Chocolate that helps your body repair itself sounds almost too good to be true.

But there is a fascinating piece of research behind the claim that cacao can “double your stem cells”—and the real science may be even more interesting than the headline.

In a randomized controlled human study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, researchers found that consuming a high-flavanol cocoa drink for 30 days increased certain circulating repair cells by 2.2 times compared with a low-flavanol cocoa drink.

That’s more than double.

But before we start prescribing brownies for breakfast, there is an important distinction: the researchers weren’t measuring every type of stem cell in the human body. They measured CD34+/KDR+ circulating angiogenic cells, sometimes referred to as endothelial progenitor cells. These are stem/progenitor-like cells involved in maintaining and repairing blood vessels.

And that makes this story pretty fascinating.

1 What Exactly Did the Cacao Study Find?

The study involved 16 people with coronary artery disease in a randomized, double-blind, crossover trial.

Participants consumed either a high-flavanol cocoa drink containing 375 mg of cocoa flavanols twice daily or a nearly identical low-flavanol drink containing only 9 mg twice daily.

They followed each intervention for 30 days.

After the high-flavanol period, researchers found that circulating angiogenic cells increased 2.2-fold compared with the low-flavanol period.

But that wasn’t the only change.

Blood-vessel function, measured by flow-mediated dilation, improved by an impressive 47%.

Systolic blood pressure also decreased by approximately 4.2 mmHg compared with the low-flavanol intervention.

So cacao wasn’t simply associated with more circulating repair cells. The participants’ arteries were actually functioning better at the same time.

That’s where this gets interesting.

2 Stem Cells Are Basically Your Body’s Repair Crew

Your body contains trillions of specialized cells—heart cells, muscle cells, nerve cells, skin cells, blood cells and many others.

Stem cells are different.

They have the remarkable ability to self-renew and, depending on the type of stem cell, develop into more specialized cells.

Think of them as part of your body’s biological construction and maintenance department.

When tissues become damaged or old cells need replacing, stem and progenitor cells participate in the complicated process of maintaining and repairing tissues.

Your bone marrow is especially important because it houses hematopoietic stem cells that continually replenish blood and immune cells.

Other tissues contain their own populations of stem or progenitor cells.

Your body isn’t a finished structure.

It’s a remodeling project that never stops.

3 The Cells Studied in Cacao Research Help Repair Blood Vessels

The cells involved in the cacao study were circulating angiogenic cells associated with endothelial repair.

The endothelium is the thin layer of cells lining the inside of your blood vessels.

If you could unfold your vascular system, you would discover an enormous biological highway carrying oxygen and nutrients throughout your body.

That highway takes a beating.

High blood pressure, smoking, elevated blood sugar, inflammation, oxidative stress and aging can all contribute to endothelial dysfunction.

Circulating angiogenic cells appear to participate in maintaining and repairing this vascular lining.

That means having a healthy population of these cells may be one component of maintaining healthy arteries.

Researchers have even investigated circulating progenitor-cell numbers as markers of cardiovascular health.

In other words, these aren’t random cells floating around looking for something to do.

They’re part of your body’s vascular maintenance crew.

4 Why Would Cacao Increase Them?

The superstar compounds appear to be cocoa flavanols.

Flavanols are plant compounds found in foods including cacao, tea, grapes, apples and certain berries.

One particularly interesting cocoa flavanol is called epicatechin.

Human research has shown that flavanol-rich cocoa can increase nitric-oxide activity and improve the ability of arteries to dilate.

Nitric oxide tells blood vessels to relax.

More relaxation means better blood flow.

Better blood flow means oxygen and nutrients can travel more efficiently throughout the body.

The cacao study also found an increase in plasma nitrite, a marker related to nitric-oxide biology.

So cacao appears to be doing something much more sophisticated than simply providing antioxidants.

It may be influencing the signaling systems involved in circulation, vascular function and repair.

5 Another Human Study Strengthened the Case

Later randomized research involving healthy volunteers again investigated cocoa flavanols, vascular function and circulating angiogenic cells.

Researchers tested cocoa flavanol doses ranging from 0 to 820 mg and found that cocoa flavanol consumption increased flow-mediated dilation.

They also observed increases in circulating angiogenic cells under certain conditions.

Interestingly, cacao’s naturally occurring methylxanthines—including theobromine and small amounts of caffeine—appeared to enhance some of the vascular effects of the flavanols.

Nature occasionally seems to package compounds together for a reason.

The cacao bean isn’t one chemical.

It’s a biochemical cocktail.

6 Stem Cells Help Make Blood

Some of the most important stem cells in your body are hematopoietic stem cells in your bone marrow.

These cells generate the different types of blood cells your body constantly needs.

Red blood cells transport oxygen.

White blood cells participate in immune defense.

Platelets help your blood clot when you’re injured.

And because blood cells don’t live forever, your body has to keep manufacturing replacements.

Every day.

All day.

Your bone marrow is essentially running a microscopic factory you never have to think about.

7 Stem and Progenitor Cells Help Maintain Tissue

Different tissues contain populations of cells capable of contributing to repair and regeneration.

Muscle has satellite cells.

The intestinal lining contains rapidly renewing stem-cell populations.

Skin relies on stem cells for continuous renewal.

Blood-forming stem cells maintain the blood system.

The human body replaces an astonishing number of cells throughout a lifetime.

Without cellular renewal, tissues couldn’t maintain themselves.

This is why regenerative medicine has become such an enormous field of research.

Scientists aren’t merely asking how to treat damaged tissue.

They’re asking:

How can we help the body repair itself?

8 Cacao Is Not the Same Thing as a Chocolate Candy Bar

This might be the most important part of the article.

Before anyone races to the candy aisle shouting, “I’m regenerating!”

Slow down.

The research involved high-flavanol cocoa, not an ordinary milk-chocolate bar.

Processing can dramatically reduce flavanol content.

Alkalization—sometimes called Dutch processing—can particularly reduce cocoa flavanols.

Meanwhile, many commercial chocolate products contain large amounts of sugar, milk ingredients and added fats while providing relatively little cacao.

If you’re interested in cacao for its plant compounds, look toward products such as:

• Unsweetened cacao powder
• Natural non-alkalized cocoa
• Cacao nibs
• High-cacao dark chocolate with minimal added sugar
• Products that actually disclose their cocoa-flavanol content

The darker-looking product isn’t automatically the highest in flavanols, either.

Processing matters.

9 Raw Cacao Is Nutritionally Impressive Even Without the Stem-Cell Story

Cacao brings more to the table than flavanols.

It naturally contains minerals and phytochemicals, including magnesium, copper, iron, manganese and potassium, along with theobromine and numerous polyphenols.

Magnesium participates in hundreds of enzymatic reactions.

Copper contributes to connective tissue and normal iron metabolism.

Iron is essential for oxygen transport.

And cacao polyphenols continue to be studied for their effects on cardiovascular and metabolic health.

Maybe cacao doesn’t need to be called a “superfood.”

But if we’re handing out applications, it certainly has a respectable résumé.

10 Your Blood Vessels May Be Where Cacao Really Shines

The strongest human evidence surrounding cocoa flavanols isn’t that cacao magically regenerates the entire body.

It’s cardiovascular.

Controlled studies have repeatedly shown that cocoa flavanols can improve endothelial function.

That’s important because endothelial dysfunction can develop long before obvious cardiovascular disease appears.

Healthy arteries need to expand and contract appropriately depending on what your body is doing.

Exercise?

You need more blood flow.

Digesting dinner?

Blood flow changes again.

Trying to cool yourself?

Your vascular system adjusts.

Your blood vessels aren’t simply plumbing.

They’re living tissue.

And cacao flavanols appear capable of communicating with that tissue.

11 More Stem Cells Doesn’t Automatically Mean Better

Here’s where we need to keep the science responsible.

Stem cells are incredibly important, but saying “more stem cells are always better” would be an oversimplification.

Biology depends on regulation.

Cells need to divide at the right time, travel to the right places and receive the right signals.

The exciting finding from the cocoa study wasn’t simply that a number increased.

It was that the increase in circulating angiogenic cells occurred alongside better endothelial function and lower blood pressure.

That’s much more meaningful.

The study suggests that cocoa flavanols may support one of the body’s natural vascular-repair mechanisms.

It does not prove that cacao doubles all stem cells, reverses aging, regenerates damaged organs or treats disease.

Those claims would go far beyond the evidence.

12 The 2.2-Times Finding Still Deserves Attention

Even with those limitations, consider what happened.

A nutritional intervention lasting only 30 days was associated with:

2.2 times more circulating angiogenic cells

47% better flow-mediated vascular dilation

Approximately 4.2 mmHg lower systolic blood pressure

And increased markers associated with nitric-oxide production.

That’s a pretty remarkable amount of biological activity coming from compounds naturally present in a bean.

The study was small—only 16 participants—and involved people who already had coronary artery disease, so larger studies are needed before assuming everyone will experience the same response.

But that’s how good science works.

Interesting finding.

Replication.

More questions.

More research.

Not miracle claims.

So Should You Eat Cacao Every Day?

For most people who tolerate cacao, incorporating modest amounts of minimally processed cacao into an otherwise healthy diet can be a delicious way to obtain flavanols and other plant compounds.

Try unsweetened cacao in a smoothie.

Stir it into yogurt.

Add cacao nibs to berries.

Mix natural cocoa into oatmeal.

Or make hot cacao without turning it into a cup of liquid sugar.

Just remember that cacao naturally contains theobromine and some caffeine, so large amounts may cause jitteriness, headaches, reflux, rapid heartbeat or sleep problems in sensitive people.

And chocolate isn’t a substitute for medical treatment.

But perhaps it can be something else:

A reminder that food isn’t simply calories.

Food contains thousands of biologically active compounds capable of interacting with the human body in ways we’re still discovering.

A tiny cacao bean contains chemicals capable of influencing nitric oxide, blood-vessel function and potentially the mobilization of cells involved in vascular repair.

That’s pretty incredible.

Your body already possesses an extraordinary repair system.

The goal isn’t to find one magical food that fixes everything.

It’s to create an environment that gives those repair systems what they need to do their jobs.

Move your body. Sleep. Get sunlight. Eat colorful plants. Manage stress. Protect your metabolic health.

And maybe enjoy a little cacao along the way.

Because every once in a while, science gives us news we can actually celebrate with chocolate.

Let’s Inspire One Another.

Keep learning, questioning and discovering new ways to support the incredible body you’ve been given. Visit MindBodySpiritLife.com often for more research, wellness ideas and natural approaches to living well—and if you’ve discovered something that has changed your health or your life, share your story and help inspire someone else.