CHOCOLATE – CAN YOUR PASSION ALSO BE GOOD FOR YOU?

Do you have the chocolate-lover’s gene? Are you hard-wired to salivate when you see it, smell it, read about it, hear people talking about it, or merely think about it? If you’re like me, the answer is a resounding YES! But most things that give us so much pleasure are “bad” for us. We even describe them as “sinful.” Does our beloved chocolate fall into that category? Does it have anything going for it other than the obvious joy it brings us? Here are some things you may not know:

• Chocolate stimulates the secretion of endorphins, producing a pleasurable sensation similar to a "runner's high."

• Chocolate contains a neurotransmitter, serotonin, that acts as an anti-depressant. In fact, there are over 300 chemicals contained in chocolate that make us feel so good!

• Dark chocolate can help lower blood pressure -- if you've reached a certain age and have mild hypertension.

• Dark chocolate contains an antioxidant called flavanol, which keeps oxygen free radicals from damaging your cells.

Are you tempted to start replacing healthy foods with chocolate? Something from the three main food groups – milk, dark, and white – at each meal? Be careful! Chocolate still contains a lot of fat and calories, so you’ll have to eat less of other things. A 100-gram bar of a well-known Special Dark Chocolate has 531 calories, while a 100-gram apple has only 52 calories. But think about it…would you want to miss out on the delicious blood pressure and other health benefits?

Take two bars and call me in the morning!!