Chocolate and Blood Pressure in Elderly Individuals With Isolated Systolic Hypertension

To the Editor: Chocolate may have beneficial cardiovascular effects, possibly due to cocoa polyphenols.¹ Experiments in animals suggest that plant polyphenols decrease blood pressure (BP)²; however, evidence from human clinical trials is lacking. We examined whether dark chocolate (polyphenol-rich chocolate [PRC]) may lower BP in individuals with mild isolated hypertension.