Daily consumption of 40g of dark chocolate is linked to significant improvements in gas exchange threshold, a measure of endurance capacity and cardiorespiratory fitness, scientists say

Exercise scientists at Kingston University have come up with a dietary performance booster that will be welcomed by many.

They found that a daily consumption of 40g of dark chocolate was linked to significant improvements in gas exchange threshold (GET), a measure of endurance capacity and cardiorespiratory fitness, in a group of cyclists.

According to the researchers, who reported their results in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, the cyclists performed better in time trials after two weeks of eating dark chocolate than they did on their regular diet or with 40g of white chocolate daily.

“Consequently, it can be concluded that ingestion of dark chocolate for 14 days reduced the oxygen cost of moderate-intensity exercise and may be an effective ergogenic aid,” they wrote.