We’ve all been there – you’re innocently going about your day, when suddenly a craving for chocolate demands your attention. Sure, you can try to ignore it, but eventually you’ll need at least a bite or two of the good stuff.
Have you ever wondered what makes you crave chocolate? Studies have shown that we can learn a lot about our bodies and minds by exploring these cravings.
Chocolate & Chemistry
Cravings may have a basis in chemistry. The American Chemical Society published a British/Swiss study in 2007 that claims a preference for chocolate may be “programmed” into your metabolic system.
The subjects of the study were a small group of either “chocolate-desiring” or “chocolate-indifferent” men. They were each given the same defined diet (including chocolate) for 5 days and had various metabolic measurements taken. The “chocolate-desiring” participants, who were more likely to consume chocolate regularly even before the study, consistently had lower levels of “bad” cholesterol and higher levels of some proteins. They also showed significant advantages in metabolizing other substances.
Food preferences, like chocolate cravings, shape diet choices. The researchers from the aforementioned study concluded that the body “becomes attuned to a particular diet” as a result. What you eat can change metabolic functions, so cravings may urge you to adjust your diet, which can improve health – though chocolate lovers seemed to be the healthier subjects already!
-Photo credit Jim Kost
Chocolate & Psychology
Psychologists are also interested in understanding chocolate’s allure. An Australian study published in the British Journal of Psychology examined a large number of survey results completed by adults with clinical depression. Among the findings: 45% of participants reported chocolate cravings, and 60% of those people claimed that chocolate consumption makes them “feel significantly less anxious and less irritated.”
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participants who use chocolate to self-soothe during depression also tended to have higher scores on temperament/personality scales measuring neuroticism – things like irritability, anxious worrying, and greater susceptibility to emotional dysregulation. Researchers suggested that “such cravings may reflect biological processes with homeostatic potential to redress emotional dysregulation.” In other words, our bodies may give us physical cues (like cravings) to prompt coping behaviors (eating chocolate) for psychological distress and imbalance (anxiety).
Satisfying Cravings
Both these studies, of course, are limited in focus, but they certainly indicate that we have a lot to learn about chocolate’s influence on our lives.
More importantly, however, what kind of chocolate should we eat? Science has an answer for that, too. In addition to various health benefits, the Faculty of Life Sciences at University of Copenhagen has found that dark chocolate “gives more of a feeling of satiety than milk chocolate.” Snacking on dark chocolate might reduce the temptation to indulge in junk food later!