This Ancient Ingredient Might Contain the Secret to Healthy Aging

In 1960, the average American could expect to live to about 69. Today? That number has reached almost 79 — an entire extra decade. And for the first time in history, there will be more adults over 65 than children under 18 by 2034, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

While our biological clocks have been turning in our favor over the last several decades, with each passing day, we do still get 24 hours older. So if we want to feel energized enough to make it to all of our kids’ (and grandkids’) baseball games, take part in those local 5K charity walks, or launch that side hustle, it’s crucial to start taking proactive steps that’ll keep us thriving long after retirement.   

“The reality is that we don’t just want to live longer lives, we want to live better lives as we age,” says Catherine Kwik-Uribe, Ph.D., a nutrition expert and vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs and applied science and nutrition at Mars Edge. “We want a population that’s aging and feeling good about aging and their health.”

How can you take your health into your own hands and live the second half of your life to its absolute fullest? Getting a hearty dose of daily movement, eating a well-balanced diet, keeping up with your doctor visits, and maintaining social connections are, of course, key.

But there’s another simple health hack you can make to your daily routine that’s proven to promote heart health and improve memory and cognitive function.

Enter daily cocoa flavanol supplements.

Cocoa flavanol supplements are, you guessed it, made from the ancient superfood cocoa. (Yes, the same ingredient in your favorite chocolate bar – just in healthier, more concentrated form.)

But what exactly are flavanols? They’re plant-based nutrients naturally found in foods like cocoa, apples, grapes, tea, and blueberries. But the flavanols specifically found in cocoa (which are distinct to the cocoa plant) have rich, science-backed health benefits that can help you be the healthiest version of yourself. 

With more than 20 years of scientific research, our friends at CocoaVia™ aim to offer high-quality cocoa flavanol supplements, working with family-owned farms in Indonesia to source premium cocoa beans from which to extract flavanols. CocoaVia is made with a proprietary Cocoapro™ cocoa extract that’s proven to support cardiovascular function, help your brain performance, and improve memory.

A five-year study led by Brigham and Women’s Hospital published earlier this year gathered over 20,000 healthy adults over the age of 60 to find out whether taking 500 milligrams a day of cocoa flavanols (the same level used in most of CocoaVia’s products) had a positive overall effect on heart health.

Results showed there was a 27 percent improvement related to important health outcomes for the participants who were assigned to participate in the cocoa flavanols group, compared to those who did not. And that improvement jumped to 39 percent for participants who confirmed they took the flavanols daily.

“The research shows that adding cocoa flavanols to your diet can greatly benefit your heart and brain,” says Dr. Kwik Uribe. “We see more flexible and responsive arteries, which helps to promote healthy blood flow and the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to the parts of your body where you need them.”

And when you make healthy choices part of your daily routine, those benefits accumulate. “With these supplements, we see more sustained improvements in the cardiovascular system, including supporting blood pressure and cholesterol levels in a normal, healthy range.”

”We know how important a healthy cardiovascular system is to your brain health, so it’s no surprise that cocoa flavanols also help improve cognitive function,” says Dr. Kwik-Uribe. “We’ve done a number of studies looking at people from 35 to 95 years of age. We found that over the course of eight to 12 weeks, there are improvements in cognitive function, like spatial and long-term memory, and word recall.”

The one critical area of the brain cocoa flavanols have been shown to impact is the hippocampus, a region of the brain important to memory and which is particularly sensitive to cognitive decline as we age, explains Dr. Kwik-Uribe. “Declines in brain function, including memory, are typically part of the normal aging process. But there are many things we can do daily, like exercise, meditation, and keeping a healthy diet filled with flavanols, to keep our brain functioning at its best as we age.”

How is taking cocoa as a supplement any different than just nibbling on a chocolate bar or drinking hot cocoa? While you do get some cocoa flavanols into your bloodstream when you eat chocolate, you’d have to consume about 300 calories of the sweet treat a day to reap the same benefits that taking a couple capsules or a scoop of CocoaVia supplement can have.

That’s because, by the time you unravel that chocolate wrapper, the level of cocoa flavanols naturally found in the chocolate bar itself has been dramatically reduced.

“Chocolate is a wonderful treat, but it’s not a health food, even if it contains flavanols,” says Dr. Kwik-Uribe. “If you’re looking to get guaranteed levels of cocoa flavanols that have an impact on your health, adding CocoaVia to your vitamin routine is an easy and convenient way to maintain that consistency.”

Taking daily supplements can be an easy and effective way to supercharge your overall health. “Maintaining and optimizing our health every day is how we can work to not only live longer, but also live better as we age,” says Dr. Kwik-Uribe. “We can’t stop the aging process, but we can take proactive steps to help live the best years of our life as we age, and supplements can absolutely be a complement to that.”

CocoaVia’s Cocoa Flavanol Supplements

For a limited time, you can enjoy an extra 20 percent off in single, bulk, or subscription purchases of CocoaVia. Just use promo code KCM2024 at checkout.*

*This offer is valid until December 31, 2024, on any single, bulk, or subscription order of CocoaVia products sold at cocoavia.com; Limited to one use per e-mail.

The information provided on this site isn’t intended as medical advice, and shouldn’t replace professional medical treatment. Consult your doctor with any serious health concerns.