What does eating chocolate
do to our brains?
7th September 2024
Authored by Weirdsmiths
Having been around in some form for over 5,000 years, chocolate has long been one of the most beloved treats on our planet. The production and consumption of chocolate may have changed throughout the millennia, but the core success of taking a cacao bean and turning it into something delicious has remained.
In the 21st century, chocolate is so widely available and relatively cheap that it is often poised in a negative light, especially when it comes to health. Looking specifically at milk chocolate, you will typically find it is high in calories, carbohydrates, sugar and saturated fats, with very little surface benefit; but, there’s more to chocolate than just the basic nutritional values.
Breaking it down
Chocolate itself really only comes in three variants: white, milk and dark; though there is technically a more recently discovered fourth variant: ruby. Each of these variations come with their own array of benefits and negatives in kind, with the key difference between them being the taste.
White chocolate is one of the more distinctly unique versions when it comes to appearance, often identifiable by its off-white, or even cream, colour. While it is often thought the chocolate possesses its colouring due to what it has inside, it is actually what it doesn’t have: cocoa solids. These solids are what give chocolate its brown colour and “chocolate” taste, with white chocolate having a softer and creamier texture with a more vanilla-like flavour.
Milk chocolate, on the other hand, does possess these solids, but usually not a massive amount in terms of the ratio of ingredients. Milk is typically seen as the favourite chocolate of all and is included in most chocolate bars, with a sweet non-bitter taste that most people will enjoy. This chocolate usually isn’t as smooth as white, but still relatively soft, making it easier to digest and a great ingredient for baked goods.
Dark chocolate is arguably the most basic version of the product, with little to no milk added to it and a high content of cocoa solids. It is often marketed as a vegan product due to its lack of dairy, and often regarded as the healthiest version of the sweet treat with people enjoying it as a guilt-free pleasure. Due to the lack of milk and emulsifiers, dark chocolate is not often as smooth as the other variants and can be quite bitter, but this doesn’t stop people loving it.
Nutrition and health
Contrary to what your dentist will have you believe, there are numerous health effects that can be both beneficial, and negative, depending on the type of chocolate you’re eating. As with most products, moderation is the key to a healthy lifestyle, but it comes down to more than that with chocolate.
As mentioned above, chocolate is often quite high in calories per serving. All variants of chocolate have roughly the same amount of calories (500-600) per 100g, depending on other ingredients, so it can be a fantastic way to consume a lot in a small amount of time. The real negative to the general production of chocolate is not the calories, but rather the saturated fats and high sugar content, often well over 50% for milk and white chocolate.
Dark chocolate is often seen as the healthiest of the lot because it usually doesn’t contain as much of the bad stuff, but it can still be quite high in sugar. The lower levels of poor nutrition is also enhanced by the higher levels of antioxidants, helping to reduce the risk of heart disease – this is something that can be found in milk chocolate at lower levels, and not at all in white chocolate.
The brain and chocolate
Your brain and chocolate have a love-hate relationship, with most sources containing a fantastic selection of vitamins and minerals that it needs, but also chemicals that could be good or bad. Surprisingly to most, chocolate is actually a source of caffeine, albeit small, with this and other chemicals stilly being studied for the effects on the body.
Though the ongoing studies could result in negative findings, it is known that chocolate high in cocoa solids does have a positive impact on brain function; specifically when it comes to reaction time, visual-spatial awareness and even memory. It’s not fully known why, but it is likely that the chemicals mentioned above increase blood flow to the brain, and act similarly to how coffee stimulates you. It is also known that when we eat chocolate, our brain releases endorphins and serotonin, helping us to feel generally happier and better, but again, we don’t really know why.
All forms of chocolate also heighten enkephalin in the brain in a very similar way to those triggered by heroin and morphine, albeit in a lesser way. The heightened chemical levels trigger opioid receptors in the body and subsequently impact our pain sensation, leading the body to desire more of the product and increasing the chances of addiction. Obviously chocolate is not as severe to the body as narcotics, but moderation should still be practiced.
Summary
Ultimately, as with most things we enjoy, there is a good side and a bad side, but ensuring we’re sensible in our consumption can really make chocolate a good part of our diet. As a general rule of thumb, the higher the content of cocoa solids (dark chocolate) and the lower content of dairy and sugar (milk and white), the better the chocolate is for you, promoting better heart and brain health, as well as making you feel better overall.
While the exact impact of chocolate on our bodies still isn’t known to this day, the pros of a lower risk of blood clots, stroke and heart disease are definitive, as well as the high level of vitamins and minerals that we gain with just a few bites.
So, next time you’re feeling a bit guilty eating that chocolate bar… don’t. You’re helping your body out. Just maybe portion it throughout the week.
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