By Philippa Roxby, Health reporter, BBC News
26 July 2013 Last updated at 23:39 GMT
For most of us, chocolate is a guilty pleasure. We crave it because it
tastes wonderful and sweet - although we know we should really be stretching
for the fruit bowl.
The British are particularly fond of chocolate. Research shows that, on
average, Britons enjoy about 11kg (24lb) of chocolate a year, making the UK one
of the biggest consumers of chocolate in the world. Only the Swiss and Germans
eat more.
But a recent study suggests that chocolate cravings are not a modern
phenomenon. In fact, chocoholism may date back to the 18th Century and beyond. Cacao
beans, which are the basic component of chocolate, were roasted, ground and
drunk with water by the Mayans from around 2,000 years ago.
In the 14th Century, the Aztecs concocted chocolate drinks with
flavourings and used the beans to treat a number of common ailments. Then in
the late 1700s in Mexico, a young doctor started seeing chocolate as harmful,
rather than medicinal. He blamed an increase in hysteria among women and nuns
in several cities on their excessive consumption of chocolate.
Was this actually an extreme form of chocolate craving?
According to a paper presented at the International Congress on the
History of Science, Technology and Medicine at the University of Manchester
this weekend, cacao was very popular at the time and could be served hot or
cold for medicinal or pleasure purposes.
Nuns were particularly privileged, says author Dr Mauricio Sanchez
Menchero, and they "were able to have as much chocolate as they wished for
regardless of costs". Even a sharp rise in the price of chocolate did not
affect consumption levels in convents, he says.
So when new laws were brought in which forced nuns to do away with
personal servants and make their own food and drinks, their intake of cacao was
"greatly diminished" and they were afflicted by hysterical attacks.
Dr Jose Bartolache was convinced that the cacao plant played a major
role in ill health, although very tight clothes and going to bed late were
other supposed causes.
The bitter, dark chocolate eaten by the nuns is nothing like the
sugary, flavoured milk chocolate which is popular today - but the reaction is
understandable.
Many people would claim to crave chocolate and enjoy the feeling that
eating it induces. The key to this may be a chemical called anandamide, which
is similar to the compounds released when cannabis is taken. It is released in
small quantities when we eat chocolate and it creates a relaxing feeling.
Prof Philip K. Wilson, joint author of Chocolate as Medicine - A Quest
over the Centuries with Jeffrey Hurst, says what lies behind the aphrodisiac
qualities of chocolate is still to be answered.
"It's difficult to tease apart which chemicals may be contributing
to which psychological functions. There are over 500 chemicals in consumer
chocolate products, so there's a lifetime of chemical analysis still to be
done," says Prof Wilson.
His hunch is that the "almost seductive" texture of chocolate
is as important as its ingredients.
Dr Barry Smith, director of the Centre for the Study of the Senses at
Birkbeck University of London, agrees.
He says the combination of the smoothness and creaminess of chocolate
in the mouth, the sweetness of the taste - boosted by vanilla flavouring - and
the smell of it before it even hits the taste buds make chocolate-eating a
hugely pleasurable experience.
And this contrasts with other foods.
"Cheese might smell stinky but it can taste great. Brewed coffee
always smells fantastic but it's not the same taste when you drink it - and
that's disappointing.
"But with chocolate, the pleasure of anticipation and the reward
in eating it match up. The aroma and the taste are the same.
"And that matters because there are two sorts of pleasure
involved," says Dr Smith.
He recommends taking time to savour a piece of chocolate, then
comparing that experience with eating it quickly.
"When you start eating it, turn it around in your mouth to get the
melting quality which strokes the tongue.
"Receptors in the tongue then respond to this stroking and it's a
different feeling from touch.
"That's why we love a velvety wine or double cream - it's the
feeling on our tongues."
Both men and women can experience the pleasure of chocolate but women's
superior sense of smell means that they may be more likely to enjoy the ride. And
yet not all countries and cultures show cravings for chocolate. There is a
theory that because chocolate is perceived as "bad food" - because of
its sugar and fat content - we try to avoid eating it, and this leads us to
crave it, because it is forbidden.
However in recent years, chocolate's press has improved to the extent
that it is now known to have some health benefits. The type of polyphenols
present in cacao beans, known as flavanoids, are antioxidants and there is some
evidence that this action may help protect our hearts - but only as part of a
healthy and balanced diet.
As for whether chocolate can actually improve our mood, there is
limited evidence according to neuroscientists.
But millions of women (and nuns) can't be wrong, can they?
Top chocolate myths
Dark chocolate contains fewer
calories than milk chocolate
Both dark and milk chocolate contain roughly the same amount of
calories per 100g, which is about 550kcals. But dark chocolate contains more
cocoa, which has health benefits.
Chocolate gives you acne
Some people feel their skin health is more sensitive to chocolate, so
they prefer to avoid it, but there is no evidence that the two are linked.
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Chocolate causes migraines
Chocolate does contain small amounts of tyramine and phenylethylamine -
amino acids from the protein in chocolate - both of which can trigger a
migraine. However, there is no evidence to suggest that chocolate alone can
cause them.
Chocolate makes you fat
It all depends on how much you eat. Eating a large chocolate bar every
day on top of your usual daily intake could lead to some weight gain. However,
as part of a healthy and balanced diet including 30 minutes of exercise five
times a week, chocolate as a treat will not make you fat.
British Dietetic Association
Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-23449795
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