Table 1.
Effect of Cocoa, chocolate and polyphenol rich substances and their beneficial effect on the adult or harmful effect on the fetus.
| Reference | Substance | Population | Outcome | Overall Effect |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hermann et al. (2006) | Dark chocolate and Liquid cocoa | Healthy humans | Improved endothelial function. Decreased BP | Beneficial |
| Innes et al. (2003) | Dark chocolate | Healthy humans | Inhibited collagen-induced platelet aggregation | Beneficial |
| Flammer et al. (2012) | Dark chocolate | Humans with heart failure | Increased FMD | Beneficial |
| Loffredo et al. (2014) | Dark chocolate | Humans with peripheral arterial disease | Increased FMD, MWD and MWT | Beneficial |
| Parsaeyan et al. (2014) | Cocoa powder | Humans with Diabetes | Lowered blood cholesterol, triglyceride, LDL-cholesterol, and TNF-α, hs-CRP, IL-6, by Bioinformatics and virtual analysis inhibited COX-2 | Beneficial |
| Morrison et al. (2014) | Epicatechin | Mice with atherosclerosis | Lowers NFkB and atherosclerotic plaque | Beneficial |
| Lee et al. (2006) | Cocoa polyphenols | Mice and in vitro | Inhibited COX2 expression and superoxide formation | Beneficial |
| Zielinsky et al. (2010b) | Polyphenols rich diet | Healthy pregnant humans | Caused fetal CDA | Harmful |
| Zielinsky et al. (2013) | Polyphenols rich diet | Healthy pregnant humans | Polyphenol restriction from diet caused fetal ductal dilation | Harmful |
| Zielinsky et al. (2012b) | Polyphenols rich diet | Pregnant humans with fetal CDA | Polyphenol restriction from diet caused fetal ductal dilation | Harmful |
| Zielinsky et al. (2007) | Green tea, mate tea, grape juice | Pregnant ewe | Fetal ductus arteriosus constriction | Harmful |
| Zielinsky et al. (2012a) | Green tea | Pregnant ewe | Fetal ductus arteriosus constriction | Harmful |
| Bubols et al. (2014) | Polyphenols rich diet | Pregnant ewe | Fetal ductus arteriosus constriction, lowers oxidative stress markers | Harmful |
BP, blood pressure; DAC, ductus arteriosus constriction; FMD, flow mediated dilatation; COX, cyclooxygenase; MWD, mean walking distance; MWT, mean walking time; CDA, constriction of ductus arteriosus.