Herbal supplements are no longer just for health-food stores, according to a new report from the American Botani-cal Council trade association: Americans spent a record $335 million in 2009 on herbal supplements in “mainstream market channels” such as supermarkets and drugstores, an increase of 14%. …
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The occasional bonbon could be good for your heart — but make it dark chocolate, and don't overdo it. In yet another study linking consumption of chocolate high in cocoa flavonoids to heart health, researchers report that women who ate European chocolate (typically darker and richer in cocoa) once or twice a week were 32% less likely to suffer heart failure over a 9-year period than non-chocolate consumers. The study looked at 31,823 healthy Swedish women, ages 48 to 83. The results shouldn't be taken as a license to become a chocoholic, however, given the candy's high calorie count and saturated-fat content: Heart-failure incidence was greatest at the lowest and highest ends of the chocolate-consumption spectrum, suggesting it is indeed possible to have too much of a good thing. And it's important to indulge with dark chocolate, not lower-cocoa candies; look for a cocoa content of 70% or greater. — Circulation: Heart Failure…
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