolate.
Try it as a drink by mixing a few teaspoons with hot or cold milk and sweetening to taste. Delicious sprinkled on breakfasts, yoghurt, overnight oats, cappuccinos or blended into smoothies. You can also use cacao as a nutritious alternative to cocoa powder in your favourite baking recipes.
For more inspiration, check out our recipes.
Super Cacao: sustainably sourced
Aduna is a certified social enterprise on a mission to create sustainable incomes for small-scale producers in Africa.
Aduna works with a smallholder producer in Ghana to source and process the Ghanaian cacao powder in its Super Cacao blend, ensuring the additional incomes from processing the beans remains in the country.
Read more about our mission to support rural African households.
Shop the range
Aduna Super-Cacao is available as a 100g tub (from £5.99) or a 275g resealable pouch (from £9.99). Shop online and enjoy free delivery on orders over £35 in the UK and £75 international.
Sources
A randomised double-blind placebo-controlled feasibility trial of flavonoid-rich cocoa for fatigue in people with relapsing and remitting multiple sclerosis. S Coe et al. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry 2019; https://jnnp.bmj.com/content/early/2019/01/31/jnnp-2018-319496
European Food Safety Authority Journal 2012;10(7):2809; "EFSA Scientific Opinion on the substantiation of a health claim related to cocoa flavanols and maintenance of normal endothelium-dependent vasodilation pursuant to Article 13 (5) of Regulation 9EC) NO 1924/2006"
The neuroprotective effects of cocoa flavanol and its influence on cognitive performance. Astrid Nehlig. March 2013; Benefits in Cognitive Function, Blood Pressure, and Insulin Resistance Through Cocoa Flavanol Consumption in Elderly Subjects With Mild Cognitive Impairment. The Cocoa, Cognition, and Aging (CoCoA) Study. August 2012.
