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CACAO
"Chocolate" |
Family: Sterculiaceae
Genus: Theobroma
Species: cacao
Common Names: Cacao, Criollo, Cacao Forastero, Cacao,
Cacaoyer, Chocolate, Kakao
Part Used: Fruit, Seed, Leaves,
Bark
From Kohler's Medicinal Plants
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| DESCRIPTION |
Properties/Actions: |
Antiseptic, Diuretic, Emmenagogueue, Parasiticide, Vulnerary |
Phytochemicals: |
(-)-epicatechin, 3-alpha-l-arabinosidyl-cyanidin,
3-beta-d-galactosidyl-cyanidin, 4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzoic-acid,
24-methylenecycloartanol, Acetic-acid, Aesculetin, Alanine, Alkaloids,
Alpha-sitosterol, Alpha-theosterol, Amyl-acetate, Amyl-alcohol,
Amyl-butyrate, Amylase, Apigenin-7-o-glucoside, Arabinose, Arachidic-acid,
Arginine, Ascorbic-acid, Ascorbic-acid-oxidase, Aspariginase,
Beta-carotene, Beta-sitosterol, Beta-theosterol, Biotin, Caffeic-acid,
Caffeine, Calcium, Campesterol, Catalase, Catechins, Catechol, Cellulase,
Cellulose, Chlorogenic-acid, Chrysoeriol-7-o-glucoside, Citric-acid,
Coumarin, Cyanidin, Cyanidin-3-beta-l-arabinoside, Cyanidin-3-galactoside,
Cyanidin-glycoside, Cycloartanol, D-galactose, Decarboxylase, Dextrinase,
Diacetyl, Dopamine, Epigallocatechin, Ergosterol, Ferulic-acid,
Formic-acid, Fructose, Furfurol, Galacturonic-acid, Gallocatechin,
Gentisic-acid, Glucose, Glutamic-acid, Glycerin, Glycerophosphatase,
Glycine, Glycolic-acid, Glycosidase, Haematin, Histidine, I-butyric-acid,
Idaein, Invertase, Isobutylacetate, Isoleucine, Isopropyl-acetate,
Isovitexin, Kaempferol, L-epicatechin, Leucine, Leucocyanidins, Linalool,
Linoleic-acid, Lipase, Luteolin, Luteolin-7-o-glucoside, Lysine,
Lysophosphatidyl-choline, Maleic-acid, Mannan, Manninotriose, Mannose,
Melibiose, Mesoinositol, Methylheptenone, N-butylacetate, N-nonacosane,
Niacin, Nicotinamide, Nicotinic- acid, Nitrogen, Nonanoic-acid,
O-hydroxyphenylacetic-acid, Octoic-acid, Oleic- acid, Oleo-dipalmatin,
Oleopalmitostearin, Oxalic-acid, P-anisic-acid, P-coumaric- acid,
P-coumarylquinic-acid, P-hydroxybenzoic-acid, P-hydroxyphenylacetic-acid,
Palmitic-acid, Palmitodiolen, Pantothenic-acid, Pectin, Pentose,
Peroxidase, Phenylacetic-acid, Phenylalanine, Phlobaphene,
Phosphatidyl-choline, Phosphatidyl- ethanolamine, Phosphatidyl-inositol,
Phospholipids, Phosphorus, Phytase, Planteose, Polygalacturonate,
Polyphenol-oxidase, Polyphenols, Proline, Propionic-acid, Propyl-acetate,
Protocatechuic-acid, Purine, Pyridoxine, Quercetin,
Quercetin-3-o-galactoside, Quercetin-3-o-glucoside, Quercitrin, Raffinase,
Raffinose, Reductase, Rhamnose, Riboflavin, Rutin, Rutoside, Saccharose,
Salsolinol, Serine, Sinapic-acid, Stachyose, Stearic-acid, Stearodiolein,
Stigmasterol, Sucrose, Syringic-acid, Tannins, Tartaric-acid, Theobromine,
Theophylline, Thiamin, Threonine, Trigonelline, Tyramine, Tyrosine,
Valerianic-acid, Valine, Vanillic-acid, Verbascose, Verbascotetrose,
Vitexin |
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COUNTRY |
ETHNOBOTANY WORLDWIDE USES
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Dominican Republic |
Diuretic, Kidney |
Elsewhere |
Antiseptic, Burn, Emmenagogueue, Eye, Liqueur, Parturition,
Wound |
Ghana |
Cough, Dentifrice |
Haiti |
Burn, Dry-Lip , Rheumatism |
Japan |
Suppository-Base |
La |
Coffee, Liqueur |
Mexico |
Bite(Snake), Wound |
Panama |
Antiseptic, Eye, Listlessness, Parasiticide, Pregnancy |
Venezuela |
Alopecia, Pilatory |
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From the King's American Dispensatory's Monograph on
Chocolate: |
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"Botanical Source.
The genuine cacao tree is a small and handsome
evergreen tree, growing in South America and the West Indies, from 12 to 25 feet
high, and branching at the top; when cultivated it is not allowed to grow so
high. The stem is erect, straight, 4 to 6 feet high; the wood light and white;
the bark thin, somewhat smooth, and brownish. The seeds are numerous,
compressed, 1 inch long, reddish-brown externally, dark-brown internally, and
imbedded in a whitish, sweetish, buttery pulp.
Source, History, and Preparation.This tree was extensively cultivated
in Mexico, Central and South America for many years, indeed long before the
discovery of America, and at one time formed the currency of the natives, who
made an immense consumption of it in various ways. At present it is chiefly
cultivated in Brazil, Costa Rica, Guayaquil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Peru,
Guatemala, the. island of Trinidad, and most of the other West India Islands;
also in Africa, Ceylon, Samoa, and other parts of the globe. The cocoa or
chocolate nuts of commerce are the seed taken from the fruit and deprived of a
slimy covering. There are many varieties of this seed brought into the market,
named, according to the place from which they have been imported, e. g., Puerto
Cabello, Cauca, Maracaibo, Caracas, Surinam, Java, Domingo, Bahia, etc.
Cacao seeds are prepared for commerce either by simple drying, in which case
they retain their bitterness and astringency; or they are cured by a sweating
process by which their bitter and astringent properties are much modified, and
the color of the seed changed. The seeds are placed into closed boxes for a
certain length of time, or buried in the ground for a few days; the best process
is to allow the seeds to lie for a week in heaps covered with green leaves, such
as plantain leaves, etc., after which time they are dried. Also see directions
given by W. Cradwick, of Jamaica, for curing cacao seeds on a domestic scale, in
Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1895, p. 530.
Chemical Composition.—Cacao seeds contain fat (40 to 50 per cent) (oil
of cacao, cacao butter; see Oleum Theobromatis), the base theobromine
(C7H8N4O2), small quantities of caffeine (theine), starch (from 1.3 to 7.5 per
cent, Ridenour, Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1895, p. 209), a red coloring matter
(cacao-red), albuminous matter (6 to 18 per cent), and ash (2 to 4 per cent),
etc.
In 18 commercial specimens of cacao, A. Eminger (Forschungsberichte über
Lebensmittel, 1896, p. 275; also see Amer. Jour. Pharm., 1897, p. 113) found
theobromine to vary from 0.88 to 2.34 per cent, caffeine from 0.05 to 0.36 per
cent. According to E. Knebel (1892), the presence of cacao-red is due to the
decomposition of a glucosid under the influence of a diastatic ferment,
resulting in dextrose, cacao-red. theobromine. and caffeine (compare Kola).
Action, Medical Uses, and Dosage.CHOCOLATE, when scraped into a
coarse powder, and boiled in milk, or milk and water, is much used as an
occasional substitute for coffee, and for a drink at meals. It is a very useful
nutritive article of diet for invalids, persons convalescing from acute
diseases, and others with whom its oily constituent does not disagree, as is apt
to be the case with dyspeptics.
BUTTER OF CACAO is a bland article, rather agreeable to the taste, and highly
nutritious; it has been used as a substitute for, or an alternate with,
cod-liver oil, and as an article of diet during the last days of pregnancy. It
has also been employed in the formation of suppositories and pessaries, for
rectal, vaginal, and other difficulties (see Suppositories). It likewise enters
into preparations for rough or chafed skin, chapped lips, sore nipples, various
cosmetics, pomatums, and fancy soaps; and has also been used for coating pills.
Theobromine when absorbed acts powerfully as a diuretic, and has a stimulant
or exciting action which is not possessed by chocolate itself. It is, however,
quite difficult of absorption, and is without effect upon the heart and
circulation. It enters into the compound known as Diuretin, which, in certain
conditions, is an active diuretic."
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| Quoted References |
| 10. Theobroma cacao L. Sterculiaceae. "Cacao", "Chocolate".
Cultivated. The pulp of fruit edible. Food uses of chocolate, made from the
seed, are well known (RVM). Not so well known is the fact that much cocoa
butter ends up in suppositories. Leaf infusion widely used as cardiotonic and
diuretic in Colombia (SAR). "Karijona" use toasted seed with manihot
squeezings for a scalp condition like eczema. "Ingano" use the bark decoction
as a wash for sarna (SAR). Theobromine and theophylline, like caffeine, all
found in this plant, used in modern medicine as antiasthmatic (JAD). We are
cooperating with one entrepreneur seeking a "lean green cacao bean" for
renewable "organic low-fat rainforest chocolate". |
CHOCOLATE FACTS from WTVC
News channel
THE MAKING OF CHOCOLATE |
Chocolate is made from the seeds of a plant called Theobroma cacao. The
seeds are dried and roasted and then processed to form cocoa, the basic
ingredient in chocolate and chocolate products. The use of cocoa for eating
and drinking probably dates back several thousand years. The first evidence of
cocoa use comes from cooking vessels containing cocoa residue. Scientists have
determined these pots to be from at least 460 to 480 A.D.
Columbus discovered cacao beans in America and sent samples back to King
Ferdinand. However, the beans didn't become popular in Europe at this time.
Several years later, Cortes discovered that the Mexican Aztecs enjoyed a type
of bitter chocolate drink containing burned and ground cacao beans, maize,
water, and spices. Cortes sent cacao beans and recipes back to King Charles V.
The Spanish refined some of the recipes -- adding sugar and heating the
ingredients to improve taste and texture. But because of the high cost of
imported cacao, chocolate beverages were enjoyed mostly by the wealthy.
By 1828, the cocoa press was developed. The press enabled workers to
extract cocoa butter from the cacao bean. Ground roasted beans and sugar were
added to the cocoa butter to produce dark "eating" (solid) chocolate. The
first commercially prepared dark chocolate was produced in about 1847. Milk
chocolate, made with the addition of dried milk solids, was developed by the
Swiss in about 1876.
Some brands of imported and domestic chocolate contain very refined
chocolate and fillings and are very expensive. Still, less expensive varieties
of chocolate are widely available -- making chocolate a very popular
confection. The average American consumes nearly 11 pounds of chocolate each
year. Men aged 12 to 19 consume the most amount of chocolate. Women aged 30 to
39 are the next largest group of chocolate consumers.
THE LURE OF CHOCOLATE
For some people, the lure of chocolate can be overwhelming. Cocoa contains
certain chemicals and sensory properties that make the product very appealing.
Cocoa contains theobromine (a chemical related to caffeine). The sugar in
chocolate releases serotonin (a brain chemical related to a positive sense of
well-being). The smooth, rich taste of chocolate (and sometimes the fillings)
provides sensory pleasure to the taste buds. In addition, many people use
chocolate as a reward and learn to associate the product with positive
self-esteem. In spite of its physical properties, chocolate is not a
physically addictive food. However, some people may find themselves
psychologically addicted to chocolate.
Chocolate does have some downsides. A single ounce of chocolate contains
about 150 calories and 9 to 10 grams of fat; 65 percent of the calories in
chocolate come from fat. But there are ways to reduce the amount of fat and
still enjoy chocolate. Cocoa powder can be substituted for chocolate in many
recipes. A tablespoon of powdered cocoa contains only about 16 calories; less
than 30 percent of its calories comes from fat. Use three tablespoons of cocoa
and one tablespoon of a healthy cooking oil for each ounce of chocolate needed
in a recipe. A chocolate glaze can be made with some cocoa powder,
confectioner's sugar, and skim milk. Manufacturers have even developed some
good quality low-fat chocolate desserts.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
"Chocolate: Just Say Yes," University of California at Berkeley Wellness
Letter, February 1996, Vol. 12, No. 5, pp. 2-3.
Hoskin, Jonathan, "Sensory Properties of Chocolate and Their Development,"
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, December 1994, Vol. 60, No. 6, Suppl.,
pp. 1068S-1070S.
Morgan, Jeff, "Chocolate: A Flavor and Texture Unlike Any Other," American
Journal of Clinical Nutrition, December 1994, Vol. 60, No. 6, Suppl., pp.
1065S-1067S.
Patterson, Robert, M.D. "Recovery From This Addiction Was Sweet Indeed,"
Canadian Medical Association Journal, March 15, 1993, Vol. 148, No. 6, pp.
1028-1032.
Seligson, Frances, et al., "Patterns of Chocolate Consumption," American
Journal of Clinical Nutrition, December 1994, Vol. 60, No. 6, Suppl.,
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