The Chocolate Craving: Sugar High or Self Medication?

Market researchers have reported that nine out of ten people say that they like chocolate. Of those, 50 percent admit that they crave chocolate. Obviously, chocolate is a great business to be in, especially since it has proved time and again to be one of the few recession-proof products out there.

In fact, in the few seconds that have passed since you started reading this article, more than 17,000 people around the world will have eaten chocolate. That’s right, over a billion people every day eat chocolate in one form or another.

What is it about chocolate that makes people rave, crave, and be a slave to it? Some will blame it on the caffeine that chocolate is reported to contain. Others will blame it on the high sugar content. But few people realize that chocolate—real chocolate—is a complex whole food that contains more than 300 different chemicals, many of which have been proven scientifically to have a beneficial effect on mood.

Processed correctly, chocolate can be a minimal-caffeine, low-glycemic food taken as part of a healthy lifestyle—mind, spirit and body.

A study published in the British Journal of Psychiatry noted that almost half of people suffering from depression had cravings for chocolate; most of those said that chocolate improved their mood, and made them less anxious and irritable.

So, getting back to our first question: what is it about chocolate that makes people feel so good?
Known as “Dr. Chocolate,” Dr. Steven Warren, MD is an acknowledged expert on the health benefits of chocolate, speaking to thousands around the world about what he calls “the miracle cocoa.”

According to Dr. Warren, chocolate contains a wonderful mix of compounds and chemicals that benefit the brain and have a positive effect on our mood and emotional stability.
“One chemical in chocolate is phenylethylamine, or PEA for short,” says Dr. Warren. “This is known as the ‘love chemical,’ because it results in an increased sense of awareness, well-being and contentment.”

Chocolate also contains anandamide, which is called the “bliss chemical.” Some research points to this chemical being responsible for “runner’s high”—a sense of euphoria experienced by long-distance endurance athletes.

Even with the current and emerging research on chocolate, doctors and nutritionists are hesitant to recommend chocolate as a diet staple or prescription against depression.
“Most chocolate on the market is high in sugars and added fats. Cheap candy chocolate pads the bottom line of the chocolate manufacturing companies, but really has little or no nutritional value,” states Dr. Warren.

Dr. Warren teaches that to be healthy, chocolate must contain a high level of cocoa—at least 75%. Also, the less processed the better. If at all possible, look for cold-pressed, dark chocolate that uses a low-glycemic sweetener.

“The research shows that chocolate—in the right formulation—can be a healthy part of your diet. I actually recommend that people take three servings of chocolate a day—as long as it’s the right kind of chocolate,” says Dr. Warren, who also serves as a medical adviser to MXI Corp, manufacturers of Xocai™ healthy chocolate.

To learn more about the benefits of healthy chocolate, contact Diana McCalla, an independent business owner distributing the Xocai™ line of healthy chocolate products. Diana can be reached at diana@cocoa101.com.