Great reasons for eating chocolate, according to science
Most people, when eating a chocolate rabbit, start with the ears. Photo: Getty
Where did heavenly chocolate really come from? Apparently, it was the second last miracle of Jesus.
Nearly 60 years ago, I heard this persuasive Easter folk tale from a Sunday school teacher in far-west NSW.
On the day of Christ’s crucifixion, a big crowd gathered on the hill. Some of these were recreational rabble-rousers. Others were supporters and family members.
As the clouds gathered and the sky darkened, it seemed it might rain. Instead of water pouring out of the clouds, everyone started to cry buckets of tears, even the centurions.
All the tears pooled together and flowed down the hill and mixed with the dust and sand. A couple of days later the sad disciples were wandering aimlessly when they found the mud had become a miracle food.
This is where chocolate came from. All the stuff about bunnies and eggs was a marketing exercise.
The idea of chocolate being a miracle food, however … who can disagree?
Science has been catching up
As we’ve previously reported, accumulating evidence finds that chocolate is good for your heart, blood pressure and blood-sugar regulation. See here and here.
Some studies suggest that eating a little chocolate a day delivers these health benefits. Other studies are more exciting.
A 2011 study from the University of Cambridge found that “high levels of chocolate consumption might be associated with a one third reduction in the risk of developing heart disease”.
Specifically, the “highest levels of chocolate consumption were associated with a 37 per cent reduction in cardiovascular disease and a 29 per cent reduction in stroke compared with lowest levels”.
Even the scientists were startled by this finding. They urged caution until the results were replicated by other studies.
Even more exciting: dark chocolate may stave off artery hardening in smokers.
Improving your mood
Chocolate is commonly regarded as a comfort food. Stressed out by too many guests at Easter lunch? Eat some chocolate!
In the cross-sectional study, a range of other factors including height, weight, marital status, ethnicity, education, household income, physical activity, smoking and chronic health problems were also taken into account to ensure the study only measured chocolate’s effect on depressive symptoms.
After adjusting for these factors, it was found that individuals who reported eating any dark chocolate in two 24-hour periods had 70 per cent lower odds of reporting clinically relevant depressive symptoms than those who reported not eating chocolate at all.
The 25 per cent of chocolate consumers who ate the most chocolate (of any kind, not just dark) were also less likely to report depressive symptoms than those who didn’t eat chocolate at all.
Chocolate beats the midday slump
A 2015 study from Northern Arizona University suggests that chocolate can increase brain characteristics of attention, and may be a useful tool in beating the midday slump at the office.
The study involved 122 participants aged between 18 and 25.
They were hooked to an electroencephalogram (EEG), which measures the electrical activity of the brain, and fed a 60 per cent cacao confection.
The researchers wanted to investigate if the participants who consumed the chocolate (compared to those in a control group) “would see an immediate stimulant effect”.
Indeed they did. Their brains were immediately more alert and attentive.
When scientists talk about chocolate, they usually mean cacao, and not the sugars and fats. Given it’s a holy holiday, let’s not quibble on that matter.
People who eat chocolate are thinner
Katherine Hepburn famously said of her slim physique: “What you see before you is the result of a lifetime of chocolate.”
A daring 2012 study from the University of California set out to prove Hepburn right. Researchers hypothesized that modest, regular chocolate consumption might be calorie-neutral.
In other words, “the metabolic benefits of eating modest amounts of chocolate might lead to reduced fat deposition per calorie and approximately offset the added calories”.
The researchers examined the diet, mood and activity levels of 1000 adult men and women, whose weight and height were measured.
They proved themselves correct
They found that adults who ate chocolate on more days a week were actually thinner (had a lower body mass index) than those who ate chocolate less often.
The size of the effect was modest but the effect was ‘significant’. This means it was “larger than could be explained by chance”.
This was despite the fact that those who ate chocolate more often did not eat fewer calories (they ate more), nor did they exercise more.
Indeed, no differences in behaviours were identified that might explain the finding as a difference in calories taken in versus calories expended.
A 2021 study similarly found chocolate was good for the waistline.
Brush your teeth with chocolate
A 2007 from Tulane University found that an extract of cocoa powder could be an effective natural alternative to fluoride in toothpaste.
Indeed, the research revealed that “the cocoa extract was even more effective than fluoride in fighting cavities”.
The extract, a white crystalline powder whose chemical makeup is similar to caffeine, helps harden teeth enamel, making users less susceptible to tooth decay.
The researchers boldly suggested that “cocoa extract could offer the first major innovation to commercial toothpaste since manufacturers began adding fluoride to toothpaste in 1914”.
The doctoral student leading the study had already created a prototype of peppermint-flavoured toothpaste with the cavity-fighting cocoa extract added.
