There's a ritual in our house that has been happening for as long as I can remember.
Before anything else in the morning — before breakfast, before the day officially starts — the bornejo comes out. My mom picks up the batirol, pours the hot water, and whisks her homemade sikwate until it foams.
Pure tablea. Cacao she roasted herself from beans bought at the public market. Ground manually. Molded in a puto cheese molder. No sugar added unless she's in a generous mood. No powdered mix. No shortcuts.
She's been doing this for over 35 years.
She's 80. She's active. She walks around the house like she owns the place. And her blood pressure — according to the last reading — is normal.
I've written about her tablea in detail in the homemade tablea post. But this post is about the why. What pure cacao is actually doing inside the body. And why the most common thing Filipinos say about tablea — "baka tumaas BP mo 'yan" — is based on a misunderstanding.
Is tablea/hot chocolate bad for blood pressure? Pure tablea made from 100% cacao is not bad for blood pressure — in fact, research shows the flavonoids in cacao can help lower it. The confusion comes from processed chocolate drinks loaded with sugar and dairy, which are different products entirely. Pure tablea and commercial hot chocolate mixes are not the same thing.
The Myth Worth Addressing First
People who warn about tablea and blood pressure are usually thinking about commercial chocolate — the powdered sachets, the sweetened mixes, the ready-to-drink bottles with long ingredient lists.
Those products have a lot of added sugar. High sugar intake contributes to insulin resistance, weight gain, and over time — elevated blood pressure. That warning is fair for those products.
But pure tablea is just cacao. Ground cacao beans. The same thing that gets buried under layers of sugar and milk in commercial chocolate — except without the sugar and milk.
Chemically, they are not the same product. The health profile is completely different.
What Pure Cacao Actually Does
1. Supports Heart Health and Blood Pressure
Cacao is one of the richest food sources of flavonoids — specifically a subtype called flavanols. These compounds stimulate the lining of blood vessels to produce nitric oxide, which causes blood vessels to relax and widen. The result is improved blood flow and lower blood pressure.
Multiple clinical studies have confirmed this effect. The American Heart Association has published research supporting the cardiovascular benefits of high-flavanol cacao consumption. This is not folk wisdom — it's documented cardiovascular science.
My mom drinks sikwate every day. Her blood pressure is normal. That's one data point — but it's consistent with what the research says.
2. Supports Brain Function and Focus
The same mechanism that improves blood flow to the heart also improves blood flow to the brain. Better circulation means more oxygen and nutrients reaching brain cells — which supports cognitive function, focus, and mental clarity.
Cacao also contains phenylethylamine — a compound the brain naturally produces during positive emotional states. It's part of why people feel good after eating chocolate. In pure form, without the sugar crash that follows commercial chocolate, that mood support is gentler and more sustained.
For anyone who starts the morning feeling foggy — a cup of pure sikwate is a genuinely useful alternative to a third cup of coffee.
3. Rich in Antioxidants
Pure cacao contains more antioxidants per gram than green tea and red wine — two foods regularly celebrated for their antioxidant content. The primary antioxidants are polyphenols and flavonoids that neutralize free radicals — unstable molecules that damage cells and contribute to aging and disease.
For a household already dealing with heart disease history — my father died of cardiac arrest in 2006 after years of Type 2 diabetes — antioxidant-rich food at every meal is not indulgence. It's practical health management.
4. Contains Essential Minerals
Pure cacao is a meaningful source of magnesium, iron, zinc, and potassium.
Magnesium supports muscle function, nerve transmission, blood sugar regulation, and — importantly — heart rhythm. Most Filipinos are deficient in magnesium without realizing it, because it's poorly represented in a typical rice-heavy diet.
Iron supports red blood cell production and energy. Zinc supports immune function and wound healing. Potassium helps regulate blood pressure alongside sodium.
A daily cup of pure sikwate quietly contributes to all of these — without any supplement required.
5. Supports Skin Health
This one surprises people. But the flavonoids in cacao improve blood circulation to the skin, support moisture retention, and provide some protection against UV damage. The antioxidants also help neutralize the oxidative stress that accelerates skin aging.
I wrote about cacao as a skin food in the breakfast and skin food posts on this blog. The science is consistent — pure cacao does things for the skin that no topical product can fully replicate, because it works from the inside.
My wife has a full skincare routine. Mom has tablea. Both approaches are doing real work. 😄
Pure Tablea vs Commercial Hot Chocolate — The Clear Difference
This is the summary every Filipino needs to share with the relative who keeps warning them about blood pressure:
| Pure Tablea | Commercial Hot Choco Mix | |
|---|---|---|
| Main ingredient | 100% cacao | Sugar, milk powder, cacao (usually 3rd ingredient) |
| Flavonoids | High | Low to very low |
| Added sugar | None | Very high |
| Blood pressure effect | Supports lower BP | Can raise BP over time |
| What it tastes like | Bitter, earthy, rich | Sweet, mild, familiar |
The bitterness of pure tablea is not a flaw. It's the flavonoids. It's the medicine. The sweeter the chocolate, the less of what makes it actually good for you is still present.
How We Drink It at Home
She drinks it black or with a small amount of fresh milk. No sugar in the sikwate itself — sometimes a piece of something alongside it, but the drink is pure.
In the evening, she mixes in Quaker Oats — the combination we also documented in the breakfast foods post. The oats add fiber and a beta-glucan that supports cholesterol management. Together with the cacao flavonoids, it's a genuinely useful evening routine for cardiovascular health.
A Note on Where to Get Real Tablea
Not all tablea is the same. Commercial tablea sold at supermarkets sometimes contains fillers, added sugar, or has been processed in ways that reduce the flavonoid content significantly.
The most reliable source is local — tablea from Bohol, Cebu, or Davao made by small producers from single-origin cacao. If you're near a public market, ask specifically for puro tablea — no sugar, no fillers.
If you're buying packaged tablea, read the ingredients. Pure tablea should have one ingredient: cacao.
Mavs' Final Diagnosis
Thirty-five years of daily sikwate. An 80-year-old Boholana who still moves around the kitchen like she's in her 50s. Normal blood pressure. Active. Alert. Occasionally opinionated about how everyone else should be living. 😄
The science supports what she's been doing her whole life without knowing the scientific names for any of it. Flavonoids, nitric oxide, vasodilation — she doesn't know these words. She just knows that her morning isn't complete without the bornejo and the batirol and the thick dark foam on top of her cup.
If you've been avoiding tablea because someone told you it would raise your blood pressure — please send them this post. The worry is about the wrong product.
Buy pure tablea. Boil it. Whisk it. Drink it without guilt.
Your heart, your brain, and your skin will all quietly say thank you.
Disclaimer: This post is for general health awareness and is not medical advice. If you have existing cardiovascular conditions or are on blood pressure medication, consult your doctor before making dietary changes.
Do you drink sikwate at home? Is it from store-bought tablea or homemade? I'd love to hear your family's cacao tradition in the comments.
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