Types of Chocolate - What Are the Differences and Which Ones Are the Healthiest?

The types of chocolate we know are all products of a complicated refining process that begins with the bean pods of the cacao (ka-KOW) tree. There are no fewer than 6 categories commonly available in stores, divided up by the amount of processing each one goes through. What are the differences, and how do they differ in nutritional value from each other?

Chocolate begins with the harvest of the cacao pods. The cacao beans and pulp are scraped from the pods and left to ferment in baskets for two to eight days. This fermentation process mellows the flavor of the beans. Without this process, the beans would be too bitter to eat.

After fermentation, the beans are dried, cleaned, and roasted, and the shell is removed to produce cacao nibs. The nibs are then ground to a cocoa mass, which is usually liquefied, then molded into what is referred to as chocolate liquor. The liquor may be processed into two components: cocoa solids and cocoa butter.

The common types of chocolate found in most areas, from the least-processed to the most-processed are:

Raw chocolate is the least processed and most nutritious type. It's a far cry from what most people think of when they think of dark chocolate. You can get it in the form of nibs as well as in powder form. Believe it or not, raw chocolate is one of the most nutritious foods on the planet, and rich in antioxidants!

Unsweetened chocolate contains primarily cocoa solids and cocoa butter in varying proportions. It is the most unadulterated type of "processed" chocolate.

Bittersweet is chocolate liquor to which some sugar, more cocoa butter, vanilla and sometimes lecithin have been added. It has less sugar and more liquor than semisweet, but the two are interchangeable for baking purposes.

Sweet chocolates, including dark and milk chocolates, are the most popular types of chocolate consumed today. These combine cocoa solids, cocoa butter or other fat, and sugar.

Dark chocolate is produced by adding fat and sugar to the cacao mixture. The U.S. government requires a 15% concentration of chocolate liquor. European standards require at least 35% cocoa solids.

Semisweet is a dark chocolate with a low sugar content.

Milk chocolate additionally contains milk powder or condensed milk. White chocolate contains cocoa butter, sugar, and milk, but no cocoa solids. It figures that milk chocolate, the least healthy variety, is also the most popular type in North America -- 71% of consumers prefer milk chocolate.

The levels of cocoa range from more than 50% for dark chocolate, 33-50% for milk chocolate, and under 33% for white chocolate. Inferior-quality chocolate is filled with vegetable oils and artificial flavors to disguise the product's poor quality.

How to Get the Health Benefits of Chocolate

Raw cacao contains the highest levels of antioxidants of any food on earth, with a full spectrum of nutrients found naturally in different fruits and vegetables. However, most of the chocolate consumed in western cultures comes in the form of highly processed and refined milk chocolate.

Unfortunately, most of the chocolate consumed today is highly processed and has been stripped of most of its nutritional value. The least-processed, darkest types are the ones that have the highest antioxidant content and offer the most health benefits.

When you're looking for the healthiest types of chocolate bars, look for ones that have a higher percentage of cacao in them. Just keep in mind that the taste gets more bitter as you increase the cacao content. If you're accustomed to the taste of milk chocolate, you may want to start with a dark bar that's lower in cacao, and gradually switch to one with a higher cacao content. Again, the higher the better.

Discover more of the Benefits of Dark Chocolate.

Stan Mrak has had a passion for antiaging nutrition and preventive health for over 30 years. Pay a visit to his website at http://www.antioxidants-for-health-and-longevity.com and discover more about the importance of antioxidants for staying young and preventing disease.