What is in chocolate that makes you feel so good?

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summerkissed
summerkissed Posts: 730 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Ok so you have a stressful day and all you can think about is eating chocolate....why?? What is in chocolate that makes you feel good?? Is it the sugar? I'm thinking no otherwise anything sweet would do the trick! Is it in the cocoa? If so can it be added to anything to get that high???.....Why is it so hard to stop at one little bite??? It's just so gooood!!!! I want to know so I can make all food that good!!!

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  • gainer39911
    gainer39911 Posts: 125 Member
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    Endorphins. Here's a link: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-connection-between-chocolate-and-endorphins.htm#didyouknowout. If you search for "chocolate" and "endorphins" you will find many more.
  • amberlyda1
    amberlyda1 Posts: 154 Member
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    i stole this

    TRYPTOPHAN

    This amino acid is found in small quantities in chocolate and is used by the brain to make serotonin, the neurotransmitter that can produce feelings of happiness.

    PHENYLETHYLALANINE

    Promotes feelings of attraction, excitement and nervousness and is associated with the initial euphoria of falling in love. It has also been isolated in chocolate.
    This chemical also acts as an anti-depressant by combining with dopamine that is naturally present in the brain.

    THEOBROMINE

    A weak stimulant that works alongside caffeine to produce the characteristic ‘high’ that many people experience after getting their chocolate fix.
    Scientists at the Neurosciences Institute in San Diego suggest that chocolate contains substances that produce a cannabis-like effect on the brain.
    But don’t get too excited - you would have to ingest more than 25 pounds of chocolate in one sitting to get ‘high’ in the same way.

    ANOTHER REASON TO BE PLEASED

    Scientists have confirmed that dark chocolate is beneficial for our health. The greater cocoa content provides high concentrations of antioxidants called flavonoids, which reportedly prevent cancers, protect blood vessels, promote cardiac health, and counteract high blood pressure.
  • summerkissed
    summerkissed Posts: 730 Member
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    EAT MORE CHOCOLATE
  • tiptoethruthetulips
    tiptoethruthetulips Posts: 3,365 Member
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    But we probably wouldn't eat as much if there wasn't sugar or fat in it :)
  • randomsue
    randomsue Posts: 179 Member
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    tiptoethruthetulips wrote: »
    But we probably wouldn't eat as much if there wasn't sugar or fat in it :)

    True! Eat a very dark chocolate, knocks the craving right out lol
  • MommyL2015
    MommyL2015 Posts: 1,411 Member
    edited November 2015
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    I read or heard somewhere that when you eat chocolate, the same chemicals are released as when you have an orgasm. I don't care if that's really true or not but I'll go with it! :)
  • LolBroScience
    LolBroScience Posts: 4,537 Member
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    Happiness crystals
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
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    MommyL2015 wrote: »
    I read or heard somewhere that when you eat chocolate, the same chemicals are released as when you have an orgasm. I don't care if that's really true or not but I'll go with it! :)

    Clearly I've been eating the wrong chocolate.
  • summerkissed
    summerkissed Posts: 730 Member
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    tiptoethruthetulips wrote: »
    But we probably wouldn't eat as much if there wasn't sugar or fat in it :)

    I like dark chocolate as well.....but it's the milk chocolate that gets me! Mmmmmm yummy
  • summerkissed
    summerkissed Posts: 730 Member
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    MommyL2015 wrote: »
    I read or heard somewhere that when you eat chocolate, the same chemicals are released as when you have an orgasm. I don't care if that's really true or not but I'll go with it! :)

    Mmmmm yeah nah lol I don't want to take this thread under the table so I'll shut my mouth now haha
  • summerkissed
    summerkissed Posts: 730 Member
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    All the reading I've done have come up with a couple of reasons but why can't the same effect be gotten by some cocoa added to a protein sha
    gainer39911 wrote: »
    Endorphins. Here's a link: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-connection-between-chocolate-and-endorphins.htm#didyouknowout. If you search for "chocolate" and "endorphins" you will find many more.

    I think this guy is onto something his reply to the article...I've been wondering about this myself:

    2) @chivebasil - Good points. I heard a speaker on the radio the other day who was talking about a book that he had just written. His basic thesis is that one of the reasons that obesity is becoming such a problem worldwide is that processed foods are engineered to work on our body like drugs.

    They contain careful combinations of fats, salts sugars and starches which have a deep psychological effect on us. They make us feel happy, safe, unbored, all kinds of feeling that go way beyond being hungry or full. So people end up over eating because they are looking for emotion and psychological satisfaction
  • dianaiku
    dianaiku Posts: 96 Member
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    randomsue wrote: »
    tiptoethruthetulips wrote: »
    But we probably wouldn't eat as much if there wasn't sugar or fat in it :)

    True! Eat a very dark chocolate, knocks the craving right out lol

    This.
  • gmallan
    gmallan Posts: 2,099 Member
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    summerkissed wrote: »
    All the reading I've done have come up with a couple of reasons but why can't the same effect be gotten by some cocoa added to a protein sha
    gainer39911 wrote: »
    Endorphins. Here's a link: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-connection-between-chocolate-and-endorphins.htm#didyouknowout. If you search for "chocolate" and "endorphins" you will find many more.

    I think this guy is onto something his reply to the article...I've been wondering about this myself:

    2) @chivebasil - Good points. I heard a speaker on the radio the other day who was talking about a book that he had just written. His basic thesis is that one of the reasons that obesity is becoming such a problem worldwide is that processed foods are engineered to work on our body like drugs.

    They contain careful combinations of fats, salts sugars and starches which have a deep psychological effect on us. They make us feel happy, safe, unbored, all kinds of feeling that go way beyond being hungry or full. So people end up over eating because they are looking for emotion and psychological satisfaction

    I agree, it's more than the cocoa. I think it's the combination between all of the effects of the cocoa (chemical effects in the brain) with the highly palatable combination of fat and sugar (the combination of the two has been shown to be way more palatable than either alone). I too know can control myself better with dark chocolate as opposed to milk. Big chocolate companies likely spend tonnes of money researching ways to make chocolate harder to stop eating in order to get us to consume more. The perfect combination of fat and sugar, the perfect creamy mouth feel, perfect smell, block size, packaging, marketing are all researched and applied to make us want more.

    Damnit, now I want chocolate. Hopefully I can resist the chocolate box in the tea room
  • summerkissed
    summerkissed Posts: 730 Member
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    gmallan wrote: »
    summerkissed wrote: »
    All the reading I've done have come up with a couple of reasons but why can't the same effect be gotten by some cocoa added to a protein sha
    gainer39911 wrote: »
    Endorphins. Here's a link: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-connection-between-chocolate-and-endorphins.htm#didyouknowout. If you search for "chocolate" and "endorphins" you will find many more.

    I think this guy is onto something his reply to the article...I've been wondering about this myself:

    2) @chivebasil - Good points. I heard a speaker on the radio the other day who was talking about a book that he had just written. His basic thesis is that one of the reasons that obesity is becoming such a problem worldwide is that processed foods are engineered to work on our body like drugs.

    They contain careful combinations of fats, salts sugars and starches which have a deep psychological effect on us. They make us feel happy, safe, unbored, all kinds of feeling that go way beyond being hungry or full. So people end up over eating because they are looking for emotion and psychological satisfaction

    I agree, it's more than the cocoa. I think it's the combination between all of the effects of the cocoa (chemical effects in the brain) with the highly palatable combination of fat and sugar (the combination of the two has been shown to be way more palatable than either alone). I too know can control myself better with dark chocolate as opposed to milk. Big chocolate companies likely spend tonnes of money researching ways to make chocolate harder to stop eating in order to get us to consume more. The perfect combination of fat and sugar, the perfect creamy mouth feel, perfect smell, block size, packaging, marketing are all researched and applied to make us want more.

    Damnit, now I want chocolate. Hopefully I can resist the chocolate box in the tea room

    Dam you...now I want chocolate lol my choc protein just won't be enough!!
  • summerkissed
    summerkissed Posts: 730 Member
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    catscats222 wrote: »
    off answer: it is high in magnesium
    it can relax your body - just like an epson salt bath might
    more than half of americans are not getting the rda of magnesium - from wiki, magnesium, health

    Yes I did read that in one of the articles I was reading!! I used to take magnesium for my muscle cramps.

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