This can only be good news.

We like our chocolate. Mix it in a cake, put it in a crepe, make some hot chocolate, or simply gobble it up out of the wrapper - we'll have it every and any way. It's delicious and it makes us happy. And now, it might even lengthen our lives. According to a new study, eating chocolate and zinc together can help you live longer. Researchers from the University of Erlangen in Nuremberg and Auburn University in Alabama found that combining both ingredients can protect against naturally-occurring 'oxidative stress'. Oxidative stress is an internal gas in your body that can lead to ageing, as well as illnesses such as cancer, inflammation or degenerative diseases. When antioxidant polyphenols - which is found in chocolate, tea and coffee - are mixed with zinc, it creates a 'mega complex enzyme' which fights off the oxidative gas - while having chocolate, tea or coffee on its own does not create this effect on its own. So, next time you reach for that chocolate cake, just add some zinc and you won't feel as guilty - it's lengthening your life after all.