Chocolate Happiness

Everyone loves the sensations of happiness that a delicious piece of chocolate gives.   Chocolate never fails to create feelings of well-being throughout the body. 

The use of chocolate as a cure for emotional stress has gotten new support from a clinical trial. The trial found that eating about an ounce and a half of dark chocolate a day for two weeks reduced levels of stress hormones.

The researchers found that eating 40 grams of dark chocolate (Nestle brand Noir Intense, consisting of 74 percent cocoa solids) every day for two weeks affected the way stress hormones were metabolized.

Does chocolate make you happy by effecting the brain?

Researchers have  found that chocolate has  the property of increasing levels of serotonin and dopamine in the brain. Both of these neurotransmitters in the brain cause feelings of happiness and well being. 

Neurotransmitters are the molecules that transmit signals between neurons. The amounts of particular neurotransmitters we have at any given time can have a great impact on our mood. 

Chocolate affects the levels of endorphins in the brain. Eating chocolate increases the levels of endorphins released into the brain. The endorphins work to lessen pain and decrease stress. 

Another common neurotransmitter affected by chocolate is serotonin.Serotonin is known as an anti-depressant. When serotonin is released it produces feelings of joy, excitement, and in some cases,  a state  of ecstasy.

One of the more unique neurotransmitters released by chocolate is phenylethylamine (PEA), an internal stimulant and antidepressant. It causes changes in blood pressure and blood-sugar levels leading to feelings of excitement and alertness . 

Phenylethylamine is also called the "love drug" because it causes your pulse rate to quicken, resulting in a similar feeling to when someone is in love . After eating a delicious piece of  chocolate, this chemical instructs the brain to give you feelings of happiness, attraction and a positive mood.

Chocolate has a long history associated with feelings of well being. It has been favored by people ranging from the ancient Aztecs to high society Victorians to Popes.

The Mayans and later the Aztecs believed that cocoa was the food of the gods. They believed that chocolate transmitted knowledge and power to those who consumed it.

They roasted the cocoa beans and then pounded them to a paste. The paste was mixed with spices, capsicum pepper and flavorings and diluted with water and drunk or was used to make cakes. 

Chocolate itself was reserved for warriors, nobility and priests.Aztec taxation was levied in cacao beans. 100 cacao beans could buy a slave. 12 cacao beans bought the services of courtesan.

I think it is quite fascinating that a food such as chocolate can have such an effect on our brain and our perceptions of the world. As I type these words I am eating dark, Belgian chocolate flecked with tangy bits of raspberry. 

It leaves a satisfying aftertaste. It slakes a desire for something sweet at the end of lunch. And, if you can believe an armload of recent studies, it's making me healthier. 

And, I find myself reaching over to the chocolate stash whenever I start feeling a little depressed or overwhelmed and it always seems to make me feel better.