Effect of Natural Cocoa Powder Supplementation on Oxidative Stress in Healthy Ghanaians

Introduction: Natural cocoa powder (NCP) has been recognized to possess significant amounts of flavonoids and methylxanthines with healthful benefits. Little or no work has been done on adult Ghanaians involving supplementation with NCP. We hypothesized that chronic consumption of NCP would improve oxidative stress biomarkers and endothelial integrity.

Aims: The study aimed at evaluating the long term effect of NCP supplementation on selected oxidative stress biomarkers in healthy adult Ghanaians.

Study Design: This was a longitudinal intervention study design.

Place and Duration of Study: Chemical Pathology Unit Laboratory,School of Allied Health Sciences (SAHS), Korle-Bu,Virology and Physiology Department Laboratories, University of Ghana Medical School (UGMS) and the Central Laboratory of the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, Accra, between August 2011 and June 2013.

Methodology: Seventeen subjects were randomly selected. NCP was consumed as a beverage twice daily before meals for 12 weeks. Pre- and post- supplementation blood draw, anthropometry and analysis of advanced glycated end-products (AGEs), vascular cell adhesion molecule1 (VCAM-1), tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), malondialdehyde (MDA), and hemeoxygenase 1 (HO-1) were determined.

Results: Mean age was 30.8 ± 10.2 years. Weight and BMI, were significantly decreased by 1.67 kg and 0.05 kg/m2 (P= 0.009 and 0.006, respectively). Percentage skeletal muscle and resting metabolism showed significant increases of 2.46% and 55 kcal (P= 0.031 and 0.028, respectively). GSH-Px significantly increased by 0.23 ng/L (P= 0.001) while MDA showed a significant decrease of 0.05 ng/L (P = 0.033).

Conclusion: NCP caused a significant reduction in BMI and increase in antioxidant levels. NCP reduced oxidative stress and a cardiovascular risk factor such as obesity.