Chocolate is actually healthy for you (sort of)

Eating a small amount of dark chocolate per week can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, new research suggests.

Experts, who combined data from three long-term studies of nurses and healthcare workers in the US, say that people who ate three squares of dark chocolate five times a week were found to be 21% less likely to develop the condition.

The research, which has been published in the BMJ, also looked at the effect of different types of chocolate consumed. Dark, white and milk chocolate all have varying levels of sugar, cocoa and milk, which, according to the study, "may influence the association with risk of type 2 diabetes."

Binkai Liu, a doctoral student at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said in a statement on Wednesday that "our findings suggest that not all chocolate is created equal."

He continued: "For anyone who loves chocolate, this is a reminder that making small choices, like choosing dark chocolate over milk chocolate, can make a positive difference to their health."

While milk chocolate has not been associated with reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes, those who ate at least five sweet servings of any chocolate each week, however, saw their risk lowered by 10% compared to people who rarely or never ate chocolate.

Consisting of data from 192,028 people over an average monitoring period of 25 years, food questionnaires were taken every four years to examine the link between chocolate consumption and type 2 diabetes.

Of those who were analysed by chocolate type, 4,771 developed type 2 diabetes.

In the UK, it is estimated that around 4.4million people live with diabetes – 90% of whom have type 2, which equates to over 3.2million. There are many causes of this particular strand of the disease, including ethnicity, weight, age and family history, as well as socio-economic reasons like education, income and access to healthy foods.

Each year, the NHS spends around £10billion on diabetes – around 10% of its overall budget.

Reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes through diet

• Increase your intake of higher fibre carbs, like pulses and lentils, fruit and vegetables and wholegrain pasta and rice

• Avoid processed meats like bacon, ham and sausages, and opt for protein such as chicken and turkey, pulses, eggs and fish

• Eat lots of fruit and vegetables, particularly grapes, berries, apples and leafy greens

• Reduce your alcohol intake and avoid binge drinking

• Include healthier fats in your diet, such as avocados, sunflower oil, seeds and unsalted nuts

Read more about diabetes

6 Sneaky Early Warning Signs of Diabetes That Often Go Unnoticed (Women's World, 6-min read)

Global diabetes rate has doubled in last 30 years: study (AFP, 2-min read)

4 simple lifestyle changes that can prevent type 2 diabetes (Yahoo Life UK, 4-min read)