We have spoken, in the past, about the dubious nature of chocolate. There’s not a lot of research about its benefits that weren’t financed by the candy industry. Even if it does have beneficial properties, it’s high in sugar and fat. However, new chocolate is cutting the added sugar. The new chocolate may be something you can work into your diet as a special treat more easily than you once could have.

Usually, while making chocolate, producers focus on the bean, discarding the flesh of the fruit. However, Nestlé has found and patented a way to use the fruit to sweeten the chocolate and avoid using refined sugar. This new method creates chocolate with 40 percent less added sugar than competing chocolate. The confection is still made with cocoa butter. And, the company is quick to stress that the new chocolate still contains sugar and should not be a staple in your diet. The use of the fruit has no impact on the mouthfeel or taste of the chocolate.

As both fans of chocolate and people who avoid sugar, this is excellent news for us! It’s also great that consumer trends are changing. The amount of people with blood sugar concerns pales when compared to people trying new low-sugar diet regimes. The demands of dieters are a boon to people with blood sugar concerns; there are more varieties of low-carb and low-sugar foods hitting the shelves than ever before. Having these trends means we can ride the wave, whether or not we are following the diet fads or just a balanced lower-carb plan.

Right now, the chocolate is only on the shelves as dark chocolate KitKats in Japan. Hopefully, it will soon make its way over the ocean. We love chocolate, and it would be great to be able to work a chocolate bar into our week instead of always avoiding them.