研究显示:适量巧克力可促进大脑认知功能

Good news for chocolate lovers: eating the sweet treat has been found to have a positive association with cognitive performance, according to a new study.

接下来这个消息对巧克力爱好者来说绝对是极好的：根据最新一项研究显示，吃甜食与认知能力之间存在显著的正相关关系。

Published in the journal Appetite, researchers used data collected from a Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal study (MSLS), in which 968 people aged between 23 and 98.

该项研究是在《食欲》杂志上发布的。研究人员分析了968名来自缅因州锡拉丘兹纵向研究的、年龄在23岁-98岁之间的参与者的数据。

The researchers found that regularly eating chocolate was significantly associated with cognitive function "irrespective of other dietary habits".

研究人员发现，经常吃巧克力与认知功能显著相关，而与其他饮食习惯无关。

Research shows that eating chocolate is significantly associated with "visual-spatial and working memory, scanning and tracking, abstract reasoning and the mini-mental state examination."

该研究显示，食用巧克力与视觉空间记忆、工作记忆、扫描追踪、抽象推理及应对简易智力状况检查的能力有很大关系。

Chocolate bars contain a nutrient, Cocoa flavanols, which seems to have positive effects on people's brains, experts explained.

专家对此解释称，巧克力含有恒星黄烷醇，这种营养物质似乎有益于人类的大脑。

High levels of flavanols are found in dark chocolate but less so in milk or white chocolate. High levels of flavanols are also found in tea, red wine and certain fruits such as grapes and apples.

高含量的黄烷醇被发现存在于黑巧克力当中，但在牛奶巧克力和白巧克力中则相对要少很多。此外，茶水、红葡萄酒以及葡萄和苹果这一类的水果当中也富含黄烷醇。

While the new study shows that choc treats can improve brain function, the researchers note that 'appropriate caloric intake' still applies, suggesting that gorging on too much chocolate is still not great for health.

虽然新的研究表明巧克力类的甜食有助于改善大脑功能，但是专家还是指出，“适当的热量摄入”仍然是正确的。专家们认为，吃太多的巧克力还是不健康的。