What's So Special About Chocolate?

Virtually everyone likes chocolate, and no other food resembles chocolate in flavour, aroma and texture. Chocolate is also highest on the list of foods subject to cravings. So why is it our mouths start watering when we see chocolate? How come so many people experience cravings for chocolate? This article sums up some of the most plausible theories as to why we like chocolate.

Chocolate has a sweet taste and a fatty texture that gives a melting sensation in the mouth. These characteristics match two of our innate preferences, which makes chocolate one of the most palatable foods. Ice cream shares these characteristics with chocolate, and they both appear on the top of lists of most frequently craved foods. A theory behind the preference for such foods is that when they are eaten the brain releases a substance called beta-endorphin (an opioid peptide), which in turn could be the driving force behind the pleasurable effects of palatable foods.

Traditionally, chocolate is viewed as a luxury food, and is used for example as a treat or bribe. As a result, chocolate may become a highly desired food in situations where one has learnt to use chocolate as a comforter, an anti-depressive or to relieve boredom.

Chocolate's drugs: caffeine and theobromine.

Chocolate contains bioactive compounds, such as caffeine and theobromine.  Caffeine is only present in small amounts in chocolate - you would have to eat about eight 100g bars of milk chocolate to consume the amount of caffeine present in a cup of coffee! Theobromine is related to caffeine, and is present in chocolate in much higher amounts, although it has relatively weak stimulant effects. It is possible that in combination, these and other potentially bioactive constituents, influence our liking for chocolate. However there is no current direct evidence to support this idea.

A vicious circle...

The pleasurable experience of eating chocolate can alter mood by directly producing a feeling of well-being and by distracting us from feelings such as anxiety and depression. In turn, relief from distressing mood states could reinforce liking for chocolate. These changes in mood could be related to any of the previous theories.

Naughty but nice?

Chocolate is often considered ‘naughty but nice’. The ‘naughty’ part tells you not to eat chocolate when you believe chocolate is bad for you. For example, although it is not proven, people believe that chocolate makes you fat or gives you spots. The ‘nice’ part tells you that you really like it and that you want it. Putting a strong restraint on chocolate intake may simply make it even more difficult to resist. Chocolate is sometimes described as ‘moreish’ - tasting chocolate leads to a desire to eat more. This perception may be closely related to the belief that chocolate should be eaten with restraint. Typically the portion sizes regarded as appropriate for chocolate are very small compared to staple foods.

It appears to be our attitude towards chocolate that is special, not chocolate itself.

Chocolate is probably not essentially different from any other delicious food and is best viewed in the context of the variety of foods that make up our whole diet. While some people will try to ban chocolate from their diets, remember: happiness makes you healthier, too.

Why chocolate isn't forbidden … the answer lies in cocoa butter, which soothes like olive oil.

We have Christopher Columbus to thank for introducing cocoa beans to the European palate in the 15th century. But it fell to several American medical researchers recently to reveal that indulging a chocolate habit may be a reasonably healthy thing to do. Not that anyone is recommending that you substitute chocolate for fruits and vegetables, but when it comes to your heart's health, certain types of chocolate seem to have the same health benefiting effect as olive oil.

This is surprising since chocolate is high in saturated fatty acids, which normally boost blood cholesterol levels sharply, clogging arteries and paving the way for heart attacks. But chocolate is made of cocoa butter, a saturated fatty acid unusual for its large amounts of stearic acid. When stearic acid enters the digestive system, the liver to oleic acid, a substance that is also found in olive and canola oils and that has no ill effects on blood cholesterol levels, converts it.

The Chocolate Research Centre - let me in!

In a recent study by Dr. Penny Kris-Etherton of Pennsylvania State University, subjects who followed a diet rich in cocoa butter saw no rise in their blood cholesterol levels; the same results were observed in participants on a diet rich in olive oil. But a group with a diet rich in butter experienced clear increases in its cholesterol readings.

Dark chocolate is healthier than milk chocolate because milk chocolate includes not only cocoa butter but also milk-based butterfat. Some chocolate products like cocoa mixes and chocolate bar coatings may also use tropical oils like coconut and palm oil, which also boost cholesterol counts. But if you're eating dark chocolate, two or three chocolate bars a week pose no real heart risk, according to researcher Scott Grundy of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Centre, where much of the chocolate study is still taking place...

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Reference Source: yummyco.com

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