{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,6,16]],"date-time":"2026-06-16T13:58:30Z","timestamp":1781618310805,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":105,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"24","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2019,12,6]],"date-time":"2019-12-06T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1575590400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJERPH"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Chocolate is well known for its fine flavor, and its history began in ancient times, when the Maya considered chocolate (a cocoa drink prepared with hot water) the \u201cFood of the Gods\u201d. The food industry produces many different types of chocolate: in recent years, dark chocolate, in particular, has gained great popularity. Interest in chocolate has grown, owing to its physiological and potential health effects, such as regulation of blood pressure, insulin levels, vascular functions, oxidation processes, prebiotic effects, glucose homeostasis, and lipid metabolism. However, further translational and epidemiologic studies are needed to confirm available results and to evaluate other possible effects related to the consumption of cocoa and chocolate, verifying in humans the effects hitherto demonstrated only in vitro, and suggesting how best to consume (in terms of dose, mode, and time) chocolate in the daily diet.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph16244960","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2019,12,6]],"date-time":"2019-12-06T10:41:44Z","timestamp":1575628904000},"page":"4960","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":89,"title":["Chocolate, \u201cFood of the Gods\u201d: History, Science, and Human Health"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2958-5458","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria Teresa","family":"Montagna","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Section of Hygiene, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Medical School, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giusy","family":"Diella","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Section of Hygiene, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Medical School, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Francesco","family":"Triggiano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Section of Hygiene, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Medical School, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giusy Rita","family":"Caponio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Clinica Medica \u201cA. Murri\u201d, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Medical School, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy"},{"name":"Department of Soil, Plant and Food Science (DISSPA), University of Bari Aldo Moro, Via Amendola 165\/a, 70126 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0297-9502","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Osvalda De","family":"Giglio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Section of Hygiene, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Medical School, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Giuseppina","family":"Caggiano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Section of Hygiene, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Medical School, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5476-7376","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Agostino Di","family":"Ciaula","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Clinica Medica \u201cA. Murri\u201d, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Medical School, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5359-1471","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Piero","family":"Portincasa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Clinica Medica \u201cA. Murri\u201d, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Medical School, Piazza G. Cesare 11, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2019,12,6]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"111","article-title":"The history and science of chocolate","volume":"35","author":"Verna","year":"2013","journal-title":"Malays. J. Pathol."},{"key":"ref_2","unstructured":"Coe, S.D., and Coe, M.D. (1996). The True History of Chocolate, Thames and Hudson. [1st ed.]."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2057S","DOI":"10.1093\/jn\/130.8.2057S","article-title":"Food of the gods: Cure for humanity? A cultural history of the medicinal and ritual use of chocolate","volume":"130","author":"Dillinger","year":"2000","journal-title":"J. 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