Abstract
Objective: To evaluate the plasma kinetics in man of epicatechin from black chocolate.
Design: An intervention study with 8 volunteers. Each served as his own control. Theobromine was used as control marker of the chocolate intake.
Setting: Metabolic Unit, Nestlé Research Center, Vers-chez-les-Blanc, Switzerland.
Subjects: Eight healthy male volunteers (4 smokers and 4 non-smokers) were enrolled in this study. They abstained from foods rich in polyphenols (coffee, tea, wine, fruit juice, cocoa products) for 24 h prior to the test until its completion.
Intervention: Volunteers ate 40 g and 80 g of black chocolate (Nestlé Noir) together with bread with a one-week interval. Blood samples were drawn every hour during the first 4 h and a last one at 8 h after chocolate consumption. Plasma samples were analysed for epicatechin and theobromine content by HPLC.
Results: Plasma concentrations of epicatechin and theobromine increased markedly after chocolate consumption (P=0.002 and P=0.001, respectively), reaching a maximum between 2 and 3 h. The maximal concentration and area under the curve of plasma kinetics of both substrates correlated very well with the dose of chocolate.
Conclusions: Epicatechin is absorbed from chocolate and is rapidly eliminated from plasma. Attainable plasma values are 0.7 μmol/l from 80 g of black chocolate.
Sponshorship: Nestec LTD, Vevey, Switzerland.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$259.00 per year
only $21.58 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Richelle, M., Tavazzi, I., Enslen, M. et al. Plasma kinetics in man of epicatechin from black chocolate. Eur J Clin Nutr 53, 22–26 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1600673
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ejcn.1600673
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
Biomarkers of food intake for cocoa and liquorice (products): a systematic review
Genes & Nutrition (2018)
-
Chocolate flavanols and skin photoprotection: a parallel, double-blind, randomized clinical trial
Nutrition Journal (2014)
-
Blood pressure and endothelial function in healthy, pregnant women after acute and daily consumption of flavanol-rich chocolate: a pilot, randomized controlled trial
Nutrition Journal (2013)
-
Endothelium/nitric oxide mechanism mediates vasorelaxation and counteracts vasoconstriction induced by low concentration of flavanols
European Journal of Nutrition (2013)
-
Bioactive and Sensory Properties of Herbal Spirit Enriched with Cocoa (Theobroma cacao L.) Polyphenolics
Food and Bioprocess Technology (2012)