Valentine's Day Is Upon Us: Let's Talk About Chocolate
Posted: Sunday, February 13, 2011
by Linda LaVoire
Hi! My name is Linda and I am a chocoholic.
Actually, scientists say there is no such thing as a chocoholic but if there was I'd be one of the worst! I adore chocolate, in all forms, shapes, sizes and flavors. Chocolate contains a small amount of caffeine and, being allergic to caffeine, I have to limit my chocolate intake to very small quantities. This, I consider to be a blessing, because if I wasn't allergic I'd be as big as a barn, loving chocolate the way I do. Luckily my all time favorite is dark chocolate. We are going to discuss dark chocolate and the various health benefits it has.
Now, here are some benefits you may not be familiar with. Through some preliminary research it is now believed that dark chocolate may contribute to the lessening in severity of some conditions, such as fibromyalgia, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis and migraine headaches.
It is shown to give positive boosts to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL) - the good cholesterol and decreases in the levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) - the bad cholesterol. The studies focused on the production of a protein called apolipoprotein Al (ApoAl), the main component in good cholesterol and on apolipoprotein B (ApoB), the main component in bad cholesterol.
Chocolate is also believed, through clinical trials, to reduce stress hormones and other stress-related biochemical changes in study patients who were ranked as highly stressed. It has shown that eating approximately 1.5 ounces of dark chocolate per day can, within 2 weeks, reduce the stress levels in healthy humans.
Chocolate makes us happy. This has a scientific basis. The body releases endorphins when you eat chocolate. It is also known to help the body produce seratonin, known as the "happiness hormone", although it is not a hormone at all, but is a major contributor to our sense of well-being.
I have to add that dark chocolate is the only chocolate that is known to produce any health benefits. Milk chocolate and white chocolate do not share these benefits but I still love them. The darker the chocolate the better. Scientists state that chocolate containing 65 to 70% cocoa is the best. Eating 1.5 ounces per day seems to be the overall recommedation. That suits me just fine!
Just researching this article gave me a sense of well-being. Knowing that I can eat my chocolate and benefit my health at the same time makes me a very happy girl!
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Top-level comments on this article: (8 total)I didn't know eating chocolate had all these benifits.Enjoy with gusto David! :-) Thanks for reading and for the 5 stars!! Linda
Reading your article makes me happy, Linda! I'm thrilled to read that dark chocolate is the healthy one, I love it!!Ooooooo... me too!! ;-) Thanks for reading my article, Jen. (and for the 5 stars)... Enjoy your chocolate with a big smile on your face. You know you're doing something good for your body! Linda
Linda, you can sure blame your inherited genes for that chocolate craving. I could live on chocolate ...until I died from malnutrition. For years after your mother and I married, I always bought her decorative boxes of candy for each holiday and birthday. Then I ate the majority of it. I enjoyed your article.Thanks daddy! I remember those boxes of candy... and how pretty the empty boxes were hanging on the wall after you ate them up! hehehe... I'm glad you enjoyed the article and thanks for the 5 stars!
You and me both. :) Fun and informative article Linda. Hope that fellow with you in your picture, surprises you with some chocolate today! Have a good one!He's my hubby, Brianna. :-) and he did better than chocolate (I can't believe I said that, lol). He bought me the most beautiful ruby heart ring!!! :-[) Thanks for reading my article and for the nice words!Sweet!
Delicious article Linda. I enjoyed every savory moment.:-) Dark chocolate may be better for me, but milk chocolate makes me happy, happy, happy.:-)Hey, from one chocolate lover to another... I completely understand! ;-)... Thanks for reading my article and for the great comment! I hope you had a very chocolate Valentine's Day!
Linda, now I know why dark chocolate doesn't taste as good as milk chocolate :-) Great article, timely and beneficial! Well done! Blessings, TeresaThanks Teresa, for reading my article and commenting on it! I know that there are more milk chocolate lovers than there are dark but I'm the exception to the rule. I LOVE dark chocolate! (but then again I've always been a little 'bass ackwards')! LOL I'm glad you enjoyed reading this. Linda
hmmmmm... this page is freaking out on me lol
As a child I grew up with my uncle and aunt owning an import store. Manly eastern European foods--I grew up with the worlds best pastries (I think Austrian is the best) and the worlds finest chocolates too- (Swiss, German and Austrian being the best in my opinion). I have been disappointed since being a kid--lots of "bad chocolate"out there marketed as good...but I'll take what I can get. Cadbury was great too... originally from the UK I think---my fantasy is to fall in a 20 foot deep vat of chocolate one day and eat my way out--I guess you can tell I like chocolate!Oh my! That's a dream I could handle, Steve!! lol... Thanks for reading my article and for the great comment. You're right. The Swiss, German and Austrian chocolatiers seem to have the handle on the best chocolates out there but I don't know that I would turn my nose up at any chocolate. ;-)
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