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Well, maybe. An article in the Washington Post health section discussed how "a nice cup of the right kind of cocoa could hold the promise of promoting brain function as people age." Having a certain kind of cocoa (flavanol) added to your diet (or at least to the diet of test mice) positively impacts the hippocampus, and thus allows further memory retention. Lower blood pressure and dilation of the arteries have also been associated with the regular consumption of flavanol.

This sounds like great news, especially for chocolate lovers like myself. The article is careful to say that this doesn't mean we should start taking chocolate every day as a vitamin. It also states (although not until the end) that one of the major funders of this research is Mars, Inc, the candy company. Who exactly is being paid to produce what science here? It makes me completely question the legitimacy of this study, if only for the monetay gains these scientists stand to make.

On a more scientific note, I'm curious as to how much we can change what we have receptors for in terms of memory and aging. If I can really have an impact on my brain's system for memory by what putting certain things into my system (flavanol, for example), what else do I actually have control over that science hasn't told me yet?