A prominent UK medical journal has argued that since many manufacturers remove the healthy element of dark chocolate during processing, it is actually much less healthy than some advertising seeks to imply. While the chocolate industry has never denied that processing removes nutrients from cocoa, The Lancet states that consumers are often misled about how healthy a chocolate product is.
According to many studies, dark chocolate flavanols have a positive effect on human health by neutralizing the free radicals which have been linked to a wide range of chronic diseases.
However, manufacturers often deliberately remove the flavanols from their products because of their naturally bitter taste. This leaves only the fat, sugar and calories.