Why This Tribe In Panama Drinks Dozens Of Cups Of Hot Chocolate Every Week

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The Guna Yala region off the Caribbean coast of Panama is unlikely to appear on many traveler wish lists — but maybe it should, if only to experience the remarkable hot chocolate consumption of the people living there. The local Kuna Indians, also known as Guna Indians, consume an astounding amount of the chocolatey hot beverage, and by all accounts have one of the most stellar health records when it comes to the "biggie" maladies affecting people in other countries. We're talking heart disease, high blood pressure, cancer, and possibly more. But before filling your grocery cart with typical sugary, powdery hot chocolate mixes, be aware of some details. 

By some accounts, Kuna Peoples drink more than five cups of hot cocoa per day, or by some estimates even more, up to 40 cups per week. That's a lot of hot chocolate. But Kuna hot chocolate is nothing like the add-liquid-and-stir packets of modern supermarkets. It's instead a true unprocessed hot cocoa drink made from pure ground cocoa beans, resulting in a thick, rich, dark elixir with a slightly bitter aftertaste. To many avid chocolate devotees, this is pure drinking pleasure — which also happens to be super healthy. 

As reported by The Harvard Gazette, researchers studied Kuna communities still living traditional lifestyles, instead of ones who migrated to cities and adopted modern eating habits. Ruling out genetics or other good-health contributors, diet — specifically the daily cocoa ritual — stood out as the main contributing factor for the community's excellent health record. Here's a deeper look at that.

It's important to note that people in Kuna communities aren't necessarily drinking all that hot chocolate just because it's healthy. Cocoa has been an integral part of tribal customs for generations, used for healing but also in ceremonies for birth or death, in spiritual traditions, and for rites of passage such as coming of age. It's not just food, but engrained symbol of life and identity. As it happens, the health benefits are extraordinary as well.

Pure cocoa is known to be packed with powerful naturally occurring antioxidant agents called polyphenols, and particularly in flavanols. One magic-wand effect of flavanols is that they help blood vessels stay flexible, thereby reducing inflammation, and resulting in better blood flow to the heart and brain as well as other body organs. This potentially helps ward off positive effects on neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. And that's only the beginning; the properties in cocoa can have positive effects on blood sugar control, depression, weight control, cancer protection, healthy teeth and skin, and potentially lots more.

Unfortunately, processing greatly lowers the benefits, so the type of hot cocoa matters. In traditional Kuna communities, it's pure cocoa straight from the cocoa beans. Family members of all ages often share in the process of roasting, grinding, and mixing the beans. For a sweet drinkable form, the custom is to cook the ground cocoa with banana and water with no added milk or processed sugars. As laborious as that sounds, you can create a simplified version in your home.

To make a version of health-enhancing (and divinely delicious) Kuna hot chocolate in your own kitchen, you'll need to start with the right kind of cocoa. In the U.S., that typically comes in the form of non-alkalized cocoa powder, often marketed as natural or unsweetened cocoa powder, like Ghirardelli's Premium Unsweetened Cocoa Powder. Avoid Dutch process cocoa, as the valuable flavanols have likely been removed. A good bet is to visit a supermarket baking aisle, which is more likely to have straight cocoa powder.

After procuring the best cocoa powder, you can certainly keep things simple. Just boil water and cocoa powder with a bit of milk if desired for textural quality and smooth blending. A dash of cinnamon helps balance the potency as well. But if you'd like to make a genuine Kuna Indian hot chocolate, it's easier than you might think. For two servings in the traditional Kuna style, smash a banana into a pot and add about 2 cups of water, gently boiling for about 10 minutes until the banana purees into the water. Then add 4 to 6 tablespoons of natural cocoa powder and boil until dissolved. Strain out remaining banana chunks for a smooth, creamy cocoa drink. 

The whole process takes only about 15 minutes. If preferred, add cinnamon, chili, cayenne, or other powdered spices to taste. For more details about Kuna-style hot cocoa, as well as other regional cocoa drinks, check out the sweet traditions of drinking chocolate around the world.