Could dark chocolate have a blood pressure-lowering effect?

High blood pressureTrusted Source or hypertension is when the force blood exerts on the arteries in the body gets too high.

Essential hypertensionTrusted Source or high blood pressure involves high blood pressure that doesn’t have a known cause. Non-study author Dr. Rigved Tadwalkar, a board certified cardiologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, explained to Medical News Today:

“Essential hypertension is a highly prevalent medical condition characterized by elevated blood pressure levels without an apparent underlying cause. It is by far the most common cause of hypertension globally. Essential hypertension stands out as the predominant contributor to cardiovascular diseases, including coronary artery disease, heart failure, and stroke.”

High blood pressure can be managed through lifestyle changes and certain medications. However, people can often take action to preventTrusted Source high blood pressure from occurring in the first place. In general, eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, and exercising can help.

However, researchers are also looking at how eating specific foods may assist with high blood pressure prevention. Research like this could lead to people making more specific healthy food choices.

Dark chocolate is one food with many potential health benefits that researchers are interested in studying. Non-study author and registered dietitian nutritionist Karen Z. Berg explained to Medical News Today:

“For chocolate to be considered ‘dark chocolate’ it has to contain at least 50% cocoa solids, and many dark chocolate is made up of 70% or even 90% cocoa which leaves a lot less room for other additives like sugar. This is why dark chocolate tends to be more bitter than milk chocolate varieties.”

“Cocoa is rich in flavanols, so the higher the percentage of cocoa in your chocolate, the more health benefits are possible. [D]ark chocolate is also a good source of fiber, iron, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc. It is important to note that to get the most benefits, you want to choose more natural forms of cocoa. It is also important to note that the higher the percentage of cocoa you have, the more caffeine it will contain.”
— Karen Z. Berg

Researchers wanted to understand more about how dark chocolate may help lower the risk for several cardiovascular diseases. One way researchers can look into possible causality as well is to use a technique called Mendelian randomizationTrusted Source.

This method involves looking at genetic differences to provide evidence that a particular intervention has a causal effect and helps eliminate the risk of reverse causation. While not perfect proof, it allows for safety and data collection that isn’t always possible with other studies due to ethical concerns.

Researchers of this study were able to use data from publicly available genome-wide association studies. They looked at dark chocolate intake and risk for several cardiovascular diseases, including essential hypertension, coronary heart disease, heart failure, stroke, blood clots beginning in the veins, and heart attack.

The analysis results were promising for the positives of dark chocolate intake. Researchers found that genetically predicted dark chocolate intake may help lower the risk for essential hypertension. The data further points to a possible causal relationship between dark chocolate intake and decreased risk for essential hypertension.

They also found a possible association between dark chocolate intake and a reduced risk for venous thromboembolismTrusted Source, which is when a blood clot forms in a vein.