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TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED CHALLENGE 7/1 THRU 12/30, 2013
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Chocolate, Our Favorite Sweet!; JuneFit
Topic Started: Oct 29 2004, 02:43 AM (59 Views)
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Chocolate, Our Favorite Sweet!

I couldn't resist; it's Halloween this week, and we might soon have plenty of chocolate hanging around along with other Halloween candy. Chocolate is the most popular sweet food we eat and the news isn't all bad (chocolate does have nutrients that other "all sugar" candies do not!); in fact it's rare that any single food is "bad" when we eat it in moderation. Chocolate is a food though, that many of us tend to eat a little too much of once we get going. Why?

Because it's in our genes! Loving chocolate candy and other sweets is not our fault since we're born with a preference for them! In fact, it's part of our evolutionary biology since we need sugar for survival (yes sugar!). Our brain only uses sugar as its fuel source, and our body prefers it for its energy fuel source. Studies done on infants have confirmed this innate preference because infants show an instant like for sweets versus the other primary tastes.

So here's the chocolate scoop:
a.. 1 oz. of milk chocolate is about 140 calories ( ugh, think about how little an ounce is!).
b.. 1 oz. of chocolate contains about 1 packet of sugar (so if we eat 5 pieces, it equals about 5 packets of sugar).
c.. The average amount of fat per 1 oz. of chocolate is 9 grams ( about 55% of the total calories). Of course, expensive chocolates usually contain more fat, and therefore more calories (aren't they tastier though?).
d.. Chocolate contains fiber. Yes, I said fiber! 1 oz. has about 1 gram.
e.. Chocolate can raise our blood pressure if we're taking a MAO inhibitor (this can also happen if we're taking St. John's Wort ). 1 oz. of chocolate will usually not elicit this side effect, but some of us may be sensitive.
f.. Chocolate also contains chemical compounds that have drug- like effects, one similar to marijuana, another similar to the stimulant effects of caffeine and yet another effect similar to a neurotransmitter effect involved in addiction reinforcement (no wonder we feel good eating it and we can't just easily stop!). In fact, one recent study on infants showed that these compounds have pain relieving benefits as well! Surprised that many of us broken-hearted eat chocolate?
g.. Chocolate also contains a phytochemical from the flavonoid group! This is the same type of phyto found in red wine, grapes and onions which is heart and blood vessel healthy (sorry, I like to recommend eating red grapes to reap this benefit!).
What's a chocolate lover to do? Enjoy! But in order for us to enjoy our sweets in moderation without really trying, let's eat them only after we eat a "protein" food first, even if we're not hungry. If we have a small protein snack first, or a mini meal high in protein, we will slow down how fast our tasty piece of candy (should I say plural candy?) is absorbed into our blood stream. The longer it takes for our candy to be absorbed, the slower our blood sugar levels will rise and fall, which contribute to the "I can't stop at one or two pieces effect. We will also slow down how fast our brain takes to crave more drugs, in this case the tastiest ones I know, chocolate!

Here's to having our candy Halloween or not!

JuneFit
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