Bulletproof® Upgraded™ cacao butter is taken from Bulletproof® cacao beans. If you’re worried about losing weight and feel that you shouldn’t eat chocolate or chocolate butter, think again. Chocolate and cacao butter contain a number of molecules that have many health benefits. Bulletproof® Upgraded™ cacao butter is a high quality chocolate product that offers healthy fats such as oleic acid, stearic acid, and palmitic acid that provides a wonderful chocolate cacao butter flavor that can be added to a number of foods.
Upgraded™ chocolate is different from other chocolate products in the way the cacao bean is grown and processed. One of the problems with growing cacao beans is that they become contaminated with molds. These molds produce toxins known as mycotoxins. Upgraded™ chocolate comes from rare, wild, hand-harvested Central American cacao beans. These beans are taken from one region only and the cacao trees are old heritage species that are grown at high altitude. The particular species of tree is of the Arriba family where some of the trees are seven decades old. The high altitude is important for keeping fungal growth to a minimum which lowers toxin levels. The trees are watered with high mountain stream water that is pollution-free. Well trained craftsmen pick the ripe cacao pods and take them directly to the processing plant.
Chocolate is not edible raw, so it has to be processed. Some companies use alkalization, spray/gas drying, and harsh solvents to process cacao beans. However, Bulletproof® Upgraded™ chocolate uses a unique fermentation process that provides for less exposure to mycotoxins and at the same time retains more health-benefiting components and flavor. High altitude, single source beans, and short fermentation procedure lower the probability of mycotoxin contamination. Flavors and oils are well maintained due to a quick sun-drying in mountain air. The beans are then ground into a fine powder by equipment that is used solely for this purpose. The beans are 100 percent organic, wild, and kosher. This process preserves eighty-six percent more antioxidants and oils than other procedures.
Chocolate and Mycotoxins
Most brands of chocolate contain fair amounts of mycotoxins or what is known as fungal toxins. One study done on Brazilian chocolate reported that 98 percent of powdered, bitter, dark, milk, and white forms were contaminated with ochratoxin A. It turns out that powdered, bitter, and dark chocolate contain high concentrations of fungal toxins than other forms of chocolate while powdered forms have the highest of all. They are particularly high in aflatoxin and ochratoxin. Cacao trees are often infected with fungi/molds particularly those that are grown in humid climates. Roasting these molded chocolate beans kills the fungi however, it doesn’t destroy all the toxins that the fungi produced. See below for the amounts of ochratoxinA and aflatoxin found in different forms of chocolate.
Amount of Ochratoxin A in Different Chocolate Forms
- Powdered Chocolate has 0.39 μg/Kg
- Bitter Chocolate has 0.34 μg/Kg
- Dark Chocolate has 0.31 μg/Kg
Amount of Alfatoxin in Different Chocolate Forms
- Powdered Chocolate has 0.53 μg/Kg
- Bitter Chocolate has 0.66 μg/Kg
- Dark Chocolate has 0.43 μg/Kg
If you’re not familiar, μg stands for micrograms (10-6 grams) and ng stands for nanograms (10-9 grams).
According to the USDA, foods should not contains more than 20 parts per billion of aflatoxin. A lower limit of ochratoxin is set at 0.2 ng/kg of body weight per day. The upper limit is set around 4 to 5 ng/kg of body weight per day. Keep in mind that there are other foods that contain these mycotoxins as well that more often than not are ingested on a daily basis. Mycotoxins are also found in our homes, workplace, and the air we breathe.
Bulletproof® has done its best to keep these fungal toxins to a minimum. Their Upgraded™ chocolate powder and Upgraded™ cacao butter are grown and processed under optimal conditions to provide the very best product possible.
Upgraded™ Cacao Butter
Upgraded™ cacao butter is taken from the same trees that Upgraded™ chocolate powder is. Upgraded™ cacao butter is not heated during the isolation process making it a completely raw food. This cacao butter makes a fantastic companion to Upgraded™ chocolate powder. Upgraded™ cacao butter has a wonderful flavor with a number of healthy fats. Sixty-one percent of cacao fats are saturated while 4 percent are of the polyunsaturated type. Even so, these polyunsaturated fats are protected by the antioxidants found in chocolate. Thirty-five percent of fats are of the monounsaturated kind that are commonly found in olives and avocados. The fatty acids include oleic, stearic, and palmitic acids.
One third of the fats in cacao butter are in the form of stearic acid. Stearic acid lowers the risk of excessive clotting. It raises good cholesterol levels as seen in increases in high-density liposomes (HDL). Another third of the fats come from oleic acid. Oleic acid is the most common monounsaturated fatty acid that is used in cell membranes. Cell membranes have to replace their fatty acids periodically quite often due to oxidative damage (they become free-radicals) and become abnormally folded and fail to function properly. Oleic acid helps to maintain membrane structure and function. Oleic has also been demonstrated to lower blood pressure. The last third of the fats come from palmitic acid another saturated fat. Palmitic acid is naturally found in skin and is found in a number of cosmetics. This acid has been found to alter brain function in terms of insulin secretion. It is also known to suppress the natural appetite-suppressing signals from leptin and insulin. Leptin and insulin are hormones that are involved in weight regulation. Upgraded™ cacao butter is also a good source of vitamin K.
Upgraded™ Cacao Butter Uses
Upgraded™ cacao butter makes a nice addition to Upgraded™ chocolate powder. This mix is referred to as Upgraded™ chocolate. From this mixture you can make chocolate bars and/or fudge. If you want to create a creamy flavor it is recommended to add Upgraded™ vanilla. Upgraded™ cacao butter and/or Upgraded™ chocolate powder can also be added to Upgraded™ coffee.
Suggested Reading:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/28/chocolate-health-benefits_n_1383372.html
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/heart/prevention/nutrition/chocolate.aspx
http://www.allchocolate.com/health/basics/
http://www.webmd.com/diet/news/20120329/health-benefits-chocolate-becoming-credible
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/healthy-chocolate/AN02060
http://www.livescience.com/6111-sweet-science-health-benefits-chocolate.html
http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2011/4/5/chocolate-health-dark-benefits/
http://healthpsych.psy.vanderbilt.edu/2009/ChocolateHeart.htm
http://www.naturalnews.com/cocoa.html
Cocoa and Cardiovascular Health