Chocolate has been getting some good press. It contains antioxidants called flavanols, which may help decrease a type of cell damage implicated in heart disease. Components in chocolate may lower your risk for stroke and diabetes, notes MayoClinic.com, although the evidence is preliminary. People sometimes find that eating chocolate makes them feel good, although the evidence for this effect is mixed. So this heretofore guilty pleasure may actually be a kind of health food. But don't make chocolate a big part of your diet just yet -- more research needs to be done to verify early findings.
Elevates Mood
Eating chocolate may elevate your mood, at least in part because of the pleasure of eating chocolate and the chocolate helping to decrease feelings of hunger, according to a study published in May 2006 in "Appetite." The study compared the effect of consuming an apple, chocolate or water, and found that chocolate caused mood to be elevated more than an apple or water. However, some people also experienced guilt after eating the chocolate, decreasing the mood elevation effect.
Cuts Stress, Anxiety and Depression
Trainee nurses who ate 50 grams of dark chocolate for three days reduced their stress, anxiety and depression levels more than those in the control group who drank mineral water instead of consuming chocolate, according to a study published in the "ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry" in 2011. The chocolate may increase serotonin levels and have a positive effect on brain neurotransmitters.
Types of Chocolate
While dark chocolate is the healthiest type of chocolate since it contains more of the beneficial flavanols and less sugar than milk chocolate, choose a type that tastes good to you to get the best mood uplift. Part of the effect of chocolate on mood is thanks to the fact that it tastes good, according to a study published in "Appetite" in November 2007. Participants who consumed palatable chocolate had greater increases in mood than those that had nothing or consumed unpalatable chocolate. However, increases in mood were only evident when people started out with a negative mood.
I chose this article because not many people know that there are health benefits to chocolate. Also, alot of people love chocolate, and it seemed fun! I feel like it is labeled as junk food even though there are health benefits, and this article showed them. I eat chocolate alot and it was nice to see the ingredients in the stuff I eat and what benefits they have.
Source: http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/feelgood-effects-chocolate-2975.html
When I started reading this article, I was very surprised that chocolate can actually decrease your risk of strokes and diabetes. Initially, I thought that fatty food like chocolate was the main cause of symptoms like diabetes. Honestly, chocolate is my favorite sweet, but my father only allows me to eat dark chocolate, as it is the chocolate that is most beneficial to health. I was very surprised that people actually get their mood uplifted by chocolate other than the fact they are feeling happy that they are eating it.
ReplyDeleteAs I kept reading this article, the more intrigued I was! Who knew that chocolate could help with anxiety and diabetes? Before, I used to think that chocolate was such a junk food, even dark chocolate, and I stayed away from it most of the time because of this, and I am still very surprised that it can help people. Anyways, this article is very informative and I can be apply this information to my lifestyle!
ReplyDeleteI am surprised! Who knew that chocolate, out of all the most "unhealthy" food, could actually benefit and eventually help out many people suffering from anxiety disorders and other mental health issues! This is a very valuable piece of information and since I always crave those tasty squares, who knows! Maybe i'll eat more than I did before!
ReplyDeleteGreat article! I am also a chocolate lover and although maybe eating too much of it maybe affect negatively to the body, I was surprised to see that it wasn't just me, but scientifically proven that chocolate does positively stimulate the body and could help anxiety and stress!
ReplyDeleteThis was a great article, I liked how you picked an interesting topic that many people can relate to. This is a great tip to use when your stressed out, and it is actually healthy which surprised me! Great Job!
ReplyDeleteBefore reading this article I thought that chocolate was unhealthy and detrimental to the body, but after reading I found it astonishing that chocolate helps to cure stress and anxiety. Before I thought that chocolate was bad for the body but now I can eat more chocolate.
ReplyDeleteNice job! Being a chocolate lover myself as well, I found it interesting that chocolate may have positive affects on the consumer, even reducing damage caused by heart disease, as a common belief is that chocolate is very unhealthy and should be avoided. I also found it interesting how chocolate affects different people in different ways. While some people's moods were significantly elevated after consuming chocolate, others felt guilty after eating chocolate. I think that this is an interesting topic that many teens would be curious about, as many of us love chocolate!
ReplyDeleteAll my life, people told me not to eat chocolate because it would make me fat and make my teeth fall out. However, after reading this I realize that chocolate isn't as extreme as people make it sound, but in fact it is healthy and makes you happy. What else could a person want?
ReplyDeleteThis is so awesome!! When I was little, my parents told me if I ate one more piece of chocolate that I would turn into a piece. Now I can use this against them, and say that there are health benefits to my chocolate obsession. I love how you chose a topic that a teen would actually care about at all. Great job!!
ReplyDeleteThis whole time I was living under the impression that chocolate was an unhealthy food that leads obesity, high blood pressure, etc., but know after having read this article I have a completely different view on chocolate. Who knew chocolate could cut anxiety and stress, and elevate your mood. The next time I'm told not to eat chocolate, I will have credible reasons to support my cravings for chocolate.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that chocolate has both positive and negative affects on the human body. I understand that one of the main reasons chocoalte is considered "unhealhty" isbecause it makes people gain weight. However, that is only for the excessive consumption of it. Like all foods, eating too much of it is never healthy. Chocolate is no different. It's nice to know that such a popular type of food has beneficial affects that come with it.
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting, contrary to the popular belief of chocolate being labeled an unhealthy-food, I learned that consuming small amounts of chocolate has its benefits. Although the studies you referred to had a considerably small sample size, making me question the validity.
ReplyDeleteI found this very interesting! Chocolate has such a bad reputation that it is great to know that the consumption of it has many positive effects on the body, despite what many people think. The psychological aspect of eating chocolate is certainly very comforting.
ReplyDeleteI had always known that dark chocolate was the healthiest kind of chocolate, but this article also informed me of many other thinks I had never known. Considering heart disease is such a big problem today, the fact that a sugar-filled chocolate bar could help prevent this is amazing as well as controversial. Great job on the article.
ReplyDeleteAs a chocolate lover myself, I found this article interesting, yet it is always important to note that like any other food--too much of anything is never healthy for the human body. However, this article both comforted and confirmed my outlook on my favorite junk/pastime food. :)
ReplyDeleteI think the one thing to remember here is to not over consume chocolate. Yes, chocolate does have real health benefits, and not just ones made by people who are in self denial, but if you were to eat "chocolate" with tons of added sugar (i.e. any American chocolate), I don't think you're going to get many health benefits out of that.
ReplyDeleteI wish the same benefits applied to milk chocolate. Dark chocolate is very bitter and in my opinion is not very tasty. Great post though! It's nice to see that chocolate helps relieve stress and elevates your mood :)
ReplyDeleteIf only i liked dark chocolate, however wonderful insight into how what was believed to be something people just said as an excuse actually has some scientific background
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