Plot Twist: Your Gut Bacteria Like Chocolate Too

We spend a lot of time talking about feeding ourselves.  Protein. Fiber. Vitamins. Minerals.  Meanwhile, there are trillions of microbes living in our gut quietly wondering what’s for dinner.  And apparently, some of them are pretty interested in cacao.  Which feels like excellent news.

So what does “feeding your gut bacteria” actually mean?

Some parts of the food we eat aren’t fully digested before they reach the colon. Certain fibers and plant compounds make it all the way there, where our gut microbes can get involved.  Those microbes can ferment certain fibers and produce compounds called short-chain fatty acids, including butyrate, which researchers are studying for its role in supporting the intestinal lining, immune function and metabolism. (Nature Reviews Microbiology)

Basically:

You eat. Your gut bacteria eat. And they make some useful stuff in the process.

And cacao?

Cacao naturally contains plant compounds called polyphenols, including flavanols.  Not all of them are absorbed in the small intestine. Some reach the colon, where gut bacteria can break them down into other compounds. 

Research also suggests the relationship may work both ways: cacao polyphenols may influence the types of bacteria growing in the gut. (Review of cocoa and the gut microbiome)  In one human study, people consuming a high-cocoa-flavanol drink for four weeks had increases in bifidobacteria and lactobacilli compared with those drinking a low-flavanol version. (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition)

Now, does that mean chocolate is a probiotic?  Nope.  The research is still developing, and not every study has found the same effects.

So we’re definitely not at:  Eat chocolate. Fix gut.

We’re more at:  There’s a fascinating relationship between cacao and the microbes living inside us — and scientists are still figuring it out.

And then there are the dates.

Our chocolate isn’t sweetened with refined sugar. We use dates.  Dates naturally contain fibre and polyphenols, which makes them interesting from a gut-health perspective too.

In one small human study, eating dates daily for three weeks increased bowel movement frequency and produced some potentially beneficial changes in markers of intestinal health. (British Journal of Nutrition)

Again: not magic.  Not a detox.  Just food doing some surprisingly complicated things once we eat it.

Small choices add up.

Nutrition sometimes feels like one giant pass/fail exam.  Had dessert? Failed.  Didn't eat enough fibre today? Failed.  

That’s not really how we look at food.  If you’re going to have chocolate anyway — and we certainly are — maybe choosing chocolate made with cacao and sweetened with dates is one small swap.  No cleanse.  No perfect diet.  No judging yesterday’s dessert.  Just one slightly different choice today.  And tomorrow, we try again.

Are you date-ing yet? 😉