Theobromine is a Functional Component of Cocoa and Chocolate

​

    Theobromine was mentioned in my recent post (link) as one of the food additives that may boost your immune function against viral infections. Concerning coronavirus pandemic, any foods that may help us from virus attacks could be life-saving.

 

    Theobromine is found in cocoa beans being more abundant than caffeine. Good sources for the human diet include cocoa, chocolate, and tea.  Theobromine content is usually higher in dark chocolate than in milk chocolate.

 

    Clinical studies suggested that cocoa could increase high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol concentrations. Whether this effect is attributable to flavonoids or theobromine, both of which are major cocoa components was investigated by scientists (1).

 

    They conducted a 2-center, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study which included 152 healthy men and women (aged 40-70 years old) who were randomly allocated to consume one 200-mL drink/day for 4 weeks that contained 1) cocoa, which naturally provided 150 mg theobromine and 325 mg flavonoids [cocoa intervention], 2) 850 mg pure theobromine [theobromine intervention], 3) cocoa and added theobromine, which provided 1000 mg theobromine and 325 mg flavonoids [theobromine and cocoa intervention], or 4) no cocoa or theobromine (placebo). There was a significant main effect of theobromine but not cocoa on HDL cholesterol. Theobromine significantly increased HDL-cholesterol concentrations by 0.16 mmol/L ( 6.19 mg/dL) (p < 0.0001). There was also a significant effect of theobromine on decreasing LDL-cholesterol concentrations (p < 0.02) (1).

 

    The statistical analyses suggested that theobromine may be the main ingredient responsible for the HDL cholesterol-raising effect.  Theobromine may be part of the reason why dark chocolates known for heart health benefits by increasing the “good” cholesterol (HDL cholesterol) and reducing the “bad” cholesterol (LDL cholesterol).

 

    Scientists also studied if theobromine may explain the immunoregulatory properties of cocoa since the cocoa-enriched diet was known to influence immune system functionality (2). They fed young rats either a standard diet (control), a 10% cocoa diet (cocoa group), or a 0.25% theobromine diet (the same amount provided by the cocoa diet; theobromine group) in 2 separate experiments that lasted 19 (experiment 1) or 8 (experiment 2) days. Both cocoa and theobromine groups in experiments 1 and 2 showed similar serum immune parameters IgG, IgM, and IgA and intestinal secretory IgA concentrations, which were lower than those in the control group (46-98% lower in experiment 1 and 23-91% lower in experiment 2; p < 0.05). Also, in experiment 2, the cocoa and theobromine diets similarly changed the thymocyte composition, the mesenteric lymph node composition, and the spleen composition after 1 week of treatment. The changes of various parameters in theobromine and cocoa diets were very much similar suggesting that theobromine was the active component responsible for the immunoregulatory properties of the cocoa diet (2).

 

    Beyond being considered a pleasant sweet treat, chocolate has been considered a good nutrient and even medicine. Theobromine and caffeine, in the proportions found in cocoa, are responsible for the liking of the food/beverage. These compounds influence in a positive way our moods and our state of alertness. Theobromine, which is found in higher amounts than caffeine, seems to be the active component supporting several benefits attributed to cocoa. Additional theobromine health effects have been described, such as theobromine acts on oral health, suppresses cough, produces bronchodilation in asthma patients and inhibits acid uric crystallization (3). The immune protection property of theobromine demonstrated in the lethal flu vaccine study (4) and increase of good cholesterol for heart health (1) are all good reasons for us to continue the habit of eating dark chocolates. This is one of the easy healthy habits to promote.

 

References:

​

1. Neufingerl N, Zebregs YE, Schuring EA, Trautwein EA. Effect of cocoa and theobromine consumption on serum HDL-cholesterol concentrations: a randomized controlled trial. Am J Clin Nutr. 2013. 97(6):1201-9.

2. Camps-Bossacoma M, Pérez-Cano FJ, Franch À, Castell M. Theobromine Is Responsible for the Effects of Cocoa on the Antibody Immune Status of Rats. J Nutr. 2018. 148(3):464-471.

3. Martínez-Pinilla E, Oñatibia-Astibia A, Franco R. The relevance of theobromine for the beneficial effects of cocoa consumption. Front Pharmacol. 2015. 6:30.

4. Feng H, Yamashita M, Wu L, Jose da Silva Lopes T, Watanabe T, Kawaoka Y. Food Additives as Novel Influenza Vaccine Adjuvants. Vaccines (Basel). 2019. 7(4). pii: E127.