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The Theobroma cacao plant is a small tree typically 20-30 feet tall native to South America. The seeds from this plant were used as a form of currency in Aztec society (1150-1520). The Aztecs classified all of the plants in their realm and considered the seeds of the cacao tree to be extremely valuable. At times, no person in the whole Aztec kingdom was allowed to use the seeds, except the King and his closest relatives and acquaintances. This is why the botanical name for Theobroma cacao translates as ‘food of the gods’.
This herb is now cultivated in Brazil, Costa Rica, Guayaquil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru, Guatemala, Trinidad, and most of the other West India Islands as well as Africa, Ceylon, Samoa and regions with similar climates.
Reported to be antiseptic, diuretic, ecbolic, emmenagogue, and parasiticide, cocao is a folk remedy for alopecia, burns, cough, dry lips, eyes, fever, listlessness, malaria, nephrosis, parturition, pregnancy, rheumatism, snakebite, and wounds (Duke and Wain, 1981). Cocoa butter is even used to eliminate facial wrinkles (Leung, 1980).
The latest developments in cocao/chocolate research, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), include two clinical studies which indicate the flavanols found in Cocoa are beneficial to vascular health. Chocolate contains chemicals similar to those found in Red Wine, Grape Seed, and Green Tea that can aid blood circulation, reduce blood pressure, and provide other benefits. Recent studies confirm flavonoids, such as those in cocoa, decrease oxidation of LDL cholesterol, decrease the body's inflammatory immune responses, facilitate the dilation of arteries, and inhibit the aggregation of platelets in the bloodstream.
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