A recent study published in the journal Nature Neuroscience indicated that when volunteers ages 50 to 69 regularly consumed cocoa drinks rich in flavanols, their memories improved significantly compared with those who consumed drinks low in flavanols.

In fact, the volunteers who drank flavanol-rich drinks for a three-month period performed as well on their memory tests as people 20 years younger.

Flavanols are antioxidants found in cocoa that have been shown to benefit memory and heart health in laboratory animals.

A particular area of their brain’s hippocampus memory center, the dentate gyrus, showed increased activity. Increased activity in the dentate gyrus has been linked to the improvement in a person’s ability to recall faces and locations.

Before you stock the house with cartons of your favorite chocolate, keep in mind that much lower concentrations of flavanol are present in many commercial candies and cakes.

By eating large quantities of these foods, the potential memory-enhancing benefits of flavanol would be offset by the negative effects of increased calories and unhealthy fats.