{"id":27654,"date":"2018-02-05T22:08:45","date_gmt":"2018-02-06T03:08:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom2\/2018\/02\/06\/chocolate\/"},"modified":"2026-05-14T16:18:25","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T20:18:25","slug":"chocolate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/","title":{"rendered":"Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You!"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_5324\" style=\"width: 210px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/media-old\/2013\/02\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-5324\" class=\"wp-image-5324 size-full\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/media-old\/2013\/02\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"200\" height=\"286\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-5324\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Professor Mike Cross<\/p><\/div>\n<p>There\u2019s little doubt that chocolate is a delicious treat and typically seen as a guilty pleasure but did you know that chocolate can also be healthy?<\/p>\n<p>According to Professor of Chemistry Mike Cross at Northern Essex Community College (NECC) in Haverhill, MA chocolate might just be the \u201cperfect indulgence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With high quality versions of chocolate carrying over 500+ natural chemicals and more antioxidants then a bowl of blueberries \u2026 chocolate can increase feelings of well-being, reduce high blood pressure, relax blood vessels and more, says Cross.<\/p>\n<p>In a presentation called \u201cChocolate, The Perfect Indulgence,\u201d Professor Cross will share his knowledge as both a chemist and a passionate lover of chocolate with audiences throughout the area this Valentine\u2019s Day season. These presentations are all free, open to the public, and include a chocolate tasting.<\/p>\n<p>Check out these presentations of \u201cChocolate: The Perfect Indulgence\u201d:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Haverhill Public Library<\/strong>, 99 Main St, Haverhill, MA<\/p>\n<p>Saturday, Feb. 10, 3 pm<\/p>\n<p>Advance registration is required; call 978 373-1586, ext. 608<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Nevins Memorial Library<\/strong>, 305 Broadway, Methuen, MA<\/p>\n<p>Monday, Feb. 12, 6:30 to 7:30 pm<\/p>\n<p>Advanced registration is required; call 978 686-4080<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Wilmington Memorial Library<\/strong>, 175 Middlesex Ave, Wilmington, MA<\/p>\n<p>Wednesday, Feb. 14, 7 to 8:30 pm<\/p>\n<p>Advanced registration is required; call 978 658-2967.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Burlington Public Library<\/strong>, 22 Sears St., Burlington, MA<\/p>\n<p>Thursday, Feb. 15, 7 pm<\/p>\n<p>Call 781 270-1690 for more information.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>Groton Public Library<\/strong>, 99 Main Street, Groton, MA<\/p>\n<p>Wednesday, March 7, 7 to 8:30 pm<\/p>\n<p>Call 978 448-1167<\/p>\n<p>Cross holds a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Utah where he specialized in oxidative lesions in DNA and RNA.<\/p>\n<p>His presentation is part of NECC\u2019s Speakers\u2019 Bureau. \u00a0\u00a0For more information on the college\u2019s Speakers\u2019 Bureau visit the<a href=\"https:\/\/www.necc.mass.edu\/engage\/community-resources\/speakers-bureau\/\"> website<\/a>, call 978 556-3862 or email speakersbureau@necc.mass.edu.<\/p>\n<p>With campuses in Haverhill and Lawrence, Northern Essex Community College offers over 60 associate degree and certificate programs as well as hundreds of noncredit courses designed for personal enrichment and career growth.\u00a0 Each year, 8,500 students are enrolled in credit associate degree and certificate programs on the Haverhill and Lawrence campuses; and another 2,600 take noncredit workforce development and community education classes on campus, and at businesses and community sites across the Merrimack Valley.\u00a0 For more information, visit the website at www.necc.mass.edu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>There\u2019s little doubt that chocolate is a delicious treat and typically seen as a guilty pleasure but did you know that chocolate can also be healthy? According to Professor of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":27656,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27654","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archive"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You! - NECC News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You! - NECC News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"There\u2019s little doubt that chocolate is a delicious treat and typically seen as a guilty pleasure but did you know that chocolate can also be healthy? According to Professor of [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NECC News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-02-06T03:08:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-05-14T20:18:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/03\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"286\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ernie Greenslade\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ernie Greenslade\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/\",\"name\":\"Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You! - NECC News\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/03\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2018-02-06T03:08:45+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-05-14T20:18:25+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6a4640513b41a61d0435b6972d4577c9\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/03\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/03\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg\",\"width\":200,\"height\":286},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/home\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You!\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/\",\"name\":\"NECC News\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6a4640513b41a61d0435b6972d4577c9\",\"name\":\"Ernie Greenslade\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/75ae84652c63c20fe24eb5858c280eb011192a5104499880542d7f8dfd6ef2c9?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/75ae84652c63c20fe24eb5858c280eb011192a5104499880542d7f8dfd6ef2c9?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Ernie Greenslade\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/author\/egreenslade\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You! - NECC News","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You! - NECC News","og_description":"There\u2019s little doubt that chocolate is a delicious treat and typically seen as a guilty pleasure but did you know that chocolate can also be healthy? According to Professor of [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/","og_site_name":"NECC News","article_published_time":"2018-02-06T03:08:45+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-05-14T20:18:25+00:00","og_image":[{"width":200,"height":286,"url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/03\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ernie Greenslade","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ernie Greenslade","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/","url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/","name":"Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You! - NECC News","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/03\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg","datePublished":"2018-02-06T03:08:45+00:00","dateModified":"2026-05-14T20:18:25+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6a4640513b41a61d0435b6972d4577c9"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/03\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2026\/03\/Mike-Cross-web.jpg","width":200,"height":286},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/2018\/02\/05\/chocolate\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/home\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Your Valentine Chocolate Can Be Good for You!"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#website","url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/","name":"NECC News","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/6a4640513b41a61d0435b6972d4577c9","name":"Ernie Greenslade","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/75ae84652c63c20fe24eb5858c280eb011192a5104499880542d7f8dfd6ef2c9?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/75ae84652c63c20fe24eb5858c280eb011192a5104499880542d7f8dfd6ef2c9?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Ernie Greenslade"},"url":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/author\/egreenslade\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27654","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27654"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27654\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27655,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27654\/revisions\/27655"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27656"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27654"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27654"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/necc.edu\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27654"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}