[HPforGrownups] Re: Chocolate

[heidi]

No: HPFGUIDX 2574

This is from WebMD.com:
(I apologize for the formatting)

> Your friend IS on a drug, and it's probably
>                    chocolate. Chocolate is an herbal medicinal, like
>                    coffee, tea and other herbal medicines. Just
>                    because it's a common part of our culture does
>                    not mean that it can't have real medicinal
>                    properties. This ancient native Central
>                    American delicacy was considered by the
>                    Mayas, Incas and Aztecs as a "gift of the gods,"
>                    touted for its stimulant and aphrodisiac qualities.
>                    But as with many things in life, chocolate is
>                    neither a god nor a devil. I'll give you all the
>                    details. Stick with me, this one is chock full of
>                    factoids.
>
>                           Various preparations of the Mexican cacao tree
>                    (Theobroma cacao) bean have been enjoyed for at
>                    least 1,000 years. It was only for the very wealthy in
>                    Aztec society, and cocoa beans were as close as they
>                    ever got to having a currency. In 1828, a Dutch food
>                    chemist perfected the technique of mixing cocoa
>                    powder with cocoa butter, so it would melt in your
>                    mouth. In 1878, the Swiss added milk to make our
>                    modern milk chocolate. The average American
>                    consumes 11.5 pounds of chocolate per year,
>                    whereas the Swiss consume twice this amount.
>                    Chocolate is by far the most craved substance in our
>                    culture, with 40 percent of women and 15 percent of
>                    men admitting to regular chocolate cravings.
>                           Now, researchers have taken this "addictive"
>                    quality of chocolate quite seriously. It turns out that
>                    there are a number of substances in chocolate that
>                    can affect our brain chemistry -- genuine
>                    pharmacological agents. Over 400 discrete
>                    compounds have been found in this stuff, and many of
>                    them can affect how you feel. A couple of
>                    compounds, called biogenic amines, are chemically
>                    related to adrenaline and amphetamine and show the
>                    ability to regulate mood and depression. Addicts
>                    weaned from the abuse drug "ecstasy" (MDMA)
>                    have been shown to develop strong chocolate
>                    cravings in response to getting clean.
>                           The sweet and fat in chocolate may directly
>                    stimulate brain opiate receptors, the same brain cells
>                    that respond to heroin and morphine. If that weren't
>                    bad enough, certain fatty acids in chocolate have
>                    been shown to activate the same receptors in the
>                    brain that are affected by marijuana. This compound,
>                    called anandamine, may activate the parts of the brain
>                    that respond to both cannabis and opiates, enhancing
>                    possible mood changes after a chocolate bar.
>                           The sugar in chocolate is usually table sugar,
>                    which isn't as bad as the high fructose corn syrup that
>                    sweetens almost everything else in our grocery stores.
>                    And the fat in chocolate does not seem to increase
>                    cholesterol levels. According to one report, it may
>                    actually raise the good form of cholesterol (HDL) and
>                    drop a bad form of fat (triglycerides) due to the high
>                    content of stearic acid in the cocoa butter.
>                           There is caffeine in chocolate, but only about 10
>                    milligrams per average 1.65-ounce bar, compared to
>                    about 80 mg in a cup of coffee. I wouldn't worry
>                    about this amount keeping you up all night. But there
>                    is a chemically related compound called theobromine
>                    as well, and this may enhance the caffeine effect.
>                           So, why do so many women crave chocolate
>                    just before their menstrual cycle? Now this gets
>                    interesting. It turns out that hormonal fluctuations can
>                    change a woman's brain chemistry, fat stores and
>                    appetite. She may crave sweet, high-fat foods at this
>                    time, so chocolate is a perfect choice. This
>                    carbohydrate-and-fat jolt can increase brain
>                    serotonin, the chemical responsible for depression
>                    and mood. In addition, chocolate is very high in
>                    magnesium, which has been shown to help with
>                    premenstrual symptoms. Experience teaches her that
>                    it's a perfect PMS food.
>                           What about chocolate being good for
>                    you? Well, it's not quite a health food, but it
>                    may be better for you than many other
>                    vices. Cocoa is packed full of a surprising number of
>                    antioxidants (compounds that can protect living tissue
>                    from chemical damage). A major one, called
>                    catechin, may help protect you from cardiovascular
>                    disease and cancer. It is also found in tea, but there
>                    are four times the levels of catechins in chocolate
>                    compared to black tea. The flavonoids in cocoa may
>                    thin your blood slightly and act as a mild
>                    anti-inflammatory. Chocolate's procyanidins have the
>                    ability to relax blood vessels, possibly decreasing
>                    internal arterial wall damage. And one average
>                    chocolate bar has the same level of the antioxidant
>                    phenols found in a glass of red wine.
>                           Now that you're all ready to run out and stock
>                    up on chocolate bars, let me remind you of the
>                    downside. Chocolate can increase stomach acid
>                    reflux and irritable bowel symptoms and cause
>                    allergic reactions, skin outbreaks, weight gain and
>                    dental cavities. Some patients say that chocolate can
>                    trigger a migraine headache. Though it does contain
>                    some tyramine, a common migraine trigger, a
>                    well-controlled study from the University of
>                    Pittsburgh in 1997 did not show chocolate to cause
>                    headaches.
>                           So what's the bottom line? Chocolate clearly has
>                    many properties of an herbal medicine and an unusual
>                    food. It is not the great evil that many people thought,
>                    and may actually be better for us than we ever
>                    realized. Of course, exercise is still the best mood
>                    enhancer I know of, and your daily diet shouldn't
>                    treat chocolate as one of the major food groups. But
>                    occasional to regular indulgence in moderate amounts
>                    is probably not a big deal. Our other cultural vices
>                    cause much illness and injury. Drug and alcohol abuse
>                    are rampant. So if you're going to be stepping up to a
>                    bar, you may want to make it a chocolate bar.
>


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